Saudi ‘Quality of Life’ Program calls for gender-mixing, no prayer closure

Saudi Arabia for the first time is looking to legalize gender mixing as part of its recently launched Quality of Life Program 2020.

The SAR 130 billion initiative also aims to cancel the mandatory closure of shops and businesses during prayer hours, it was reported.

A document outlining the program sent to news agencies Thursday night called for lobbying to amend the laws, saying the areas “require immediate regulatory changes.”

The recommendation of such changes represents a notable shift in the government’s stance on such issues. According to Bloomberg, some parts of the program’s document were later removed from online versions.

In his March interview with CBS 60 Minutes, Prince Mohammed said that the kingdom has “extremists who forbid mixing between the two sexes and are unable to differentiate between a man and a woman alone together and their being together in a work place.”

Recently, some state-sponsored events in the Kingdom have allowed for gender mixing.