Gulf | Oman
Women beat the heat and domestic chores to queue up
Women streamed into Muttrah election centre by 10am yesterday, forming long queues and causing lengthy waits, as the relatively fewer male voters completed their voting procedures in minutes.
- By Abbas Al Lawati, Staff Reporter
- Published: 00:02 October 28, 2007
Muscat: Women streamed into Muttrah election centre by 10am yesterday, forming long queues and causing lengthy waits, as the relatively fewer male voters completed their voting procedures in minutes.
Hundreds of women of all ages and backgrounds stood fanning themselves in queues for their turn to vote in Majlis Shura elections at Ruwi School, which was the election centre for Muttrah.
Male voter activity, on the other hand, went on smoothly. Hundreds of male supporters and voters, with ink-stained fingers, crowded outside the election centre, some wearing campaign badges.
"I expected women's participation to be high, so I'm not surprised at all," said Zahra Taqi, a voter.
"Perhaps this time of day is most convenient for women, especially those who have children to take care of," said Zahra, who had worked a half day yesterday.
Female participation
While some women were holding designer bags, others held a toddler or two. One woman was seen with two toddlers, one in each arm, a small girl and her elderly mother. "There's no one to take care of them at home," she said, speaking over the screams of children irritated at having to wait in the heat.
Men were politely instructed to stay clear of the women's areas. "The Wali [governor] of Muttrah has asked me to inform you that men are not allowed to stand here," an election official told Gulf News.
Women had a separate entrance and a separate voting room, and had female election and police officials to handle their areas.
Old men with walking sticks, clerics and popular television personalities were also seen rushing to avoid the crowds and cast their votes while pan-Arab and local television and radio stations interviewed voters and officials.
Along tribal lines
As he entered the voting room, Abdul Rasool said he hadn't decided whom to vote for so far.
"I guess I'll just pick one when I enter. I have no idea who it's going to be because I don't know much about the candidates. I'm a supporter of women candidates, so I might vote for a woman," he said.
Most voters who spoke to Gulf News, however, said they would be voting for a member of their tribe.
Mahmoud Abdullah said his tribe had an internal vote to pick one of the four members of the tribe running for the elections "so as to unify the votes and ensure that we are represented in the council". "The ones that didn't win have unofficially withdrawn," he said.
Asked if she would only vote for a member of her tribe, Zahra, another voter in the queue, laughed, saying "No comment."
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