Saudi King Abdullah appointed 30 women to the previously all-male consultative Shura Council in decrees published on Friday, marking a historic first as he pushes reforms in the ultra-conservative kingdom.
The decrees gives women a 20 % quota in the Shura Council, a body appointed by the king to advise him on policies and legislation.
One decree amended an article in the council's statute to allow women to be members while the other named the 150 members, among them 30 women
30 Saudi Women Sworn-In -Tuesday Feb 19,2013
Thirty Saudi Women took seats in Saudi Arabia's Shura Council , for the first time in the ultra-conservative kingdom's history, as they were sworn in before King Abdullah on Tuesday at his palace in Riyadh.
The king appointed the women on Jan 11,2013, which include university graduates, human rights activists and two princesses, to the body, also known as the Saudi Consultative Council
In 2011,King Abdullah granted women the right to vote and run as candidates in the next local election, set for 2015, saying "we refuse to marginalise women's role in Saudi society."
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