Women in Saudi Arabia experience widespread discrimination in Saudi politics, economy and society. They have benefited from some legal reforms since , [ 7 ] [ 8 ] [ 9 ] [ 10 ] after facing fundamentalist Sahwa dominance for decades. Women's societal roles in Saudi Arabia are heavily affected by Islamic and local traditions of the Arabian Peninsula.
Wahhabism , the Hanbali school of Sunni Islam , traditions of the Arabian Peninsula and national and local laws all impact women's rights in Saudi Arabia. Commission on the Status of Women for to , a move that was widely criticized internationally. Gender roles in Saudi society come from local culture and interpretations of Sharia law, or the divine will. Scholars of the Quran and hadith sayings and accounts of Muhammad's life derive its interpretations.
In Saudi culture, the Sharia is interpreted according to a strict Sunni Islam form known as the way of the Salaf righteous predecessors or Wahhabism. The law is mostly unwritten, leaving judges with significant discretionary power, which they usually exercise in favor of tribal traditions. Varying interpretations have led to controversy. For example, Sheikh Ahmed Qassim Al-Ghamdi, chief of the Mecca region's Islamic religious police , the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice , also known as the mutaween , has said that Sharia does not prohibit ikhtilat gender mixing.
According to the Encyclopedia of Human Rights , sex segregation is a key aspect of Islamic legal theory used to curtail women's rights. The Sharia legal notion of 'shielding from corruption' dar al-fasaad justifies this segregation. Many Saudis do not see Islam itself as the main impediment to women's rights, and "It's the culture, not the religion" is a common Saudi saying.
The peninsula is the ancestral home of patriarchal , nomadic tribes, in which separation of women and men, and namus honour , are considered central. The driving ban for women is the best example. Saudis often invoke the life of Muhammad to prove that Islam allows for strong women. His first wife, Khadijah , was a powerful businesswoman who employed him and proposed marriage on her own.
