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Saudi clerics want curbs on women praying at Kaaba
 Saudi clerics want to impose restrictions on women praying at Islam's holiest shrine in Makkah.
| "Eeeeewwwww! Women! Ucky!" |
But women activists in Saudi Arabia say the idea is discriminatory and have vowed to oppose it.
At present, women can pray in the immediate vicinity of the Kaaba. Plans by the all-male committee overseeing the holy sites would place women in a distant section of the mosque while men would still be able to pray in the key space.
"How distant?"
"How distant is Jakarta?" |
"The area is very small and so crowded. So we decided to get women out of the sahn [Kaaba area] to a better place where they can see the Kaaba and have more space," said Osama Al Bar, head of the Institute for Haj Research.
| "Yeah. We're just doin' it to make the little darlin's happy." |
"Some women thought it wasn't good, but from our point of view it will be better for them ... We can sit with them and explain to them what the decision is [about]," he said. The decision is not final and could be reversed, he added.
Posted by: Fred 2006-08-29 |
