Jeddah, Aug 10 (Arab News): At a time when Saudi women are demanding that guardianship should be abolished for a sane and grown woman who can manage her own financial and practical affairs, the Passports Directorate has said that a married woman cannot travel, even with her father, without permission of her husband.
Welcoming the decision, Sheikh Abdullah Al-Manea, a member of the senior scholars’ council, said that when a woman is married, she has to abide by the orders of her husband. He further said that this was related to her going out as well as with matters related to marital affairs. He said that the Passports Directorate’s decision to not to allow a woman to travel abroad, even if with her father, without the permission of husband, is the right approach.
He said that the matter of traveling after marriage was directly linked with the husband. However, in the case of a wife who has requested divorce and it has yet not been decided, and the husband was not allowing her to travel abroad, then the matter should be solved through judicial means.
Col. Ma’la Al-Otaibi, spokesman of the Passports Directorate of the Eastern Province, said that when the husband’s name is added to the family card, it shows that he is the wife’s guardian and not the father. Therefore, it is mandatory for a married woman to get permission from her husband if she is traveling with her father. He said that the facility of getting travel permits is available on the Absher services of Jawazat.
Responding to a question on Twitter, the Passports Directorate said that if a woman is registered in the records of her husband, then the husband’s permission is mandatory.
Legal adviser and lawyer Abdurrahman Al-Lahim told a newspaper that the travel document rules do not make it a condition that there should be a guardian for a woman to travel. A sane woman who can manage her financial and other affairs is her own guardian. Therefore, there is no legal or Shariah justification to make it a condition for her to get permission of her husband or father or their approval for travel.