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A Saudi woman test-drives her new vehicle after being given the right to get a license.

The Wahhabism and the Saudi family dynasty remain a part- nership focused on keeping Saudi citizens “pure” and the royal family in power. To that end, Wahhabi police patrol the cities and rural areas of Saudi Arabia, looking for people who are not living according to proper religious edicts . Such policing tactics have given the international press some interesting stories to report, like the one about the man who was arrested for eating breakfast with a woman he wasn’t related to. Religious clerics and scholars also have political power in Saudi Arabia. Both internal and external influences have resulted in a slow decline of the power and influence of the religious police.However, many conservative elements in the kingdom, including members of the royal family, fully support a strong religious authority in the country even at the expense of changes that could benefit Saudi Arabia’s economy in the long run. These changes would include liberalization of dress codes and alcohol prohibitions and loosen- ing restrictions on how men and women may socialize, work, and participate in education.

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