Saudi activists have written an open letter to the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urging her to publicly press Saudi Arabia to let women drive.
The letter written by Saudi Women for Driving and distributed on Change.org has amassed more than 10,000 signatures of support throughout the United States, according to the website that petitions for social change.
The petition comes after Manal Sharif, a 32-year-old computer-security consultant, was arrested on 22 May after posting on YouTube a video of herself driving her car around the eastern Saudi city of Khobar.
Many women are said to have followed her example.
The letter said the ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia means they miss medical and other important appointments and are prevented from carrying out basic errands in the absence of a good public transportation system.
The letter said that 'in the context of the Arab Spring and US commitments to support nonviolent movements for democracy, now is the time for US leaders to show their support for Saudi women's rights.'
It continued, 'our lack of this basic right to drive our own cars has been repeatedly exploited by abusive fathers, brothers, husbands and even hired drivers.'
