Egypt4u

Separate cars for women on trains starting Wednesday
Egypt Independent
Tue, 05/02/2013 - 16:03

Camille Lepage

The Egyptian Railways Authority is set to enforce women’s-only train cars on several popular routes to and from the capital starting Wednesday.

The move is part of its efforts to curb sexual harassment, which is rampant across the country.

According to state-run daily newspaper Al Ahram, the No. 909 train connecting Cairo and Alexandria departing at 9am will host the first women’s car.

The No. 957 train to Zagazig and the No. 513 train to al-Qanater al-Khaireyah will also boast exclusive cars for women.

Several rights and women’s group claim the rate of sexual harassment and violence has increased sharply as of late.

Egyptian women are already afforded private metro cars in Cairo, which comprise the only public transportation that separates genders.

In 2008, an Egyptian court dismissed a lawsuit filed by two lawyers demanding the end of women’s-only cars on the grounds that separating the sexes violates gender equality.

The court ruled that allocating cars to women did not fall under its jurisdiction and added that Islamic law emphasizes respect for women, which obligates the state to protect them.

Egyptian railways are among the oldest in the world and were first established in 1834.


http://www.egyptindependent.com/news/se ... -wednesday

I think it's rather sad that there is the need for seperate carriages, it is a contradiction in terms, a society that claims to have moral superiority over others, yet women cannot ride on trains without having a law to protect them from men who cannot control themselves!
And yes railways, another beneficial legacy of British colonial rule that often goes unmentioned, another example of "Yes! but what did the Romans do for us"

Given the parameters of Egyptian society I hope having separate cars does give Egyptian women a sense of security where they can momentarily let their guard down against the boorish men they must unfortunately protect themselves from on any daily routine outing.