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Full Article Follow Reuters Facebook Twitter RSS YouTube Read Pakistan army top brass meets amid U.S. tensions 11:11am EDT Washington state gunman shot dead after firing near school field 24 Sep 2011 UPDATE 1-Particles found to break speed of light 22 Sep 2011 WRAPUP 3-Russia's finance minister rebels over Putin plan 7:09am EDT Saudi women given right to vote 10:27am EDT Discussed 145 Obama to propose $3 trillion in deficit cuts 94 Particles recorded moving faster than light: CERN 89 House unexpectedly defeats spending bill Watched Human skin strengthened with spider silk can stop a bullet Tue, Sep 20 2011 Amateur video captures satellite falling to earth Fri, Sep 23 2011 Particles break the speed of light Fri, Sep 23 2011 Saudi women given right to vote Tweet Share this Email Print Related News Two dead as Yemen waits for Saleh speech 11:38am EDT Attack on Yemen opposition camp kills 17 Sat, Sep 24 2011 Bahrain holds vote as Shi'ite enclave protests Sat, Sep 24 2011 Yemeni forces attack main opposition camp Fri, Sep 23 2011 Special Report: Crunch time at America's richest union Thu, Sep 22 2011 Analysis & Opinion Pope Benedict wins over German Muslims in first meeting since Regensburg speech Dale Farm highlights need for new approach to travellers Related Topics World » Saudi Arabia » Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud attends prayers on the first day of Eid al-Fitr which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, at Al-Safa Palace in Mecca August 30, 2011. Credit: Reuters/Saudi Press Agency/Handout By Asma Alsharif JEDDAH | Sun Sep 25, 2011 10:27am EDT JEDDAH (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia will allow women to stand for election and vote, the king announced on Sunday, in a significant policy shift in the conservative Islamic kingdom. In a five-minute speech, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz al-Saud said women will also take part in the next session of the unelected, advisory Shura Council, which vets legislation but has no binding powers. "Because we refuse to marginalize women in society in all roles that comply with sharia, we have decided, after deliberation with our senior ulama (clerics) and others... to involve women in the Shura Council as members, starting from the next term," he said in a speech delivered to the advisory body. "Women will be able to run as candidates in the municipal election and will even have a right to vote." Women's rights are regarded as a litmus test for the government's appetite for social and political reform. Saudi Arabia adheres to a strict version of Islamic law that enforces the segregation of the sexes. "This is great news," said Wajeha al-Huwaider, a Saudi writer and women's rights activist. "Women's voices will finally be heard. "Now it is time to remove other barriers like not allowing women to drive cars and not being able to function, to live a normal life without male guardians." The king did not address the issue of women being allowed to drive. Although there is no written law against women driving, they are not issued licenses, effectively banning the practice. Women in Saudi Arabia must also have written approval from a male guardian -- a father, husband, brother or son -- to leave the country, work or even undergo certain medical operations. After entering the Shura Council chamber leaning heavily on a cane, King Abdullah, who is thought to be 87 or 88, read only a section of a longer prepared statement that was later released in full by the authorities. The part he did not read included reference to Saudi foreign policy including the kingdom's continued support for a Gulf-brokered plan for a power transition in Yemen. SEEKING CHANGE King Abdullah has long been pushing cautious political reforms, but in a country where conservative clerics and senior members of the ruling family oppose even minor changes, liberalization has been very gradual. He built a new university for students of both sexes and encouraged women to participate more in the labor market. Despite calls on social media for widespread protests in Saudi Arabia during the Arab Spring pro-democracy protests in the Middle East and north Africa, the only noteworthy demonstrations were confined to the country's Eastern Province, which is home to the country's Shi'ite minority. Activists in the country have long called for greater rights for women. Ruled by an absolute monarchy supported by conservative Wahhabi clerics, Saudi Arabia is a conservative country where religious police patrol the streets to ensure public segregation between men and women. A campaign this summer by women who broke Saudi law by driving on the kingdom's city streets prompted some arrests. Saudi Arabia will hold only its second nationwide elections in recent memory on Thursday for seats on municipal councils, but critics of the ruling al-Saud family say the poll, in which voting is limited to men, is a charade. Supporters of the absolute monarchy say the elections are designed to give Saudis a greater say in politics, but critics point out that the elections are for only half the seats on councils that have few powers. The Shura Council, which vets legislation but cannot veto it or enforce changes, is fully appointed by the king. "Despite the issue of the effectiveness of these councils, women's involvement in them was necessary. Maybe after women join there will be other changes," said Naila Attar, who organized a campaign Baladi (Arabic for My Country) calling for women's involvement in the municipal council elections. "I believe this is a step to involve women in the public sphere. It is the top of the pyramid and a step in the direction for more decisions regarding women." (Writing by Angus McDowall; Editing by Robert Woodward) World Saudi Arabia Tweet this Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/ Comments (8) breezinthru wrote: A small and surprising beginning. Sep 25, 2011 10:39am EDT -- Report as abuse judderwocky wrote: LOL. And since the Monarchy controls all three branches of government, the right to vote is basically useless. Sep 25, 2011 10:43am EDT -- Report as abuse GalacticCat wrote: So why don’t the USA attack this tyrant regime, where women are treated like chattel, cannot vote , cannot drive , cannot go out on their own. And people are stoned to death for having so-called illicit sex. We won’t attack , is it because they sit on an ocean of black gold (OIL) which we want, Is it because they purchase tens $billions of military war planes and equipment from our Corporate military business. The people in Saudi are totally controlled by severe med-evil Sharia Law and so-called free democracy(that Pres Bush) kept crowing about is stone dead in Saudi Arabia. 15 of the 19 terrorist in the 9/11 attack were Saudi Arabians . Not one was a Afghanistani, or a Iraqi or Libyan. Yet we attacked those 3 countries who did not attack the USA.. Are we (the USA) the World’s No1 hypocrites Sep 25, 2011 10:53am EDT -- Report as abuse See All Comments » Add Your Comment Social Stream (What's this?) 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