Challenging norms, Kurdish woman gets awarded first heavy vehicle license in Kirkuk

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – A Kurdish woman from Kirkuk Province on Wednesday received her driver’s license for large trucks, becoming the area’s first female motorist to be awarded the hard-earned document.

The region has two main categories for such permits: general and special, which itself has two subcategories for either automatic or manual transmission cars.

Acquiring a general-type license requires testing that is much more difficult in comparison to the rest as holders are allowed to drive any range of vehicles, from light to heavy, including taxis.

Since it is not widely accepted in the country as a whole for women to operate heavy vehicles or taxis, it is a rarity for female drivers to try out to obtain one.

Speaking with Kurdistan 24, Shaida Abdul-Majid, the female applicant, said the reason she had sought the license was to “break society’s norms,” and does not intend to become a truck driver.

Although the number of female drivers has risen sharply since the start of the decade, there is still a stigma, especially in the more conservative areas of the country, around it.

Editing by Nadia Riva