Saudi Princess Loulwa al-Faisal, sister of Saudi Arabia’s new ambassador to the U.S. and member of the royal family, wants to set the record straight. World-wise as she is, the Princess is determined to correct the misperception that Saudi women are “downtrodden slaves to men.”

Loulwa said Saudi tradition supported a strong role for women because in the kingdom’s nomadic early days women managed the home front while the men were out trading and fighting.

She predicted Saudi women would continue to be veiled. But prohibitions on voting would fall once more women applied for national identification cards, while driving would come once women in urban areas decided they wanted to drive, she said. (Source: New Zealand Herald)

So, let’s see: Saudi women must still wear veils, they’re still barred from voting, they aren’t allowed to drive because it would undermine Islamic authority and “encourage women to discard their veils and mix with men”, they have to sit separated from men when they eat in public, they are restricted to women-only rooms in their own homes, and they can’t travel alone unaccompanied by a male family member.

But, gee, they’re not “downtrodden slaves to men.”

They’re just slaves.