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A heavy police presence thwarted Saudi womens weekend protest about them not being allowed to drive - 'and a Saudi comedian has parodied Bob Marley's 'No Woman No Cry' in a video titled 'No Woman No Drive'!
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - In October 2013 Wheels24 reported that Saudi women were planning a mass protest about being barred from driving despite government warnings and a heavy police presence thwarted their call for many women to get behind the wheel.
Video: 'No Woman No Drive'
'I DROVE, NOBODY STOPPED ME'
Activists are calling on Saudi women to continue driving in public and posting images or video of themselves doing so.
A tweet on the campaign's Twitter feed read: "The campaign continues to normalise driving in our country, whose laws allow the practice of this right."
Activists said no specific law in Saudi Arabia banned women from driving but they could not apply for a driving licence. Government officials say the ban was effect because it accorded with the wishes of society in the conservative kingdom.
Activists posted video on YouTube of women driving on October 26 2013. Police were mobilised in Riyadh and the interior ministry contacted leaders of the campaign demanding that they end their protest. Police erected roadblocks and peered through car windows to ensure women were not driving.
Azza al-Shamasi, a woman who videod herself driving to a hospital, said: "Yesterday there were lots of police cars so I didn't take the risk. I only took the wheel for a few minutes. Today I drove and nobody stopped me. For sure I will drive every day doing my normal tasks."
'NO WOMAN NO DRIVE'
Meanwhile a male Saudi comedian has created an hilarious YouTube video in support of the women's driving campaign. The video is a parody of Bob Marley's 'No Woman No Cry' titled 'No Woman No Drive'.
Some of the lyrics in the video:
I remember when you used to sit in the family car but in backseat.
In this bright future you can't forget your past, so put your car key away.
Comedian Hisham Fageeh's video is gently, scathingly, sarcastic, topical and bashes the ridiculous notion raised by an Islamic cleric that driving could "damage a woman’s ovaries".
Saudi Arabia is the only country to bar women from driving. It also forbids them from travelling abroad, opening a bank account or working without permission from a male relative.
The nation's king, Abdullah, has pushed some cautious reforms to give women more employment opportunities and a greater public voice in Saudi Arabia but has often faced resistance from senior clergy.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - In October 2013 Wheels24 reported that Saudi women were planning a mass protest about being barred from driving despite government warnings and a heavy police presence thwarted their call for many women to get behind the wheel.
Video: 'No Woman No Drive'
'I DROVE, NOBODY STOPPED ME'
Activists are calling on Saudi women to continue driving in public and posting images or video of themselves doing so.
A tweet on the campaign's Twitter feed read: "The campaign continues to normalise driving in our country, whose laws allow the practice of this right."
Activists said no specific law in Saudi Arabia banned women from driving but they could not apply for a driving licence. Government officials say the ban was effect because it accorded with the wishes of society in the conservative kingdom.
Activists posted video on YouTube of women driving on October 26 2013. Police were mobilised in Riyadh and the interior ministry contacted leaders of the campaign demanding that they end their protest. Police erected roadblocks and peered through car windows to ensure women were not driving.
Azza al-Shamasi, a woman who videod herself driving to a hospital, said: "Yesterday there were lots of police cars so I didn't take the risk. I only took the wheel for a few minutes. Today I drove and nobody stopped me. For sure I will drive every day doing my normal tasks."
'NO WOMAN NO DRIVE'
Meanwhile a male Saudi comedian has created an hilarious YouTube video in support of the women's driving campaign. The video is a parody of Bob Marley's 'No Woman No Cry' titled 'No Woman No Drive'.
Some of the lyrics in the video:
I remember when you used to sit in the family car but in backseat.
In this bright future you can't forget your past, so put your car key away.
Comedian Hisham Fageeh's video is gently, scathingly, sarcastic, topical and bashes the ridiculous notion raised by an Islamic cleric that driving could "damage a woman’s ovaries".
Saudi Arabia is the only country to bar women from driving. It also forbids them from travelling abroad, opening a bank account or working without permission from a male relative.
The nation's king, Abdullah, has pushed some cautious reforms to give women more employment opportunities and a greater public voice in Saudi Arabia but has often faced resistance from senior clergy.
