BMEWS
 
Sarah Palin's presence in the lower 48 means the Arctic ice cap can finally return.

calendar   Friday - July 29, 2005

Help Your Sisters

I just finished reading this story in the Washington Post and immediately wondered where are all the feminists in the US? Shouldn’t they be going over to Afghanistan to help women achieve the unprecedented right to have their voices heard in government? Why isn’t N.O.W. (National Organization for Women) issuing a call to members to help their sisters overseas? Instead of running around America in an air-conditioned bus protesting against the war to set these women free, Jane Fonda should go over there and be a human shield for the women who are trying to run for office.  I am issuing a challenge to all the Liberal, bra-burning feminazis out there: go to Afghanistan and help your sisters .... or admit you’re the cowardly hypocrites I think you are ....

imageimage(WASHINGTON POST) CHARKH, Afghanistan—The note slipped under Mahmoud Shah’s front gate was written in a tidy, graceful hand. But the message brimmed with venom: “If you don’t stop campaigning for Noorzia Charkhi, your life will be in danger. Also tell Noorzia Charkhi that she should give up her candidacy. Aren’t you ashamed to put up posters of your family’s women in the bazaar?”

Charkhi, 36, is a journalist based in the capital, Kabul, who is campaigning for a seat in Afghanistan’s new parliament. But in this mud-walled village in Logar, the home province she hopes to represent, Charkhi’s candidacy is such a challenge to tradition that she and her relatives, including her cousin Shah, have faced repeated threats.

“I’m not going to quit, because I want to show people that a woman should be able to do these things. But definitely I fear for my life. . . . The people who did this already have blood on their hands,” Charkhi said during a visit to Shah’s home, 50 miles south of Kabul. “I’m even more afraid that they will smear my reputation,” she added. “That would be worse than death.”

Charkhi’s situation underscores both the difficulties facing female candidates running for office in the Sept. 18 parliamentary elections and the determination many have expressed as they embark on an unprecedented bid for political power.

Even though many Afghan families still prohibit wives and daughters from showing their faces in public, 328 women are running for the lower house of parliament, where 68 of 249 seats have been set aside for female representatives. An additional 237 are running for seats on provincial councils that will in turn appoint a third of the upper house. Despite the traditional restrictions on women, the guaranteed quota of legislative seats for them has given political parties, tribal leaders and powerful families an incentive to promote female candidates whom they might otherwise have ignored—or even banned from running.

“There is quite a bit of support for women running in the parliamentary elections—much more than we expected,” noted Rina Amiri, a U.N. political affairs officer who is monitoring the elections. Yet female candidates in provinces across the country have complained of receiving phone calls and letters threatening them with death if they don’t withdraw.

In southern Helmand province, U.N. officials are investigating reports of letters circulating that offer a $4,000 reward for killing female candidates. In southeastern Zabol province, unknown gunmen tried to hijack a car belonging to Zarmina Pathan, a candidate and employee of a local aid organization. Afghan and U.N. officials said they are investigating whether the attack was a routine crime or an attempt to intimidate her.

In Logar, Charkhi is not the only female candidate to face threats. Zobaida Stanekzai, 52, a school supervisor running for parliament, said she has little doubt about the motives of whoever set fire to the door of her mud-walled home several weeks ago. “They were trying to scare me into dropping out,” said Stanekzai, whose home was also attacked with a grenade last year when she took a job registering women to vote in the presidential election. “But my decision to be a candidate is unshakable.”


avatar

Posted by The Skipper   United States  on 07/29/2005 at 06:24 AM   
Filed Under: • Democrats-Liberals-Moonbat LeftistsInternationalRoPMA •  
Comments (6) Trackbacks(0)  Permalink •  
Page 1 of 1 pages

Five Most Recent Trackbacks:

Once Again, The One And Only Post
(4 total trackbacks)
Tracked at iHaan.org
The advantage to having a guide with you is thɑt an expert will haѵe very first hand experience dealing and navigating the river with гegional wildlife. Tһomas, there are great…
On: 07/28/23 10:37

The Brownshirts: Partie Deux; These aare the Muscle We've Been Waiting For
(3 total trackbacks)
Tracked at head to the Momarms site
The Brownshirts: Partie Deux; These aare the Muscle We’ve Been Waiting For
On: 03/14/23 11:20

Vietnam Homecoming
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at 广告专题配音 专业从事中文配音跟外文配音制造,北京名传天下配音公司
  专业从事中文配音和外文配音制作,北京名传天下配音公司   北京名传天下专业配音公司成破于2006年12月,是专业从事中 中文配音 文配音跟外文配音的音频制造公司,幻想飞腾配音网领 配音制作 有海内外优良专业配音职员已达500多位,可供给一流的外语配音,长年服务于国内中心级各大媒体、各省市电台电视台,能满意不同客户的各种需要。电话:010-83265555   北京名传天下专业配音公司…
On: 03/20/21 07:00

meaningless marching orders for a thousand travellers ... strife ahead ..
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at Casual Blog
[...] RTS. IF ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE IS CONSTRUED AS BEING CONTRARY TO THE LAWS APPL [...]
On: 07/17/17 04:28

a small explanation
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at yerba mate gourd
Find here top quality how to prepare yerba mate without a gourd that's available in addition at the best price. Get it now!
On: 07/09/17 03:07



DISCLAIMER
Allanspacer

THE SERVICES AND MATERIALS ON THIS WEBSITE ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND THE HOSTS OF THIS SITE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF SATISFACTORY QUALITY, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE OR ANY MATERIALS.

Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:
  1. Keep a firm grasp of Right and Wrong
  2. Stay involved with government on every level and don't let those bastards get away with a thing
  3. Use every legal means to defend yourself in the event of real internal trouble, and, most importantly:
  4. Keep talking to each other, whether here or elsewhere
It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.

THE INFORMATION AND OTHER CONTENTS OF THIS WEBSITE ARE DESIGNED TO COMPLY WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THIS WEBSITE SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND ALL PARTIES IRREVOCABLY SUBMIT TO THE JURISDICTION OF THE AMERICAN COURTS. IF ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE IS CONSTRUED AS BEING CONTRARY TO THE LAWS APPLICABLE IN ANY OTHER COUNTRY, THEN THIS WEBSITE IS NOT INTENDED TO BE ACCESSED BY PERSONS FROM THAT COUNTRY AND ANY PERSONS WHO ARE SUBJECT TO SUCH LAWS SHALL NOT BE ENTITLED TO USE OUR SERVICES UNLESS THEY CAN SATISFY US THAT SUCH USE WOULD BE LAWFUL.


Copyright © 2004-2015 Domain Owner



GNU Terry Pratchett


Oh, and here's some kind of visitor flag counter thingy. Hey, all the cool blogs have one, so I should too. The Visitors Online thingy up at the top doesn't count anything, but it looks neat. It had better, since I paid actual money for it.
free counters