Saudi Men Threaten Violence Against Women Drivers

While Western women may take the ability to drive for granted, and bear the occasional derogatory comment about "woman drivers," women in Saudi Arabia are largely forbidden to drive. But that may be about to change - but not without a fight from the men.

Recently there have been women organizing in Saudi Arabia to drive cars through their towns. We the Women was started by a woman named Areej (last name withheld for her own safety), but as of now, its own site is gone - only references to it remain. Even the Facebook pages have been taken down.

However, the Saudi men's reply to this movement can still be found on Facebook (Facebook page is in Arabic, and Technorati is not responsible for the content.) "The June 17 Iqal campaign to prevent women from driving" is how this movement is generally being translated into English, and it is in direct response to the women's movement translated as "I will drive starting on June 17."

Various Western news outlets have offered a short explanation of the situation in Saudi Arabia, including the UK's Daily Mail. The report, like other media outlets, describes the debate over Saudi women driving, and states that there is at least one movement out there encouraging men to beat women if they choose to drive this summer.

The movement asking Saudi women to drive on June 17th was started by Manal Alsharif, who has her own group of "fans" on Facebook. Currently Saudi women are supposed to be accompanied by a chaperone, and must be driven either by a male family member or a hired driver. While those for the rules state that this leaves the women being treated like royalty, the women that want to drive consider it a hindrance.

It is not surprising that there is a movement of men suggesting violent reprisals against these women, nor is it unpredictable that the vast majority of information on the women's movement has been essentially purged from the Web. However, it does make one pause and consider the status quo on the Web when it comes to sites like Facebook. Yes, it is probably appropriate to honor the rule of law in foreign nations when it comes to content being posted by citizens of those countries on servers that actually exist in the U.S. Arguments over who owns what when it comes to the Web will remain a bone of contention in courts worldwide, and it is unlikely that there will ever be a long-standing consensus on these issues.

When one considers cases like this, it is tempting to draw a parallel with perennially objectionable content from the world of "adult entertainment." There, the rule of thumb has tended toward "the law of the land where the server exists is the law of the virtual land." As long as there are disclaimers stating that the user takes the responsibility for viewing the material, including any legal penalties in their home nation, then all is well with the world. Based on that theory, Facebook could arguably become the safe haven for people around the world that want to post information on movements of this kind. Yes, they would have to bear the brunt of whatever legal problems they would face for making those postings. But, it isn't necessarily a good business plan for a social media company to become an information outlet for dissenting parties in foreign nations - unless, of course, you're Twitter.

Regardless what happens on the Web, it is probably a good idea for anyone keeping tabs on people fighting for freedom in the Middle East to mark their calendars. June 17th is the day that the women of Saudi Arabia plan to take the driver's seat. While it's unlikely that anyone outside of that country will be able to prevent violent retaliation against those women, it should be possible to bear witness to it. So, be prepared to be a witness. Both the women and men in Saudi Arabia should at least know that the world is watching.