Riyadh, Saudi Arabia ? He’s a democrat in an autocratic state, a prince who does not believe in the royal family’s monopoly on power.

In a country where few dare criticize the king and the Islamic establishment, Prince Talal calls for a constitutional monarchy, an elected parliament and a sharp reduction in the clergy’s powers.

And in a land that forces women to cover from head to toe, bans them from driving and segregates them from men, Talal is the only influential male openly urging the restrictions’ removal, saying they were imposed by men who regard women as sexual objects.

“It’s all about sex,” he said in an interview last week with The Associated Press.

Prince Talal bin Abdul-Aziz is a brother of Saudi Arabia’s King Fahd. While he holds no office in the government, he is the one reformist royal who is also a confidant of Crown Prince Abdullah, the de facto ruler since King Fahd suffered a stroke in 1995.

Talal’s opinion counts among moderates within the ruling family, and for its conservative members he’s posing questions they cannot ignore because they are coming from a brother.

Talal, who is in his 70s, has been pushing for a more open political system for decades. In 1962, he had to flee to Egypt because of his liberal ideas.

Talal, a son of Saudi Arabia’s founder, King Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, was allowed to return in 1964 after reconciling with King Faisal.

He now heads a charity, the Arab Gulf Program for United Nations Development Organizations.

Talal said Saudis should shed their fear of speaking their minds and carry out a “peaceful, nonviolent struggle” for reform.

“We want to implement democracy gradually and on the basis of consensus between the ruler and the masses,” he said.

He said a first step would be giving more power to the Shura Council, an advisory body appointed by the king. He said it should be more like a parliament, with oversight over the budget and Cabinet ministers’ performance.

“Since the establishment of the kingdom (in 1932), there hasn’t been movement toward an open society,” Talal said. “We demand such openness.”

Talal also said the powerful religious establishment should stay in place, but “should not act like a state within a state.” It’s a view many Saudis voice privately but dare not express openly for fear of retribution.

On the issue of women, Talal said there is no religious reason why women in Saudi Arabia cannot drive or work side-by-side with men.

“It’s all about sex,” he said. “Every time they (fundamentalists) see a woman, they see her (as a sex object). The strange thing is you’re applying this to your mother, your sister, your wife.”