Woman rights in Iraq,..

[Rono]

Well, it is not looking good for the future for independend woman in Iraq.




US-Appointed Council Abolishes Rights of Iraqi Women:


MADRE Supports International Campaign to Repeal Resolution 137
January 30, 2004 - New York. MADRE, an international women?s human rights organization, opposes the imposition of Islamic law on the people of Iraq by the US-appointed Interim Governing Council (IGC). Under IGC Resolution 137, issued on December 29, 2003, arbitrary interpretations of religious law threaten to replace one of the Middle East?s most progressive civil codes. The Resolution gravely threatens women?s rights, undermines prospects for democracy and foments a dangerous sectarianism in an already destabilized society.

Resolution 137 could give self-appointed religious clerics the authority to inflict grave human rights violations on Iraqi women, including denial of the rights to education, employment, freedom of movement and travel, property inheritance and custody of their children. Forced early marriage, polygamy, compulsory religious dress, wife beating, female genital mutilation, execution by stoning as punishment for female adultery and public flogging of women for disobeying religious rules could all be sanctioned if the Resolution is upheld.

http://www.madre.org/art_iraq_resolution137.html

 

[U2andPolitix]

what a mess.

 

[verte76]

Damn. This is really, really bad news. It's a sad day for human rights. There could be a sectarian war. Ugh.

 

[melon]

They just go from one dictator (Saddam) to another (Islam).

Melon

 

[verte76]

I wouldn't call Islam per se a dictator. I would call the people who manipulate it for political gain dictators, thieves, hijackers. Some of the best human rights activists, like Shirin Ebadi, the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, are Moslem women. Some of the people performing Hajj at Mecca today are feminists. I salute them. I hope they can get the rights they are entitled to. I noticed that when Ebadi was in Oslo getting her award none of the press in the U.S. mentioned her. I had to read the European press to get coverage of the event. Come on, folks, it's the Nobel Peace Prize! Ridiculous not to even mention this.

 

[anitram]

Saudi Arabia, part deux.

 

[verte76]

Saudi Arabia, part deux.

Ooh, bad news.

 

[nbcrusader]

Iraq's so called "self-appointed religious clerics" have immense power. They want self rule, and as we can see, the self rule they have in mind is different from what is expected in the West.

 

[verte76]

Iraq's so called "self-appointed religious clerics" have immense power. They want self rule, and as we can see, the self rule they have in mind is different from what is expected in the West.

Yeah. The problem with "what's expected in the West" is that Iraq is the Middle East, and about three quarters Arabic. It's never going to become a Western state. That's impossible.

 

[speedracer]

Yeah. The problem with "what's expected in the West" is that Iraq is the Middle East, and about three quarters Arabic. It's never going to become a Western state. That's impossible.

I understand this statement isn't intended to be racist, but damn that's a harsh expression of realpolitik, don't you think?

 

[STING2]

Its not impossible, just look at Japan and South Korea.

 

[verte76]

I understand this statement isn't intended to be racist, but damn that's a harsh expression of realpolitik, don't you think?

No, it's a statement about what (I believe) to be naivite on the part of Washington. They thought they could go into Iraq, kick Saddam out, and start a democratic state apparatus in a few months. It's much harder than that in a place with the political problems Iraq has, the deeply rooted tensions that come from having been part of one Empire (the Ottoman) and being divided both religiously (Shia and Sunni Moslems; look at all of the mosque bombings) and ethnically (Arabs and Kurds in particular). Not to mention the neighborhood....Sunni Saudi Arabia doesn't want a powerful Shia neighbor, Turkey doesn't want independent Kurds, ad infinitum. I'm concerned about the continuing violence, and afraid it could go on for years. There are reports of a terrorist outfit in the North that takes its orders from Al Qaeda. Great. They're not going to stop their war against the U.S. The Middle East is a volatile political mix like no other in the world. Japan and South Korea were much more stable, thus they were able to become unified states without much trouble. They didn't have all of this internal strife. This situation scares the out of me.
Hope this clears up the confusion.......no, I definitely didn't mean to be racist. Sorry about any offense.

 

[STING2]

"Japan and South Korea were much more stable, thus they were able to become unified states without much trouble."

True, but take a look at Bosnia and Kosovo. There has been much more bloodshed in modern times do to ethnic violence in Bosnia, but look at it now. #66 in the world in Standard of living as well as a tour stop for U2 on the POPMART tour. With the help of the United States, Peace, Economic and Political Development can happen even in the most difficult environments, it is not impossible.

 

[verte76]

I won't comment on South Korea because I don't know anything about the place. Stability really wasn't an issue in Japan. They are still having problems in Bosnia, but it's a better place. I hope things settle down in Iraq, I really do. Iraq is currently a really troubled country, which is unfortunate. It has nothing to do with most of the people. They want peace. A few terrorist nutcases don't. They're the ones bombing the mosques and such.

 

[verte76]

Sting, I think you would love Jean Sasson's "Mayada Daughter of Iraq". I've posted a few notes about this book. It's a true story of a dear friend of hers, Mayada, a Sunni Moslem woman from Baghdad and her fight for freedom under Saddam. Hell, this lady is *from* that country. She is the granddaughter of a noted Iraqi statesman. She is optimistic about Iraq's future. I'm just hurt and upset about the terrorist squads, and these mosque bombings, well, mosque bombing is almost unmentionable to me.

 

[STING2]

It sounds interesting. I'll have to look to see her assesment of Iraq today and the potential for the future.

 

[speedracer]

No, it's a statement about what (I believe) to be naivite on the part of Washington. They thought they could go into Iraq, kick Saddam out, and start a democratic state apparatus in a few months.

I don't think that Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz et al necessarily believed that it would be easy, but I do think that they and Bush are caving to election-year pressures by trying to exit Iraq without regard for the future health of the country.

All of the presidential candidates would be wise to recognize that it took Afghanistan, a country with many fewer problems than Iraq, over two years just to write a constitution.

 

[STING2]

The Bush administration has no plans for an early exit for Iraq. The current plan is to have 105,000 US troops stationed in Iraq all the way through 2006 and longer if necessary.

 

[verte76]

I don't think that Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz et al necessarily believed that it would be easy, but I do think that they and Bush are caving to election-year pressures by trying to exit Iraq without regard for the future health of the country.

All of the presidential candidates would be wise to recognize that it took Afghanistan, a country with many fewer problems than Iraq, over two years just to write a constitution.

They need to not make snap decisions on Iraq. There's not much margin for error in a country like it. That's really what I'm trying to get at. It's tricky to do the right thing, but so important.