10 lashes for driving: Is life really improving for Saudi women?
In one week, Saudi Arabia announces it's giving women the right to vote ... but continuing to whip them for getting behind the wheel of a car

A Saudi court has sentenced Shaima Jastaina to 10 lashes for breaking the country's ban on female drivers. The ruling came just two days after King Abdullah said women would be allowed to vote in local elections scheduled for 2015 and serve on the shura advisory council — firsts that were widely welcomed as a victory for women's rights. Considering Jastaina's sentence, is life really getting better for Saudi women on balance?
Women are still treated like second-class citizens: Abdullah's suffrage announcement was nothing but a public relations trick, says Nina Shea at National Review. Letting women vote means nothing — the local and shura councils are "powerless." What's worse, the ailing, 88-year-old king might not be around in 2015, and his successor, "Wahhabi hardliner" Prince Nayef, will probably rescind the promise. To understand how the country's leaders really feel about women, look at the decision to whip a woman for driving.
"For Saudi women, one step forward and two steps back"
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Limited progress is better than none: Saudi women are definitely getting "mixed signals," says the Associated Press. King Abdullah appears to be interested in real reform, but he has to push "gently for change without antagonizing the powerful clergy and a conservative segment of the population." The king got the backing of high-ranking clerics before announcing women's suffrage. But Tuesday's harsh sentencing shows that the hardline religious establishment that controls the courts won't give up without a fight.
"Saudi woman to be lashed for defying driving ban"
If Saudia Arabia really wants change, it will let women drive: It's ridiculous to praise Saudi Arabia for progress on human rights, says David Keyes at The Daily Beast, in a week when it "beheads a man for sorcery" and sentences a woman to 10 lashes for driving a car. That only proves "how low the bar is" in a "theocratic, gender-apartheid dictatorship." If Abdullah wants the world to see him as a reformer, he doesn't have to wait until 2015 — he can stop the whipping of women for driving today.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Scientists want to fight malaria by poisoning mosquitoes with human blood
Under the radar Drugging the bugs
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Crossword: March 31, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published
-
Sudoku medium: March 31, 2025
The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
By The Week Staff Published
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
By The Week Staff Published
-
'Seriously, not literally': how should the world take Donald Trump?
Today's big question White House rhetoric and reality look likely to become increasingly blurred
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Will Trump's 'madman' strategy pay off?
Today's Big Question Incoming US president likes to seem unpredictable but, this time round, world leaders could be wise to his playbook
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Democrats vs. Republicans: who are the billionaires backing?
The Explainer Younger tech titans join 'boys' club throwing money and support' behind President Trump, while older plutocrats quietly rebuke new administration
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
US election: where things stand with one week to go
The Explainer Harris' lead in the polls has been narrowing in Trump's favour, but her campaign remains 'cautiously optimistic'
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Is Trump okay?
Today's Big Question Former president's mental fitness and alleged cognitive decline firmly back in the spotlight after 'bizarre' town hall event
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
The life and times of Kamala Harris
The Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?
By The Week UK Published
-
Will 'weirdly civil' VP debate move dial in US election?
Today's Big Question 'Diametrically opposed' candidates showed 'a lot of commonality' on some issues, but offered competing visions for America's future and democracy
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published