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Cairo, Egypt - Saudi Arabia's king has just give women the "right" to vote - but one has also just been sentenced to 10 lashes for daring to drive a car.
So, in the same week of women getting the franchise, a Saudi court ordered a woman to be whipped - the first time a legal punishment has been handed down for a violation of the long-time driving ban in the ultra-conservative Muslim nation.
PLEDGE IS NORMAL
Saudi's King Abdullah had promised to protect women's rights and allow women to vote.
Normally, police just stop female drivers, question them, then let them go after signing a pledge not to drive again. Dozens of women have continued to take to the roads since June in a campaign to break the taboo.
The mixed signals highlight the challenge for Abdullah, known as a reformer, in pushing gently for change without antagonising the clergy and a conservative segment of the population.
Abdullah said he had the backing of the clerical council but activists saw the sentence as retaliation for his statement by the Saudi religious establishment that controls the courts and oversees the intrusive religious police.
"Our king doesn't deserve that," said Sohila Zein el-Abydeen, a prominent female member of the governmental National Society for Human Rights. "The sentence is shocking but we were expecting this kind of reaction."
Shaima Jastaina (30), was found guilty of driving without permission, activist Samar Badawi said. The punishment is usually carried out within a month. It was not possible to reach Jastaina but Badawi, in touch with Jastaina's family, said she had appealed against the verdict.
Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world that bans women - Saudi and foreign - from driving. The prohibition forces families to hire live-in drivers and those who cannot afford the $300 to $400 a month must rely on male relatives to drive them to work, school, shopping - even to the doctor.
There are no written laws that restrict women from driving. Rather, the ban is rooted in conservative traditions and religious views that hold giving freedom of movement to women would make them vulnerable to sin.
Activists say the religious justification is irrelevant.
BREAKING TABOO
Since June, dozens of women have been involved in a campaign to try to break the taboo and impose a new status quo. The campaign's founder, Manal al-Sherif, who posted a video of herself driving on Facebook, was detained for more than 10 days. She was released after signing a pledge not to drive or speak to media.
Since then, women have been appearing in the streets driving their cars once or twice a week. Recently several were summonsed for questioning by the Prosecutor-General and referred to trial.
One, housewife Najalaa al-Harriri, drove only twice, not out of defiance but out of need. "I don't have a driver. I needed to drop my son at school and pick up my daughter from work. The day the king gave his speech; I was sitting at the prosecutor's office and was asked why I needed to drive, how many times I drove, and where."
She is to stand trial in a month. Another flogging sentence is possible.
So, in the same week of women getting the franchise, a Saudi court ordered a woman to be whipped - the first time a legal punishment has been handed down for a violation of the long-time driving ban in the ultra-conservative Muslim nation.
PLEDGE IS NORMAL
Saudi's King Abdullah had promised to protect women's rights and allow women to vote.
Normally, police just stop female drivers, question them, then let them go after signing a pledge not to drive again. Dozens of women have continued to take to the roads since June in a campaign to break the taboo.
The mixed signals highlight the challenge for Abdullah, known as a reformer, in pushing gently for change without antagonising the clergy and a conservative segment of the population.
Abdullah said he had the backing of the clerical council but activists saw the sentence as retaliation for his statement by the Saudi religious establishment that controls the courts and oversees the intrusive religious police.
"Our king doesn't deserve that," said Sohila Zein el-Abydeen, a prominent female member of the governmental National Society for Human Rights. "The sentence is shocking but we were expecting this kind of reaction."
Shaima Jastaina (30), was found guilty of driving without permission, activist Samar Badawi said. The punishment is usually carried out within a month. It was not possible to reach Jastaina but Badawi, in touch with Jastaina's family, said she had appealed against the verdict.
Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world that bans women - Saudi and foreign - from driving. The prohibition forces families to hire live-in drivers and those who cannot afford the $300 to $400 a month must rely on male relatives to drive them to work, school, shopping - even to the doctor.
There are no written laws that restrict women from driving. Rather, the ban is rooted in conservative traditions and religious views that hold giving freedom of movement to women would make them vulnerable to sin.
Activists say the religious justification is irrelevant.
BREAKING TABOO
Since June, dozens of women have been involved in a campaign to try to break the taboo and impose a new status quo. The campaign's founder, Manal al-Sherif, who posted a video of herself driving on Facebook, was detained for more than 10 days. She was released after signing a pledge not to drive or speak to media.
Since then, women have been appearing in the streets driving their cars once or twice a week. Recently several were summonsed for questioning by the Prosecutor-General and referred to trial.
One, housewife Najalaa al-Harriri, drove only twice, not out of defiance but out of need. "I don't have a driver. I needed to drop my son at school and pick up my daughter from work. The day the king gave his speech; I was sitting at the prosecutor's office and was asked why I needed to drive, how many times I drove, and where."
She is to stand trial in a month. Another flogging sentence is possible.
