JEDDAH, 19 May 2006 — When an official at the Passport Department told a Saudi that his Indonesian housemaid had to pay a fine for a traffic violation, the man grew indignant. According to a report in the daily Al-Riyadh, the man asked the official behind the counter: Since when did the Kingdom allow women to drive, much less issue driver’s licenses to women guest workers? The official replied by referring the maid’s sponsor to the traffic department. The man was in the process of renewing his maid’s visa, which is now being delayed pending his dispute over the traffic ticket. He now faces a dilemma: Should he just go ahead and pay the traffic ticket so he can get the visa renewed, or wait until the investigation clears his maid and pay the late fine for not renewing the visa on time?
