Bicycle- symbol of women's freedom

Bicycle is simplest mode of travel. But this has become a symbol of women fredom in Afghanistan. Incidentaly, I rmeber that I never saw any woman riding a bicycle in Tezpur (Assam) in Eighties .whereas men used this. I asked some one why women did not ride a bicycle, I was told that wiman riding a bicycle is vulgar.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/south-asia/Bicycle-a-symbol-of-freedom-for-Afghan-women/articleshow/37355648.cms?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=digest_section

I appreciate the emancipated thinking of the women's cycling team, who dared to defy the outdated practices prevailing in Afghanistan .

Bicycle is simplest mode of travel. But this has become a symbol of women fredom in Afghanistan. Incidentaly, I rmeber that I never saw any woman riding a bicycle in Tezpur (Assam) in Eighties .whereas men used this. I asked some one why women did not ride a bicycle, I was told that wiman riding a bicycle is vulgar.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/south-asia/Bicycle-a-symbol-of-freedom-for-Afghan-women/articleshow/37355648.cms?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=digest_section

I appreciate the emancipated thinking of the women's cycling team, who dared to defy the outdated practices prevailing in Afghanistan .

In Afghanistan women are driving cycles but in Saudi Arabia they cannot and if at all they drive even a car a male should accompany them. Last year I had an opportunity to attend a sick relative in a private hospital in Delhi for about 10 days. Nearly 40% of patients there are from Afghanistan. I interacted with a few of them and found them to be very modern in their thinking and very polite. Their women were very educated and fashionable. They all spoke Hindi fairly nicely. I asked them do they teach Hindi in schools. They said no, but they have picked up Hindi from Hindi movies and TV serials both of which have a huge following in their country.

Good to know that Afghanistan is not as bad as Saudi Arabia.But for the Talibans, Afghanistan would have been more liberal.

Good to know that Afghanistan is not as bad as Saudi Arabia.But for the Talibans, Afghanistan would have been more liberal.

The original Afghans are matched in numbers by non ethinic groups like Tajiks from Tajikistan and Uzbeks from Uzbekistan which is making political stability impossible and thus Taliban are able to dominate and they keep their supremacy by imposing harsh measures. That is why such acts as women driving cycles become acts of bravery.

Good to know that Afghanistan is not as bad as Saudi Arabia.But for the Talibans, Afghanistan would have been more liberal.

The original Afghans are matched in numbers by non ethinic groups like Tajiks from Tajikistan and Uzbeks from Uzbekistan which is making political stability impossible and thus Taliban are able to dominate and they keep their supremacy by imposing harsh measures. That is why such acts as women driving cycles become acts of bravery.

Long time ago, my brother-in-law and my sister lived in Afghanistan. My Brother-in-law worked as an advisor to ministry of health in medical record sciences. At that time, it was a haven of peace.

Good to know that Afghanistan is not as bad as Saudi Arabia.But for the Talibans, Afghanistan would have been more liberal.

The original Afghans are matched in numbers by non ethinic groups like Tajiks from Tajikistan and Uzbeks from Uzbekistan which is making political stability impossible and thus Taliban are able to dominate and they keep their supremacy by imposing harsh measures. That is why such acts as women driving cycles become acts of bravery.

It is a pity to see that all the beautiful parts of the country like the swat valley shared by both Pakistan and Afghanistan have been taken over by terror groups who are mostly being funded by Saudi Arabians and of course the Pakistani ISI. I pity the Afghanistan elected government because they will have this problem forever..

Good to know that Afghanistan is not as bad as Saudi Arabia.But for the Talibans, Afghanistan would have been more liberal.

The original Afghans are matched in numbers by non ethinic groups like Tajiks from Tajikistan and Uzbeks from Uzbekistan which is making political stability impossible and thus Taliban are able to dominate and they keep their supremacy by imposing harsh measures. That is why such acts as women driving cycles become acts of bravery.

Long time ago, my brother-in-law and my sister lived in Afghanistan. My Brother-in-law worked as an advisor to ministry of health in medical record sciences. At that time, it was a haven of peace.

However after it went out of Indian kings control around say around 1000 AD or so it has had a disturbed history till date. It used to be the last post in the Mughal empire. If the Mughals moved deeper into South India they would be attacked in Afghanistan and would rush to defend it and in turn would be attacked in South. It was a huge task protecting such large empire. Many years back on a visit to Kashmir I met a few Sikhs who were citizens of afghanistan and they too were happy Bbut soon things changed for worse.

Good to know that Afghanistan is not as bad as Saudi Arabia.But for the Talibans, Afghanistan would have been more liberal.

The original Afghans are matched in numbers by non ethinic groups like Tajiks from Tajikistan and Uzbeks from Uzbekistan which is making political stability impossible and thus Taliban are able to dominate and they keep their supremacy by imposing harsh measures. That is why such acts as women driving cycles become acts of bravery.

Long time ago, my brother-in-law and my sister lived in Afghanistan. My Brother-in-law worked as an advisor to ministry of health in medical record sciences. At that time, it was a haven of peace.

