#Pakistan - Women cycling event in #Peshawar cancelled after opposition from religious party

By Shahabullah Yousafzai

The first ever female cycling event scheduled for January 19 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) was cancelled on Friday due to security concerns and protest calls from religious parties.

The race was sponsored by a Peshawar-based non-governmental organisation (NGO) Zamung Jwand which works for women empowerment in the province.

The event, however, was opposed by a religious party in the provincial capital.The organiser of the event, who hails from Waziristan, currently resides in Peshawar and is working towards improving public spaces and sports facilities for women in the province.

According to a press release, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) leader Rafiullah Qasimi warned that “roads shall be blocked” and that the party shall take the law into their hands if the event is conducted.

A notification released by K-P director-general denied granting permission to any NGO to hold cycling events in Hayatabad. It further read that the Hayatabad Sports Complex has not been booked for the January 19 event.