Program Helps Pakistani Women Learn to Ride, Gain Independence
2025-01-03
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1Laiba Rashid is a 22-year-old Pakistani student in a special training program in the city of Lahore.
2The program, called Women on Wheels (WOW), teaches women how to operate two-wheelers, or motorcycles.
3Rashid hopes her life will change after she learns how to ride a motorcycle.
4Although the program is 7 years old, it is still rare to see women ride motorcycles.
5In the Islamic nation, it is more common to see women driving cars or riding in the back of two-wheelers operated by a male relative.
6The WOW program is offered free by the Lahore traffic police.
7"I hope this will change my life because I am dependent on my brother to pick me up and drop me to college," Rashid said on her first day at WOW.
8She said she wants to buy a motorcycle to go to college, adding that, before, there were no women drivers in her family.
9"Now everybody is convinced that women should be independent in their movement to schools, jobs and markets," she said.
10Bushra Iqbal Hussain is a social activist and director of Safe Childhood.
11Hussain said women driving two-wheelers has been a cultural and religious taboo.
12But, she said, more women are now changing the culture like they did in the 1980s with regular cars to reduce their dependence on men to move around.
13The WOW program has been in operation since 2017.
14But it has become increasingly popular in recent months as car prices have greatly increased and motorcycles offer a less costly choice.
15The cheapest four-wheel vehicle in Pakistan costs about $8,265 compared to about $1,345 for a Chinese-made two-wheeler.
16The average yearly income per person in Pakistan is $1,696.
17Sohail Mudassar is a traffic official in Lahore.
18He said the WOW program has trained at least 6,600 women, and Rashid's group was the 86th since it started.
19Female trainer Humaira Rafaqat added, "Young women are quick learners because they are enthusiastic and take risks."
20One of them, Ghania Raza, is a 23-year-old who is working toward a doctorate in criminology.
21She said learning to ride a two-wheeler gave her a deep sense of achievement and empowerment: "It was like breaking a glass ceiling," she said.
22Shumaila Shafiq is a 36-year-old mother of three and a part-time clothing designer.
23She said she has been riding her husband's motorcycle to the market and other places after training in the program.
24Shafiq has also designed a short-length abaya for Muslim women to wear while operating a motorcycle.
25She said the long abaya is dangerous because it may get caught in the wheels of the motorcycle.
26I'm Jill Robbins.
1Laiba Rashid is a 22-year-old Pakistani student in a special training program in the city of Lahore. The program, called Women on Wheels (WOW), teaches women how to operate two-wheelers, or motorcycles. Rashid hopes her life will change after she learns how to ride a motorcycle. 2Although the program is 7 years old, it is still rare to see women ride motorcycles. In the Islamic nation, it is more common to see women driving cars or riding in the back of two-wheelers operated by a male relative. The WOW program is offered free by the Lahore traffic police. 3"I hope this will change my life because I am dependent on my brother to pick me up and drop me to college," Rashid said on her first day at WOW. 4She said she wants to buy a motorcycle to go to college, adding that, before, there were no women drivers in her family. "Now everybody is convinced that women should be independent in their movement to schools, jobs and markets," she said. 5Bushra Iqbal Hussain is a social activist and director of Safe Childhood. Hussain said women driving two-wheelers has been a cultural and religious taboo. But, she said, more women are now changing the culture like they did in the 1980s with regular cars to reduce their dependence on men to move around. 6The WOW program has been in operation since 2017. But it has become increasingly popular in recent months as car prices have greatly increased and motorcycles offer a less costly choice. 7The cheapest four-wheel vehicle in Pakistan costs about $8,265 compared to about $1,345 for a Chinese-made two-wheeler. The average yearly income per person in Pakistan is $1,696. 8Sohail Mudassar is a traffic official in Lahore. He said the WOW program has trained at least 6,600 women, and Rashid's group was the 86th since it started. Female trainer Humaira Rafaqat added, "Young women are quick learners because they are enthusiastic and take risks." 9Breaking glass ceiling 10One of them, Ghania Raza, is a 23-year-old who is working toward a doctorate in criminology. She said learning to ride a two-wheeler gave her a deep sense of achievement and empowerment: "It was like breaking a glass ceiling," she said. 11Shumaila Shafiq is a 36-year-old mother of three and a part-time clothing designer. She said she has been riding her husband's motorcycle to the market and other places after training in the program. 12Shafiq has also designed a short-length abaya for Muslim women to wear while operating a motorcycle. She said the long abaya is dangerous because it may get caught in the wheels of the motorcycle. 13I'm Jill Robbins. 14Mubasher Bukhari reported this story for Reuters. Jill Robbins adapted it for Learning English. 15___________________________________________ 16Words in This Story 17convinced - adj. completely certain or sure about something; persuaded 18taboo - n. not acceptable to talk about or do 19cheap - adj. not costing a lot of money 20enthusiastic - adj. feeling or showing strong excitement about something : filled with or marked by enthusiasm 21glass ceiling - n. an upper limit to achievement by a group of people 22abaya - n. a simple, loose, robe-like dress worn by conservative Muslim women 23What do you think of this story? Write to us in the Comments Section.