However after it went out of Indian kings control around say around 1000 AD or so it has had a disturbed history till date. It used to be the last post in the Mughal empire. If the Mughals moved deeper into South India they would be attacked in Afghanistan and would rush to defend it and in turn would be attacked in South. It was a huge task protecting such large empire. Many years back on a visit to Kashmir I met a few Sikhs who were citizens of afghanistan and they too were happy Bbut soon things changed for worse.

When my Brother-in-law was here (he's in States now) laments about the present condition of Afghanistan. Those were the days when his son of 4 years used to go to the school without an escort by walk. It's beyond imagination now. Nobody knows what lurks ahead

Good to know that Afghanistan is not as bad as Saudi Arabia.But for the Talibans, Afghanistan would have been more liberal.

The original Afghans are matched in numbers by non ethinic groups like Tajiks from Tajikistan and Uzbeks from Uzbekistan which is making political stability impossible and thus Taliban are able to dominate and they keep their supremacy by imposing harsh measures. That is why such acts as women driving cycles become acts of bravery.

Long time ago, my brother-in-law and my sister lived in Afghanistan. My Brother-in-law worked as an advisor to ministry of health in medical record sciences. At that time, it was a haven of peace.

However after it went out of Indian kings control around say around 1000 AD or so it has had a disturbed history till date. It used to be the last post in the Mughal empire. If the Mughals moved deeper into South India they would be attacked in Afghanistan and would rush to defend it and in turn would be attacked in South. It was a huge task protecting such large empire. Many years back on a visit to Kashmir I met a few Sikhs who were citizens of afghanistan and they too were happy Bbut soon things changed for worse.

When my Brother-in-law was here (he's in States now) laments about the present condition of Afghanistan. Those were the days when his son of 4 years used to go to the school without an escort by walk. It's beyond imagination now. Nobody knows what lurks ahead

Unfortunately Afghanistan is going to remain in a state of turmoil for a very long period because its location is at a meeting point of many nations al of whom want a say in its running and Afghans themselves are too weak to stop interferences. India can play a role but it might be too costly and dangerous.

Good to know that Afghanistan is not as bad as Saudi Arabia.But for the Talibans, Afghanistan would have been more liberal.

The original Afghans are matched in numbers by non ethinic groups like Tajiks from Tajikistan and Uzbeks from Uzbekistan which is making political stability impossible and thus Taliban are able to dominate and they keep their supremacy by imposing harsh measures. That is why such acts as women driving cycles become acts of bravery.

Long time ago, my brother-in-law and my sister lived in Afghanistan. My Brother-in-law worked as an advisor to ministry of health in medical record sciences. At that time, it was a haven of peace.

However after it went out of Indian kings control around say around 1000 AD or so it has had a disturbed history till date. It used to be the last post in the Mughal empire. If the Mughals moved deeper into South India they would be attacked in Afghanistan and would rush to defend it and in turn would be attacked in South. It was a huge task protecting such large empire. Many years back on a visit to Kashmir I met a few Sikhs who were citizens of afghanistan and they too were happy Bbut soon things changed for worse.

When my Brother-in-law was here (he's in States now) laments about the present condition of Afghanistan. Those were the days when his son of 4 years used to go to the school without an escort by walk. It's beyond imagination now. Nobody knows what lurks ahead

Unfortunately Afghanistan is going to remain in a state of turmoil for a very long period because its location is at a meeting point of many nations al of whom want a say in its running and Afghans themselves are too weak to stop interferences. India can play a role but it might be too costly and dangerous.

Yes. India can play a role in strengthening Afghanistan. But at the present juncture, it has to look towards China and Pakistan. These two countries are to be tackled first. Handling too many jobs at a time is not advisable for this new government.

Good to know that Afghanistan is not as bad as Saudi Arabia.But for the Talibans, Afghanistan would have been more liberal.

The original Afghans are matched in numbers by non ethinic groups like Tajiks from Tajikistan and Uzbeks from Uzbekistan which is making political stability impossible and thus Taliban are able to dominate and they keep their supremacy by imposing harsh measures. That is why such acts as women driving cycles become acts of bravery.

It is a pity to see that all the beautiful parts of the country like the swat valley shared by both Pakistan and Afghanistan have been taken over by terror groups who are mostly being funded by Saudi Arabians and of course the Pakistani ISI. I pity the Afghanistan elected government because they will have this problem forever..

These parts are funded by Wahabi groups of Arab which are mostly constituted from elite classes of Arab group, these areas are mostly rich in nuclear atom.

