Several women who publicly supported a campaign to defy Saudi Arabia’s de facto ban on women driving fear they are being followed and investigated by the country’s secret police. The women, who requested anonymity due to their concerns for their safety, described to CNN Monday how they’d been “followed by cars filled with men since Saturday,” when dozens of women across the kingdom participated in the October 26 Women’s Driving Campaign. At least five women said vehicles had been parked outside their houses since Saturday. “I don’t know for sure if it is secret police or just men trying to harass us because we want the right to drive, but they are trying to intimidate us,” said one woman. “I’m positive I’m being followed by the secret police since Saturday,” said another, who added she’d gotten no official word she was being investigated.
Over the weekend, in extraordinary act of civil disobedience, at least 41 women got behind the wheel and drove on the streets of various Saudi cities. Many filmed themselves and uploaded those videos to YouTube. Now, several of them say the euphoria of that moment has quickly turned to worry over what might happen to them next. Many wonder if they’ll be punished for hitting the open road in such a closed society. While no formal law exists in Saudi Arabia specifically barring women from driving, religious edicts are often interpreted there to mean it is illegal for females to do so. Other Saudi women have been penalized in the past for defying the ban.
