Women2Drive campaign faced roadblock due to few risk takers

Women2Drive campaign faced roadblock due to few risk takers

A Facebook campaign that urged Saudi women to drive in a bid to overturn a ban on female motorists was a failure, according to  local media. Traffic police say no one was arrested and there were no accidents reported on June 17.

“The traffic police did not expect women to drive on Friday and not one ticket was issued for women that day,” said a Makkah province police source.

The campaign urged women who drove on the day to upload videos of them driving.

A Saudi woman living in Riyadh uploaded a clip of her driving to the supermarket at 12.45 p.m. the same day. “We just want to run our lives by ourselves. We don’t need to be driven around. We need to go to work, shop and run errands without having to rely on drivers,” she said in the video.

The campaign was deemed a failure as hardly any women drove that day despite the amount of support for the initiative.

“There were only 40 women who drove in the Kingdom. We expected more,” said Bayan Essam, one of the women supporting the cause.

“I believe the reason behind that is because only a few women know how to drive and there are even fewer who actually have international driving licenses.”

Columnist at Al-Watan newspaper and professor of linguistics at the girls’ college of King Abdulaziz University, Amira Kashgari, also drove her car in Jeddah.

A group of young men told Arab News they were ready to report any women driving to the police. “We will take pictures of them and give the police their number plates and the time and place where they drove,” said Hattan Abu Ras, one of the men. “Those women are going against Shariah and the Supreme Council of Senior Religious Scholars, and we are going to do anything to keep them off the streets.” The initiative is ludicrous according to Abdullah Al-Qahtani, a 32-year-old Saudi who is against women driving.

“I see women are focusing on unimportant things like driving and not thinking about more important things like finding jobs,” he said.

Singapore opposes Malaysia's 'Obedient Wives Club'

Singapore opposes Malaysia's 'Obedient Wives Club'

            A Singapore Islamic affairs board says it opposes the objectives of a Malaysian group that calls for Muslim wives to be submissive and try harder to sexually satisfy their husbands.

            The Islamic Religious Council of Singapore said in a statement Friday that the Obedient Wives Club's opinion that a satisfying sex life is the main solution to solving marital problems is myopic and demeaning to women.

            About 800 Muslim women in Malaysia earlier this month joined the club, which was founded by a fringe Islamic group known as Global Ikhwan.

            Local media reported earlier this week that a group of Singaporean Muslims is considering forming a chapter of the club in the city-state.

Fashion award : It's OK. I turned out fine.'"

Gaga gives heartfelt thanks at fashion award event

          This is Council of Fashion Designers of America awards, can be pretty intimidating: CNN anchor Anderson Cooper said so, actress Naomi Watts said so, and even Lady Gaga said so.

          On stage to accept her award as the year's top style icon, a soft-spoken, maybe even teary-eyed Gaga said she was nervous.

          "All of you made me feel like a star before I was," she told the audience at Lincoln Center that boasted bold-faced names such as Marc Jacobs, Anna Wintour, Diane von Furstenberg, Donna Karan and Michael Kors.

          She talked about how important fashion was in her life as a pathway to self-discovery, artistry and confidence. She planned her outfits for Friday night parties as if she was going to the Oscars, she said.

          "As much as this award means to me personally ... I just want you to know how much this means to young Americans," Gaga said.

          She said she thought the message was from a friend named Anna and replied with a bleep-worthy response. The text back from the Vogue editor-in-chief said, "How lovely."

          That led to laughter — and so did Cooper's montage of his early days as a preteen model.

          Cooper, a longtime friend of CFDA president von Furstenberg, said he decided to show his photos to prove his fashion cred since he was acting as master of ceremonies.

          "There was no way you'd be critical," he joked, "or that's what Diane said, anyway."

          Watts, dressed in a metallic T-shirt-style gown by Francisco Costa for Calvin Klein, presented the top womenswear honor to Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez of Proenza Schouler.

          Top models Doutzen Kroes, Karlie Kloss, Miranda Kerr, Alessandra Ambrosio and Chanel Iman were indeed in the house, on the arms of their favorite designers.

          It was the nod from his fellow designers as well as retailers, stylists and editors that the rest of his family would find impressive, Gurung said. "I'm just a guy from Nepal. I will call my mother and say, `It's OK. I turned out fine.'"

He added, "I believe we all know and feel the greatest reward is the process itself."