The religious police has been stripped of power, pop concerts are now allowed and women are even permitted to drive cars. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is liberalizing Saudi Arabian society but the system remains authoritarian. Can it work?
It’s not true that women can’t go anywhere in Saudi Arabia. You can walk wherever you want, you’ll just never get anywhere.
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It’s my first day in Riyadh, five months before the sensational images of Saudi women driving cars would travel around the world in mid-June. I wander through the streets of Salamiyah, a middle-class neighborhood in the capital, but I’m not allowed to go in anywhere. In front of the Bazi Baba restaurant, with its delicious dishes and fresh juices, there are tables and chairs and they are all occupied — by men. Women who want to buy something must stand in front of a small window where they can place their order. They must then wait outside for their food to be brought to them.
On Tahlia Street, the liveliest boulevard in the capital, coffee shops recently began springing up. The tables outside are also full — of men. The fact that they are even allowed to sit outside represents huge progress. The streets of Riyadh used to be empty. Women, though, are not allowed to sit with the men, and are required instead to sit in the “family section,” behind screens, curtains or sometimes even frosted glass.
Back in my hotel, the receptionist proudly shows me the swimming pool and fitness studio. Opening times? Unfortunately, they are only for men. Massages are also on offer, but only for men. Ultimately, I retreat to my darkened room as the sun beats down outside. I will never get used to the fact that curtains are always drawn here, completely opaque so you can’t see out – and so no one can look in.
At first glance, little has changed here in the Saudi Arabian capital when I arrive at the beginning of the year. It is my fifth visit to the country, the first time coming in 2011. This time, I have planned a stay of 12 weeks, hoping to experience the change that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, widely known as MBS, has decreed for the benefit of his people. For decades, Saudi Arabia was the country in which women were not allowed to drive. Now they can. It isn’t the only thing that seemed unthinkable just a short time ago.
