King Saud—may God have mercy on him—was keen to find solutions to many issues concerning women by providing them with direct channels of communication. His majlis was open every night for women to meet him and present their concerns through his wives and daughters, who acted as intermediaries in accordance with the customary practice in Najd.
He also did not object to the emergence of Saudi women in literary and cultural fields. Al‑Manhal magazine, in its issue of Jumada al‑Akhirah 1375 AH (1956 CE), published an article by the Egyptian writer Na‘mat Ahmad Fu’ad titled “The Ideal Mother.” In its issue of Jumada al‑Ula 1375 AH, the magazine also published short stories by the Saudi writer Jihan Shakib Al‑Amawi and poems by the Saudi poet Safiyyah Zaki Abu Shadi. Al‑Manhal faced criticism from some members of the public who objected to the mention of a Saudi female writer at that time. [1]
King Saud likewise had no objection to granting interviews to Arab and foreign female journalists. Many of them visited the Kingdom and wrote about his family life. The Egyptian writer Zaynab Al‑Ghazali Al‑Jubayli—may God have mercy on her—who was a member of the “Muslim Ladies Group,” conducted several interviews with King Saud beginning in 1371 AH, when he was Crown Prince, and she also interviewed his wife and daughters. In her book “A King and the Hopes of a Nation,” published in Rajab 1373 AH (1954 CE) after his accession to the throne, she noted that she had criticized certain shortcomings she observed during her visit to the Kingdom. King Saud received her remarks with openness and even expressed a desire to hear more. In her book, she urged King Saud to increase attention to women’s education, establish girls’ schools throughout the Kingdom, and place them under trustworthy supervision, highlighting the historical role of women and their participation in struggle since the time of the Prophet—peace be upon him. [2]
Indeed, this is precisely what King Saud did: he opened girls’ schools across the Kingdom through the General Presidency for Girls’ Education, established by royal decree, thereby granting girls the opportunity to pursue education.
Source: Fahda bint Saud