In Response to Calls to Improve Status of Saudi Women, Saudi Princess Launches 'My Guardian Knows What's Best For Me' Campaign

From MEMRI:

Recently, Saudi women activists, led by Saudi Princess Jawaher bint Jalawi, launched a campaign called "My Guardian Knows What's Best For Me," calling for redefining the term "guardian" and for opposing calls by those with liberal views to improve the status of women in Saudi Arabia.

Princess Jawaher's campaign is a response to the struggle launched in July 2009 by Saudi women's rights activist Wajeha Al-Huweidar calling for abolishing the mahram ("guardian") law, which requires women to obtain the approval of a male relative for nearly any move they make in their lives. As part of her campaign, Al-Huweidar, together with her colleagues, went to the King Fahd Bridge, which joins Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, and demanded to leave the country without a guardian's approval.

Columnists who weighed in on the issue of the campaigns stated that Princess Jawaher's campaign harmed women's status by increasing men's sovereignty over them and eradicating their selves. Op-eds on Al-Huweidar's campaign appeared in both the Saudi press and in the U.S. and U.K. press.

Click here to view the excerpts from various responses to this important issue.