Women's
Rights in Irak
By Shere Hite
A struggle is now going on in
Irak and elsewhere to evolve a new basic value system and way of running
society and government. Where will women wind up in all of this?
Many women perceive -- West and East -- that they should 'take sides',
either supporting their own 'traditional society' or accepting 'global
Western secular values'. Yet it is unfortunate that these two options
seem to be the choices.
Although the current international struggle and debate is perceived
to be between 'true religion' or 'tradition', and 'Western secularism'
(or even 'democracy'), this is not really the choice.
What are the 'two' competing value systems that now are on offer to
'world thinking'?
The real choice that people now must perceive and make is between
a hierarchical authoritarianism going under the name of religion,
repressing women and placing them completely in a subservient position
to men/god-allah/the system of the family, 'respectability' and so
on, and controlling their own destiny including their own inner sense
of ethics and values, re-creating morality and government without
oppressing either women or men. Making something new.
Most European countries, of course, cannot claim to be models of perfection
in this, although many people are trying to bring such 'new values'
into the mainstream. In terms of women's (and men's) rights, Scandinavia
is doing somewhat better in general. For example, in Finland, a woman
president was inaugurated in spring, 2003; Finland also had a woman
'prime minister', making it the only European country with two women
together in such high posts -- although men are together in top posts
all over Europe without anyone 'batting an eye' or being surprised.
In Finland now, 37% of the Parliament is made up of women. Sweden
and Denmark also have high levels of participation of women, as does
New Zealand -- also now with a woman president -- New Zealand was
the first country in the world to 'give women' the vote, that is,
in 1897.
However, in most Middle Eastern countries -- including Irak under
Sadam Hussein -- legally a woman may be killed for having sex outside
of marriage, as part of Shi'aa religious law. Of course the Shiaas
represent over 1/3 of the population of Iraq and are expected to take
a large place in a new government being formed there 'by the people
of Iraq'. Thus this law could be expected to be reinforced. Under
Hussein's previous somewhat secular version of Islam, women were not
required nor pressured to wear a chador or burkha (nor the veil),
although women in the Shi'aa population do wear a long black chador
covering their bodies and hair entirely. While women under the previous
regime did not have true 'equality', many women were educated at the
university and held high government and other offices. Will they be
able to continue to do so?
Very few if any women have attended the meeting of the various 'leaders'
of Iraq that took place in the country during the third week of April.
Although Shi'aa religious leaders (male only) also did not attend
and boycotted the meeting, there is no countervailing large organized
women's movement in the country who boycotted the meeting; the organizations
that exist were not invited to the meeting -- someone forgot them!
I am wondering what will happen
to women and women's rights in Iraq now that things are changing in
the country so drastically. The position Iraki women carve out for
themselves there will surely affect the position of women throughout
the region and throughout the world. I sent them my best, I am thinking
of them.
