Egyptian bloggers Mona Eltahawy and CP wrote about Saudi activist Wajeha Al Huwaider, who is protesting against her country's decision to ban Saudi women from taking part in the Olympics.
- Countries:
- Saudi Arabia, Egypt
- Topics:
- Cyber-Activism, Gender, Protest, Sport
- Languages:
- Arabic, English
- Special:
- Olympics
This post is from our coverage of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing China, curated by John Kennedy and sponsored by Reuters. · All posts
Send this by E-mail8 Responses to
“Saudi Arabia Bans Women from Olympics”
Join the conversation
Recent Articles also in Middle East & North Africa
- › Egyptian bloggers visit injured Palestinians
- › Palestine: “In Gaza, we are subject to news but cannot see TVs”
- › Egypt: Bloggers on the Fence
- › Syria: Gaza On Our Minds
- › Egyptian Bloggers Ask: WHY?
Recent Links also in Middle East & North Africa
#
Rob asks why popular Islamic Egyptian preacher Amr Khaled announced from Amman the start of his campaign of blood donation to Gaza, and not from Egypt.
#
As'ad AbuKhalil notes that the last basketball game between a Turkish and an Israeli team was suspended on Tuesday after Turkish fans erupted in protests against the Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip, chanting “Israel, killers!”
Funding drive
Global Voices Email Updates
Get summaries of new stories from Global Voices in your inbox daily, weekly, or just sign up for important announcements.
Our Other Sites
Special Projects
Sponsors for this articleSponsors for
Maya Norton101 posts 
Eduardo Avila1550 posts 
Nermeen Edrees6 posts 
Yazan Badran70 posts 
Jillian York270 posts 
Deborah Ann Dilley210 posts 
Sara Moreira1 posts 
Sylwia Presley4 posts 
Moussa Bashir208 posts 
Muna Annahas8 posts 
J. Nambiza Tungaraza19 posts 
Kevin Rennie3 posts
enter heaven? The only thing you are sure to enter when you die is a hole in the ground. THIS GOES FOR ALL RELIGIOUS FANATICS WHO MAKE EVERY EFFORT TO KEEP THE WORLD BACKWARD. Muslim fanatisism is worse because their religion is newer compared to christianity, by 600 hundred or so, years. It will weaken with the passage of time, just like christianity and it will not be as threatening to human rights as it is now.HUMANITY DOES NOT NEED RELIGION, BUT COMMON SENSE!
I was delighted to see Oman and the UAE had female athletes at the games
Better to ban them as to make them as Better to ban them as to make them a fleer for the whole world. Or did you ever have seen someone in a competition running in Abya not seeing where the target line is. Or even worst swimming in Abya just being still in the first round when everybody has finished already the race.
You are absolutely right Jan. By allowing muslem women in the games, wrapped up in what is concidered in their fanatic, backward societies, as decent outfit for a female athlete, we just help them to make fools of themselves. But also male athletes from countries were women are treated like they are owned by men, must also not be allowed to participate either. All this in the hope that eventually they might escape from the dark ages that they still are. But for this to happen, the western world must also support and assist in every way those people who support progress and freedom in those countries - with great risk to themselves. Unfortunately, western politics and economics don’t quite co-incide with the advancement of human rights in the oil-rich areas of the planet…
Hi Theo.
I have got a question do Muslim ladies get to participate in the OLympic games or are they banned from it because of their out fits. please right another conversation answering my questions i have been learning about this and i am very interested.
@Claire,
Muslim ladies can participate in sports in general, with their head cover. There is no order in Islam, forces women not to participate. But the problem that almost everybody falls in, that they usually do not differentiate between Islam and people who practice Islam.
I mean, though Religious guys who are imposing such stupid orders (like banning women from joining the Olympics, or driving a car) claiming it is Islam, does not understand Islam a bit. [And to back my words, its Only one Islamic country who issued the above regulations and banned women from joining.]
To sum it up, if you are a Muslim lady and decided to wear the head scarf, then you got all the rights to practice which ever life activity you wish to (including sports); you are no less than a man..
@Theo,
May be you who do not need religion.
Do not generalize.
[...] Saudi Arabia Bans Women from Olympics Global Voices Online - Cambridge,MA,USA Muslim fanatisism is worse because their religion is newer compared to christianity, by 600 hundred or so, years. It will weaken with the passage of time, … See all stories on this topic [...]