Saudi Arabia allowed women to register to stand in local elections on
Sunday August 30,2015, in a historic first for the ultra-conservative kingdom.
In a country where women face a host of restrictions including a driving ban, the move was welcomed as an important step forward.
But it also faced criticism from hardline conservatives and from rights groups who said it does not go far enough in providing women with equal rights.
It came after another first earlier this month, when women started to register as voters for the December 2015 local elections at centres run by all-female staff, separate from registration facilities for Saudi males.
Candidate registration is to run until September 17,2015 while voter registration ends on Sep14,2015
Out of 1,263 polling stations in 284 municipalities across the monarchy, 424 have been reserved for women voters
In a country where women face a host of restrictions including a driving ban, the move was welcomed as an important step forward.
But it also faced criticism from hardline conservatives and from rights groups who said it does not go far enough in providing women with equal rights.
It came after another first earlier this month, when women started to register as voters for the December 2015 local elections at centres run by all-female staff, separate from registration facilities for Saudi males.
Candidate registration is to run until September 17,2015 while voter registration ends on Sep14,2015
Out of 1,263 polling stations in 284 municipalities across the monarchy, 424 have been reserved for women voters
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