Some lack a sense of direction: Backlash over Beijing police tips for women drivers

Don’t wear high heels while driving. Make sure you release the handbrake before setting off. And don’t panic if you suddenly realise you’re going the wrong way.

Those are some of the suggestions given by the Beijing police department to women drivers in a series of microblog postings that have sparked a backlash among Chinese internet users who say the tips are sexually discriminatory.

“Some women drivers lack a sense of direction, and while driving a car, they often hesitate and are indecisive about which road they should take,” reads one of the suggestions, posted on the police department’s official microblog late on Tuesday.

Women drivers, the posting continues, often discover that “when they’re driving by themselves, they’re not able to find the way to their destination, even if they’ve been there many times”.

Another posting features a cartoon depicting a confrontation between a police officer and a woman driving a vehicle shaped like a large red high heel shoe.

It relates to a story of a woman named Liu who caused an accident and then told a police officer: “I hit the brake, but my shoe got stuck in the car!”