ALGERIA: Algiers' only female bus driver hopes more women will get in the driver's seat

Record ID: 574180

  • Title: ALGERIA: Algiers' only female bus driver hopes more women will get in the driver's seat
  • Date: 4th March 2009
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) FATIHA DENI, BUS DRIVER, SAYING: "I was encouraged when I first started this job. I did not experience any obstacles or problems. When I started work, I was afraid, not of driving, but of the responsibility. When your bus is overloaded, you are afraid because of the responsibility. However, people accepted me and they were enthusiastic. They applauded and chanted "Long live, Algeria" and "Hurrah, for the Algerian woman". They took the fear away from me." DENI DRIVING BUS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) FATIHA DENI, BUS DRIVER, SAYING: "We would like to be on people's minds not only March 8 (International Women's Day), we would like to be in their thoughts all of the year. We would like to be encouraged and helped." DENI DRIVING BUS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) FATIHA DENI, BUS DRIVER, SAYING: "Regarding International Women's Day on March 8, first of all, I salute Algerian women and women all over the world. I wish them a happy day, and ask them to increase their experience of the activities and the jobs practised by the men. Don't be afraid and do it." DENI DRIVING BUS VARIOUS OF PASSENGERS ON THE BUS (SOUNDBITE) (French) CHETTAT HAMIDA, PASSENGER, SAYING: "I am proud to be an Algerian woman and to see a woman working like her. It's good." DENI DRIVING BUS PASSENGERS ON THE BUS (SOUNDBITE) (French) CHETTAT HAMIDA, PASSENGER, SAYING: "She is as able as the men and much more. She can be better than a man." MORE OF PASSENGERS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) BOULANEB HOCINE, PASSENGER, SAYING: "I get on her bus everybody. I am pleased to see a woman like her. There are not a lot but it is the beginning and it will improve." DENI DRIVING BUS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) BOULANEB HOCINE, PASSENGER, SAYING: "Women are the principal pillar of Algerian society. If women are happy, society is happy."
  • Embargoed: 19th March 2009 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Algeria
  • Country: Algeria
  • Topics: Employment,Light / Amusing / Unusual / Quirky
  • Reuters ID: LVABRXF6DJ0N271AL95TI0O7DBPG
  • Story Text: 46-year-old Fatiha Deni is the only female bus driver in Algiers.
    The mother of five has been driving Bus 88 for five years.
    As International Women's Day approaches on Sunday (March 8), Algiers' only female bus driver hopes it will encourage more women will take up similar work.
    Forty-six-year-old Fatiha Deni has been driving the number 88 bus through the Algerian capital's urban winding roads for five years.
    The mother of five works the same hours as her male counterparts except for the night shift.
    She has teamed up for five years with female ticket conductor, 33-year-old Ghezali Ghania, a mother of two children. Together they operate the daily bus route.
    Though in a role that is dominated by men, Deni said on Tuesday (March 03) she received nothing but encouragement when she started the job.

    "I was encouraged when I first started this job. I did not experience any obstacles or problems. When I started work, I was afraid, not of driving, but of the responsibility. When your bus is overloaded, you are afraid because of the responsibility. However, people accepted me and they were enthusiastic. They applauded and chanted "Long live, Algeria"
    and "Hurrah, for the Algerian woman". They took the fear away from me," she said.
    Deni said International Women's Day was significant for women the world over but added it was also important to remember the cause of equality for women throughout the year.

    "We would like to be on people's minds not only March 8 (International Women's Day), we would like to be in their thoughts all of the year. We would like to be encouraged and helped," Deni said.
    Deni said she wanted to use the day to encourage women to venture into male-dominated areas of work.

    "First of all, I salute Algerian women and women all over the world. I wish them a happy day, and ask them to increase their experience of the activities and the jobs practised by the men. Don't be afraid and do it," Deni said.
    Many of Deni's passengers express pride when they see her driving their bus.

    "I am proud to be an Algerian woman and to see a woman working like her. It's good," said female passenger Chettat Hamida. "She is as able as the men and much more," Hamida added.
    Another passenger, Boulaneb Hocine, said he gets on her bus everyday.

    "I get on her bus everybody. I am pleased to see a woman like her.
    There are not a lot but it is the beginning and it will improve," he said.
    Hocine said if being a bus driver made a woman happy, it was a good thing.

    "Women are the principal pillar of Algerian society. If women are happy, society is happy," Hocine said.
    But the road to equality has been a slow and often difficult one for Algerian women over the years.
    While gender equality is enshrined in Algeria's constitution, women frequently complain that they are not seen as equals by men, and they are under-represented in professional life and in government.
    Despite women making up 52 percent of the Algerian population, they account for only four percent of Members of Parliament (MPs).
    According to human rights groups and government opposition figures, women in Algeria face discrimination both in law and in practice -- particularly with regards to the "Family Code".
    The 1984 Family Code has been widely criticised for equating women in law with minors. For example, the law obliges women to get the consent of a male relative before marrying. It also allows men to divorce more easily than women.
    Some reforms were made two years ago, with men now obliged to pay alimony and child support after they divorce.
    In addition, the Algerian government can point to gains made in education, with, for example, more Algerian women now at university than men.
    And in the police force, there are now some 5,000 women in the field.
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