Friday, January 11, 2008

New Vision's picture of the week

From Uganda's New Vision Newspaper, Friday, 11th January, 2008

PICTURE OF THE WEEK














A woman carries a baby and a man on a bicycle in Buwaale, Idudi Iganga District. The man is rolling his bicycle along.

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Ian here -- This is a classic picture (just ignore the other cyclist in the background pointed in the opposite direction). A generation or two ago it was a rarity to see a woman riding a bicycle at all in the parts of east, central and southern Africa where I've spent a number of years. It's more common these days, with the increase in ownership of bicycles generally and some loosening of the restrictions on what is considered appropriate for women to do in African culture (used to be, for example, that women were not allowed to eat chicken, according to the dietary taboos of many tribes, but that has largely gone by the wayside).

Here we have a woman not only riding a bicycle, but carrying a baby on her back while doing so, and besides that giving a ride to a man with a guiding hand on his own bicycle (perhaps needing repair) coasting along beside them. A worthy "picture of the week"!