In Saudi Arabia, women drive for change

Ultra-conservative Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world where women are banned from driving. The Islamic nation's rulers refuse to issue them drivers licenses.

So in Saudi, when you see a woman behind the wheel, it is an act of anti-government demonstration. And dozens of Saudi women have done it, and posted the evidence of their illegal road trips on the internet.

During nearly two weeks in the closed-off kingdom, CBS News correspondent Holly Williams and her crew were accompanied by Saudi officials wherever they went.

To interview the women behind the driving campaign, Williams had to leave her hotel at night and meet them at a private house.

Madeha Al Ajroush took part in the first driving protest 24 years ago, and she's the star of countless internet videos.

"My first time I drove with a group of women, with about 45, and the police was in total shock," she told Williams. "They thought we couldn't possibly be Saudi women. Saudi women are very quiet, and they don't ask for their rights."

But the women all say the right to drive is really just symbolic.

(For more of Holly Williams' reporting on life for women in Saudi Arabia, watch "CBS This Morning" and the "CBS Evening News" on Thursday)

One of the women who CBS News met, Minura, said the bigger problem is what's known as the male guardianship system, which means every Saudi woman must have a close male relative's approval to study, work or travel outside the country.

"It's like you are not free," she told Williams. "It's like living your life in a box. You can't live life in a box."

Saudi Arabia is a deeply religious place where many people hold tightly to their traditions. There's widespread sex segregation; at restaurants, banks and schools, there are entrances and spaces for men to occupy, and others for women and children.

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Islamic scholar Dr. Ahmad Ibn Saifuddin told us women driving would pose a threat to Saudi society.

"There are many issues that will somehow affect the unity and the compassion within the family," he told Williams. "I'm not saying that we're against freedom, but this is going to be an added burden to women. That's why women are not interested in this, and of course you can ask women this question."

Many in Saudi Arabia would agree with him. But other Saudis find the ban on women driving laughable.

An online video spoof of the Bob Marley tune "No Woman, No Cry" has gone viral. "No Woman, No Drive" pokes fun at Muslim clerics who claim driving could harm a woman's reproductive organs.

One of the people behind the video was Hisham Fageeh, a Saudi comedian-turned media entrepreneur. The video has been viewed more than 12 million times on YouTube, and Fageeh told Williams he and his collaborators didn't see that coming.

"We talked about it for a split second like, 'oh, maybe it'll go viral, huh.' And that's it."

In a country where questioning authority can be dangerous, Fageeh was keen to stress that his comedy has no political motives.

But the women behind the driving campaign told us they believe change is inevitable.

"We believe our government will choose the good path," Munira said. "We believe, really."

Madeha, who helped start the movement to put women behind the wheel, told Williams it's not a question of if, but only "when?"