Saudi women celebrate Women's Day with a jog in Jeddah

By Emily Wither

 

Women run during an event marking International Women's Day in Old Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser

 

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (Reuters) - Paying no heed to bemused onlookers, a group of women in the Saudi city of Jeddah marked International Women's Day on Thursday by exercising one of their newly acquired freedoms: the right to go for a jog.

 

Saudi women have had a momentous year as the young, reform-minded Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman lifted a number of key restrictions on their rights. Women can now attend football matches, partake in sports themselves and by the summer will be allowed to drive cars.

 

Saudi Arabia is still one of the most restrictive countries for women in the world. The deeply conservative kingdom has no women ministers and retains a guardianship system requiring women to have a male relative's approval for important decisions.

 

But with even that being chipped away, it is hard to overstate how much Saudi women's lives are being transformed.

 

In Jeddah's historic district, smiling women wearing traditional full-length robes adapted for sports cheered and one even skipped with joy as they pounded through the sleepy alleys past puzzled shopowners.

 

The government introduced physical education for girls last year and began licensing women's sports clubs, but Saudis are still coming around to women running in public.

 

"This is just the beginning of a revolution for women in Saudi Arabia. In jobs, in our lives, in society, everything is going to change for Saudi women," said one of the joggers, university student Sama Kinsara.

 

Kinsara is studying film, a major she will be able to use at home this year as Saudi Arabia lifts a 35-year-old ban on cinemas.

 

Yasmine Hassan, a member of the Bliss Runners group organising the event, said it was aimed at empowering women.

 

"This is a message that we would like to send them and say, 'Come, you're not alone, we will do this together and the time is now'".

 

"Hopefully by next year there are going to be way more rights given to Saudi women, the ones that we deserve," she said.

 

(Writing by Stephen Kalin; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-03-09

things are bad when jogging pop up as the way to celebrate/party

Brave,intrepid women.

i knew MC Hammer wouldn't go out of style

Welcome to the 20th Century, Saudis. 

 

(And yes, I do know what century this is!).

You must also realize they were jogging in Jeddah; the most progressive city in Saudi Arabia.

5 minutes ago, wombat said:

Truly splendid.

 

Move to the head of the class.

If you had a room full of babies, and a few took their first steps, you would probably say, "Hooray!"

 

Baby steps, ......are better than no steps.

 

Saudi men and their Immans should be given pork rinds & dirt mixed with used tampons for dinner.  They've been suppressing half their population for centuries.

2 minutes ago, boomerangutang said:

If you had a room full of babies, and a few took their first steps, you would probably say, "Hooray!"

 

Baby steps, ......are better than no steps.

 

Saudi men and their Immans should be given pork rinds & dirt mixed with used tampons for dinner.  They've been suppressing half their population for centuries.

Yes,

 

The first step in any journey is the hardest one,,

 

These women are very courageous,

 

I celebrate human courage..don't you?

6 hours ago, boomerangutang said:

Saudi men and their Immans should be given pork rinds & dirt mixed with used tampons for dinner.

Completely disgusting...pork rinds?   

7 hours ago, Odysseus123 said:

Yes, The first step in any journey is the hardest one, These women are very courageous,

I celebrate human courage..don't you?

I do. It's just a bit sad that they're so far behind the 8 ball, that a few women jogging is a big deal.  

Also in today's news, Emilia Earhart.   When will the Saudis get someone on the level with Earhart?  23rd century?

Women's day rant from Pat Condell 

https://www.liveleak.com/view?t=kMcEb_1520519917

Edited March 9, 20188 yr by evadgib

1 hour ago, Andaman Al said:

Completely disgusting...pork rinds?   

 

And also silly - guess many of these women identity (even privately) as Muslim. Why would they want to do something like that?

8 hours ago, boomerangutang said:

If you had a room full of babies, and a few took their first steps, you would probably say, "Hooray!"

 

Baby steps, ......are better than no steps.

 

Saudi men and their Immans should be given pork rinds & dirt mixed with used tampons for dinner.  They've been suppressing half their population for centuries.

For most of those centuries so were Western men. 

2 hours ago, Andaman Al said:

Completely disgusting...pork rinds?   

Pork scratchings and a pint of mild.  What more could you ask for?

Christians went through the same B.S when preachers tell stories contradicting the power of minds!  Now Muslims are just starting to rely on their minds instead.

20 hours ago, smotherb said:

You must also realize they were jogging in Jeddah; the most progressive city in Saudi Arabia.

Yes, my thought was whether this would happen in Riyadh..... or how about Buraidah.

18 hours ago, wombat said:

Saudi Arabia does not generally allow tourists.  

18 hours ago, wombat said:

was hard to see the detail so took TongueInCheek stance, and assume that the thing in the isle is their camphor burning stove to cook with

 

 

(p.s. a lot of them died on the way to mecca in '81, when one of those stoves misbehaved badly)

On ‎3‎/‎9‎/‎2018 at 11:12 AM, smotherb said:

You must also realize they were jogging in Jeddah; the most progressive city in Saudi Arabia.

100% correct. I was allowed to sightsee with a female not related to me in Jeddah over 20 years ago, which would never happen in the capital.

Still had a Saudi call the police on us ( they did nothing as we had the correct permission ).

Even so, if a woman went out on her own, it might have a different ending, and I see they were wearing the usual clothing, not jogging outfits.

Saudi still has a century or three to go before they get real.

Saudi Arabia is currently going through a phase of liberalisation.

 

Rather than leap to demonstrate one's own illiberal views, by for example posting blatantly generalised or offensive comments, perhaps now is the time to support liberalisation and the steps being taken in Saudi Arabia.

 

 

23 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Saudi Arabia is currently going through a phase of liberalisation.

 

Rather than leap to demonstrate one's own illiberal views, by for example posting blatantly generalised or offensive comments, perhaps now is the time to support liberalisation and the steps being taken in Saudi Arabia.

It seems indeed that some of the posters are not even not well informed, but ignorant in this matter and likely never visited the KSA. 
Therefore, it may indeed be difficult to even conceptualize how a tribal society is organized, and why at some stage the concepts that are now sneered at were, at that time, completely logical.
Restricted freedom of woman's movement was a big thing, and the fact that these women were not harassed by religious police with canes is remarkable.
Good for them, and for the new leadership that is defying a large conservative part of the population.
One step at a time is still progress.
 

On 3/10/2018 at 8:52 AM, tifino said:

was hard to see the detail so took TongueInCheek stance, and assume that the thing in the isle is their camphor burning stove to cook with

 

 

(p.s. a lot of them died on the way to mecca in '81, when one of those stoves misbehaved badly)

I assume "them" meaning believers that went on a pilgrimage to Mecca.

got nothing to do with feminists.

2 hours ago, KKr said:

I assume "them" meaning believers that went on a pilgrimage to Mecca.

got nothing to do with feminists.

 

1. yes

2. No.   I don't think we'd see their men getting down on their knees to cook for the girls