Such strange views regarding everything where a woman is concerned. I guess my mum was too much ahead of her times when she rode a bicycle all around in Pune in 1960s delivering books to various libraries and shops, since her father owned a rare books shop in Pune! After her marriage, the first time my mother rode a bicycle to pay some bills in the Air Force Station she created a lot of sensation and my father came to know about it while he was on duty! :woohoo: :woohoo: She certainly rose significant number of eyebrows then! :laugh:

Such strange views regarding everything where a woman is concerned. I guess my mum was too much ahead of her times when she rode a bicycle all around in Pune in 1960s delivering books to various libraries and shops, since her father owned a rare books shop in Pune! After her marriage, the first time my mother rode a bicycle to pay some bills in the Air Force Station she created a lot of sensation and my father came to know about it while he was on duty! :woohoo: :woohoo: She certainly rose significant number of eyebrows then! :laugh:

She sure was ahead of her times. Couple of years back a girl rode a motorcycle in our town and it attracted lot of attention. It i sbecause we used to associate outdoor world with men only. Women have proved it wrong or set it right. However in conservative societies there is a concerted effort to keep women down as a control measure to keep the existing ruling hierarchy intact.Therefore it is praiseworthy when women defy these measures.

Good to know that Afghanistan is not as bad as Saudi Arabia.But for the Talibans, Afghanistan would have been more liberal.

The original Afghans are matched in numbers by non ethinic groups like Tajiks from Tajikistan and Uzbeks from Uzbekistan which is making political stability impossible and thus Taliban are able to dominate and they keep their supremacy by imposing harsh measures. That is why such acts as women driving cycles become acts of bravery.

It is a pity to see that all the beautiful parts of the country like the swat valley shared by both Pakistan and Afghanistan have been taken over by terror groups who are mostly being funded by Saudi Arabians and of course the Pakistani ISI. I pity the Afghanistan elected government because they will have this problem forever..

These parts are funded by Wahabi groups of Arab which are mostly constituted from elite classes of Arab group, these areas are mostly rich in nuclear atom.

An average normal person anywhere in the world regardless of what religion he or she belongs to, wants to have a peaceful life . It is the few misguided missiles that spoil the entire face of humanity and even woorse are those who fund and support these maniacs. BUt this is something that cannot be eradicated . Evil and good nessexist side by side since nature has made it that way...

Such strange views regarding everything where a woman is concerned. I guess my mum was too much ahead of her times when she rode a bicycle all around in Pune in 1960s delivering books to various libraries and shops, since her father owned a rare books shop in Pune! After her marriage, the first time my mother rode a bicycle to pay some bills in the Air Force Station she created a lot of sensation and my father came to know about it while he was on duty! :woohoo: :woohoo: She certainly rose significant number of eyebrows then! :laugh:

She sure was ahead of her times. Couple of years back a girl rode a motorcycle in our town and it attracted lot of attention. It i sbecause we used to associate outdoor world with men only. Women have proved it wrong or set it right. However in conservative societies there is a concerted effort to keep women down as a control measure to keep the existing ruling hierarchy intact.Therefore it is praiseworthy when women defy these measures.

Only a couple of years back???? They really are left behind a lot! :blink: Like my mother, there were many more women who defied rules and conventions to get their freedom. Now in my city, women have been riding bicycles, scooters, cars etc. for the last 3 decades at leas quite freely! Now we have women bikers clubs similar to men, these biker clubs used to be the last male bastion and that has been invaded./ Women here ride even quite heavy bikes such as Royal Enfield easily. The new monorail and metro rail started in Mumbai have women drivers!

Such strange views regarding everything where a woman is concerned. I guess my mum was too much ahead of her times when she rode a bicycle all around in Pune in 1960s delivering books to various libraries and shops, since her father owned a rare books shop in Pune! After her marriage, the first time my mother rode a bicycle to pay some bills in the Air Force Station she created a lot of sensation and my father came to know about it while he was on duty! :woohoo: :woohoo: She certainly rose significant number of eyebrows then! :laugh:

She sure was ahead of her times. Couple of years back a girl rode a motorcycle in our town and it attracted lot of attention. It i sbecause we used to associate outdoor world with men only. Women have proved it wrong or set it right. However in conservative societies there is a concerted effort to keep women down as a control measure to keep the existing ruling hierarchy intact.Therefore it is praiseworthy when women defy these measures.

Only a couple of years back???? They really are left behind a lot! :blink: Like my mother, there were many more women who defied rules and conventions to get their freedom. Now in my city, women have been riding bicycles, scooters, cars etc. for the last 3 decades at leas quite freely! Now we have women bikers clubs similar to men, these biker clubs used to be the last male bastion and that has been invaded./ Women here ride even quite heavy bikes such as Royal Enfield easily. The new monorail and metro rail started in Mumbai have women drivers!

True. Now, India has been witnessing more and more women are breaking the shackles of orthodox and outdated life style and joining the Main stream.. Even in South India, which is supposed to be more tradition bound and orthodox. we are seeing women doing all those things which were considered once as a sacrilege.

Bicycle was symbol of women's freedom few years back and now it becomes normal.

Bicycle was never a symbol of freedom a few years ago. It was rather viewed as violation of decency. Its only now the notion has come in to vogue.

Bicycle was always symbol of women's freedom, and now thanks to encouragement from parents it has becomes a practice.

In a tradition bound country, few years ago it was considered as a sacrilege even if woman goes out for doing errands. What to talk of Cycling !!!