Dear Pen-ers: Recently I was in Saudi Arabia, & realized how little I knew of what was going on there regarding the dissident movements. I turn to you for help in locating:
i) Good RECENT books on Saudi Arabia politics; & ii) After having talked to many Saudi women physicians, references regarding the teachings of the Koran itself on Hijab.
As an aside, Saudis that I talked to in some detail, & who were quite open about matters - made a huge distinction (repetitively) between "tradition" & "custom" - on the one hand - & "religion". Curiously this appeared to be whether they were pro-Hijab or otherwise. All very confusing. But the contradictions in Saudi seem close to exploding point - to a naive outsider on a quick jaunt. Thanks in advance to those who can assist. Hari Kumar
