Women in Saudi Arabia: Saudi Arabia begins to grant women some freedom

World
Europe

03:23

For decades it's been one of the toughest countries in the world to be a woman. Right now, those campaigning for their rights in Saudi Arabia say things are starting to change. In June, women will be able to drive. Saudi Arabia says they can also now attend football matches and concerts, and, as Guy Henderson discovered - start their own businesses. Here's his report from Riyadh.

Pizza Wow's the "new normal" here now. A business started by a female Saudi entrepreneur: no male permission required. We're here for an Italian-inspired meal, but with an Arabic flavor to it. A slice of the modern image this Kingdom is trying to project, that's making the life for women like Sabah Issa a whole lot easier.

SABAH ADNAN ISSA FOUNDER, PIZZA WOW "Before it was hard but during this year everything is easier. We have like one place to go – before we visit 26 places to establish any company."

Sabah's benefactor and good friend is here too, none other than HRH Princess Kholoud bint Khaled bin Nasser Bin Abdulaziz al-Saud. That is - the cousin of the Crown Prince, Mohammed Bin Salman, who's still digesting the many changes her relative is bringing in. Both are looking forward to no longer relying on a male driver in a few weeks time.

Princess Kholoud invites us into her home for further discussions about a younger generation of royals who don't necessarily see all that's happening as westernization. But, like the Crown Prince himself, as "Saudi-isation".

HRH PRINCESS KHOLOUD AL-SAUD "We are learning what we forgot. When we lost our Islam – the true Islam, the love, the friendship, our black ages came to us. Not Europe's - ours. And now we just want our time to shine."

In the eyes of many Saudi moderates, those dark ages began in 1979. The year of the Iranian revolution. And the siege of the Grand Mosque in Mecca that gave deeply conservative forces more sway. Today, those same forces are being reigned in. In the kingdom of two holy mosques, there are limits as the former imam of the grand mosque explains.

SHEIKH ADIL KALBANI FORMER IMAM OF MECCA'S GRAND MOSQUE "When it comes to how women should dress: some scholars set one standard, and some set another. Here, the ruler can decide the proper action that suits the times."

Back at Pizza Wow, it's clear the momentum is with the women of Saudi Arabia, and they're not done yet. GH, CGTN, RIYADH.