ABHA: Several Saudi women here have welcomed the news that the Passport Department plans to draft regulations that would allow women to travel without permission from their mahrams.

Businesswoman Nura Al-Rafi’e said that the plan would help women sort out their business abroad, and see them contribute more effectively to economic growth.

Journalist Khadija Al-Qahtani said there was a need to take more decisions that would assist women. The Arab world needs the contribution of Saudi women, she said.

Saudi women traveling abroad respect the Kingdom’s laws by dressing appropriately and ensure that they represent their country in the best possible manner, she said.

Mariam Al-Jaber, a journalist at Al-Riyadh newspaper, said social media networks have seen women make unprecedented contact with the outside world. They would become more successful if other similar decisions are taken, she said.

Khalid Jelban, a family and community doctor at King Khaled University, told Arab News that many Saudi women are highly educated, having received their degrees from top universities abroad.

They also proved themselves when they participated in international conferences on scientific, medical, cultural and economic matters. “This has boosted their confidence and enabled them to become successful on the international level,” he said.

This has also helped to shatter the stereotype that Saudi women are spoiled and do not want to work or participate in community activities, he said.

Maj. Gen. Sulaiman Al-Yahya, director general of the passport department in Riyadh, said earlier this week that the rules would be based on the reasons for travel, not age.

The procedures to allow women to travel without permission would include the interior, justice and social affairs ministries, and other bodies, he said.

He said the passport department complies with court decisions that allow women to travel abroad, or get passports issued and renewed without the approval of their parents or guardians. These were in line with laws in “advanced countries,” he said.