Saudi women raise their voices over male guardianship
"In Saudi Arabia, women may seldom be seen, but they are starting to be heard -- especially when it comes to the country's guardianship system.
Laws in the deeply conservative Kingdom are heavily influenced by religious leaders and they dictate that Saudi women can't study, can't work, can't travel, can't even open a bank account without permission from their guardians -- their closest male relatives.
'It gives men total control over women's lives,' Wajeha Al-Huwaider, one of Saudi Arabia's most vocal and visible women's rights activists, told CNN. "So they have no right to take any decisions regarding their own affairs."
Saudi Arabia's strict guardianship system has long drawn criticism. A 2008 report from Human Rights Watch stated that 'Saudi Arabia's male guardianship of women and policies of sex segregation stop women from enjoying their basic rights.'"
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