Maybe outsiders didn’t realize how private a society it was here,” she explains. While the international media has focused on the lifting of the driving ban, Al-Sharif points out that the decision to allow women into football stadiums was just as significant, bringing to attention a way of life for Saudi women that outsiders never knew existed. It’s not rainbows and butterflies, but we should lead by giving hope. It’s a sensitive situation, but he will figure it out. “Hopefully, he has the right advisors and team.

“Since they are trying to introduce reforms in a short period of time, there is huge resistance toward the prince from radicals,” she says, predicting that the situation will get worse before it gets better. Having faced a backlash herself for daring to modernize the Kingdom, Al-Sharif is all too aware of the challenges the prince will face. She is assertive, sharp, and has no time for procrastination: “It’s more important to talk about the future.” With Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud lifting the ban on women driving, she has won one battle, but there’s still a long way to go. “But everyone knows that story,” stresses Al-Sharif during our interview (she now resides in Sydney), refusing to go over old news. She received threats and calls to be publicly lashed. Her act of rebellion for her #Women2Drive campaign was part of a much bigger mission for women’s rights in Saudi Arabia. However, there was one problem – in Saudi Arabia, women were forbidden to drive.Īl-Sharif was arrested and spent nine days in prison. With her brother beside her and her son Aboudi in the back seat, she drove through the city of Khobar. In May 2011, Manal Al-Sharif got into the driving seat of a car. But with the Crown Prince changing the rules, the activist has hope for the future.

Manal Al-Sharif has campaigned endlessly to get full citizenship for Saudi women, even getting arrested along the way.

Daring to drive