Dutch group to cycle throughout Vietnam to foster awareness of women's rights

The two projects are dedicated to education, health, and sanitation for children and women in Quang Tri Province in the central part and Phu Tho Province in the north, Sophie van Hoof, a group member told Tuoi Tre News on Monday during their stopover in Ho Chi Minh City.

“We’ll cycle 80km per day then we’ll take a rest, so we expect to reach Hanoi around New Year,” Van Hoof added.
The quartet, which is named R4WR (Ride 4 Women's Rights), has been friends for 17 years and all of them just earned a master’s degree last year.

They have spent around 11 weeks since September cycling through six countries to carry out their project intended to appeal for women's rights worldwide, R4WR said.

Vietnam is the sixth country the group has ridden through to achieve their target of 400 days riding bicycles throughout 22 countries and covering 14,000km, said Carlijn Bettink, 24, who is the group’s leader.

The other members include Lidewij Ponjee and Monique van der Veeken, both of whom are also 24 years old.

Bettink said the idea of cycling for women’s rights came up when Van Hoof and her were sitting on a train someday last year and thinking about doing something big, as the four already graduated at that time.

“We wanted to travel, but not for ourselves,” Bettink said. “We wanted to do something which we believe is important to stand up for.”

“We then discussed what to fight for and decided that’s women’s rights,” she added.

Meanwhile, Van Hoof said that during their study and travel, they have learned that there are places where big differences between the two genders do exist and girls suffer discrimination.

“We think that it should be equal everywhere,” the Dutch woman added.

R4WR said through 400 days of cycling, they plan to visit countries which have been known by many people and places that are less famous in order to explore the bigger meaning of women’s rights around the world.

Meeting women in different cultures, R4WR hopes to contribute to the bettering of the position of women of all ages globally by sharing stories they have got during the journey.

R4WR are expected to visit local women’s projects and pool stories about women’s rights in three aspects: education, family planning, and gender equality.

The group will then post them on their website at http://r4wr.org/ in the hope of inspiring women the world over.

The Dutch women revealed that they were confronted by difficulties when they first started the project because people did not know them, plus some even said frankly that they did not believe in the project’s feasibility.

“We feel like we need to prove that the project is not simply a plan but we can absolutely realize it,” Bettink said.

The women have used their own money to fund the project, she added.

They sometimes receive help from local people who invite them to stay in their house for free, like a Dutch family living in Ho Chi Minh City where they are now staying, in addition to support from other sponsors, families, and friends.

After traveling 14,000km, R4WR will return to the Netherlands and give lectures, talks, and presentations at schools and symposia as well as release a book on women’s rights.