Mr.

Rolf

Speth

Jaguar Land Rover Limited

Enquiries

Volkswagen

Mr.

James P.

Hackett

Ford

Mr./Mrs.

Audi

Mr./Mrs.

Hyundai

Mr.

Carlos

Ghosn

Renault

Mrs.

Mary

Barra

General Motors Company

To whom it may concern,

I’m writing to ask you to advocate for the release of the detained Saudi women’s rights activists who have been the driving force behind their government’s decision to lift its ban on women drivers.

Just a few weeks before the discriminatory ban was lifted, and as Saudi women geared up to celebrate what was set to be a momentous occasion, Saudi authorities launched a serious and ongoing crackdown on women’s rights activists. So far, they have arrested at least 13 women activists. While some have since been released, others, including Loujain al-Hathloul, Eman al-Nafjan, Aziza al-Yousef, Samar Badawi, Nassima al-Sadah, and Hatoon al-Fassi, remain detained without charge. In the past several years, all six women have, at grave personal risk, fought hard to see the driving ban overturned. Rather than being lauded for promoting equality in Saudi Arabia, they are being punished and publicly slandered for demanding basic rights and equality, even after the government has already agreed to do what they asked.

Authorities accused several of them of grave crimes under thin legal pretense. Government-aligned media launched a vicious and alarming campaign against them by branding them “traitors.” This is a critical time. According to local state media, nine individuals will be referred to Saudi Arabia’s Specialized Criminal Court, which the authorities set up in 2008 to investigate terrorism-related crimes. If convicted, those detained could face up to 20 years in prison. It is a cruel irony that the women who fought for equality are in jail, while your company stands to make substantial profits from the market those women have helped create. I urge you to now also extend such support to the women’s rights defenders whose activism helped bring that positive change about by calling on the authorities to drop charges and release them.
 
Sincerely,

{user_data~First Name} {user_data~Last Name}

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