Saudi women troll men telling them ‘You won’t drive’
It is a matter of weeks until the ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia will be lifted.
Some men have taken to social media to vent their dissatisfaction with the change in the law, using an Arabic hashtag that translates as: “You won’t drive.”
However, the hashtag went viral when Saudi women began hitting back at the sexist remarks.
“You wont drive” has been used on Twitter over 65,000 times since Monday.
Lots of women posted funny pictures and videos to accompany their response to the hashtag.
A number of women decided to use the phrase to post pictures of their dream cars.
One user shared a photograph of a bright pink Audi along with the caption: “My car: June 2018”.
Some other women shared photographs of their Saudi Driving School books.
Twitter user @Laam_92 simply and defiantly captioned her contribution to the trend: “I will drive.”
Others suggested that the men who “give themselves the right to interfere in something that concerns women” were “losers”.
While many of the responses to the hashtag were light-hearted, some shared a more serious analysis of the trend.
Sarah Al-Otaibi wrote that “this disgusting hashtag” was being used “to threaten women who might even think of driving”.
A potted timeline of Saudi change
The lifting of the driving ban is one of a number of changes brought in by 32-year-old Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in recent years.
Here are some key changes:
December 2015: For the first time, women vote and stand as candidates in local elections
April 2016: The government restricts the authority of the religious police to question and detain members of the public
September 2017: King Salman issues a decree that will allow women to drive
September 2017: Women are allowed to take part in public events to mark National Day.
October 2017: State TV airs a concert by Arab singer Umm Kulthum, the first such broadcast in decades
October 2017: The government says women will be allowed to attend public sports events from 2018
January 2018: Women are allowed into a football stadium for the first time
February 2018: A cleric of the highest Saudi religious body says women are under no religious obligation to wear abayas (black robes)
February 2018: Women are allowed to get jobs in the hotel industry in the Muslim holy city of Mecca
February 2018: Restrictions on celebrating Valentine’s Day are lifted
April 2018: Saudi Arabia hosts its first ever Fashion Week
April 2018: King Salman signs deals with France on creating a national opera
April 2018: The country hosts a women’s bicycle race for the first time
April 2018: The kingdom holds its first cinema screening in decades.
Source: bbc.com
