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'One giant leap for Saudi women'

They now can travel without male guardian's permission

Afp, Riyadh
Saudi Arabia will allow women to travel abroad without approval from a male "guardian", the government said Thursday, ending a restriction that drew international censure and prompted extreme attempts to flee the kingdom.
The landmark reform erodes the longstanding guardianship system that renders adult women as legal minors and allows their "guardians" - husband, father and other male relatives - to exercise arbitrary authority over them.
The decision, following years of campaigning by activists, comes after high-profile attempts by women to escape their guardians despite a string of reforms including a historic decree last year that overturned the world's only ban on female motorists.
"A passport will be granted to
any Saudi national who submits an application,” said a government ruling published in the official gazette Umm al-Qura.
The regulation effectively allows women over the age of 21 to obtain passports and leave the country without their guardian's permission, the pro-government Okaz newspaper and other local media reported, citing senior authorities.
Women in the kingdom have long required permission from their male "guardians" to marry, renew their passports or exit the country.
The reform grants women greater autonomy and mobility, the pro-government Saudi Gazette newspaper said, hailing the decision as "one giant leap for Saudi women".
The changes announced Thursday also grant Saudi women what has long been a male entitlement - the right to officially register childbirth, marriage or divorce and to be recognised as a guardian to children who are minors.
The decision was hailed in the kingdom yesterday as a historic leap for gender equality, but it also drew anger from religious conservatives.
It triggered a wave of jubilation on social media, with the hashtag "No
guardianship over women travel" and "This is our time” gaining traction. Many also posted humorous memes of women dashing to airports lugging suitcases and being trailed by male relatives.
The reform also drew backlash from arch-conservatives, many of whom shared old video sermons on social media by Saudi clerics advocating guardianship laws.
Some also denounced the change as "unlslamic" in a society that traditionally sees men as protectors of women.