Samar Al-Muqren Al-Jazirah With the ban on Saudi women driving cars still in place and with little hope of a change in the situation anytime soon, why don't we consider an alternative solution? There are countless problems involved with expatriate male house drivers living with Saudi families. Just imagine a male expat spending most of his time with the wife and her children. He might sexually harass the woman and her children turning their lives into hell. The dangers of expat male drivers might also extend to housemaids. We have heard many stories of housemaids made pregnant by drivers. To put an end to this problem, we could follow the example of neighboring GCC countries which have recruited expatriate female house drivers thereby protecting families from the perils of expat male house drivers. I have a number of GCC women friends who are very happy with their expat female drivers. The women feel safe and they also feel safe when their children go out alone with a woman driver. This feeling of security can never exist with an expat male driver. As a result, cases of sexual harassment have dwindled in those countries which recruit women as house drivers. The expatriate male house driver understands all the requirements of the housewife. He knows where she wants to go and what songs she prefers to listen to in the car. This is not surprising because the house driver stays with the wife and her children from early morning to late at night. He, therefore, understands the wife much better than her own husband who is busy in his work or with his friends. Having a male house driver is not an acceptable idea which is why many of us would rather have a woman as our house driver. I am not the first to suggest recruiting expat female house drivers. However, I am repeating this suggestion in the hope that people will begin to consider it as a possible solution to the current problem which women face with their male house drivers. Recruiting expat female house drivers can serve many purposes. It will relieve decision makers of the embarrassment of not allowing Saudi women to drive their own cars. At the same time it will make the family safe. We are obliged to accept expat male house drivers because we have no other option. We do not know much about the ethics or conduct of expat male drivers before they start working for us. If they are good and well-mannered, our families will be safe, otherwise they will suffer. In the current system, a woman sits in the backseat of the car which is driven by an expat male driver which is nothing more than “khalwa” (illegal seclusion) which Islam has warned us against. The same system prevents the woman from sitting in the front seat to take the wheel of the car. What a paradox. So, please, let's recruit expat female house drivers.
