Saudi Arabia, women and a photo..!

The old saying goes “one picture is worth a thousand words.” Most of Saudi Arabia’s Arabic newspapers carried a photograph on last Friday’s front-page that has become a talking point on blogs, Internet forums, shisha cafes, newsrooms and the corridors of power.

The photo shows Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah and Crown Prince Sultan proudly standing among more than 35 Saudi women from across the nation who voiced their views during the April 8-10 National Dialogue Forum in Najran.

Many of the women are beaming with pride over the honor of being asked to stand with the Kingdom’s rulers. Many people are saying the photo has a symbolic message for the nation that the time has come for women to be recognized.

The women participants of the forum’s session in Najran traveled to the Royal Court in Riyadh on April 25 to meet the king and the crown prince to brief them about the discussions. At the end of the meeting, a group picture was taken by the royal photographer. That was that.

From Siraj Wahab's comment in Arab News.

To read the full comment click here.