Por las mujeres Iraquíes

Iraqi Women, Fighting for a VoiceActivists Confront Dual Powers of Religion, Tribalism
By Sudarsan RaghavanWashington Post Foreign Service

From the southern port city of Basra to bustling Irbil in northern Iraq, Iraqi activists are trying to counter the rising influence of religious fundamentalists and tribal chieftains who have insisted that women wear the veil, prevented girls from receiving education and sanctioned killings of women accused of besmirching their family's honor.
In their quest for stability in Iraq, U.S. officials have empowered tribal and religious leaders, Sunni and Shiite, who reject the secularism that Saddam Hussein once largely maintained. These leaders have imposed strict interpretations of Islam and enforced tribal codes that female activists say limit their freedom and encourage violence against them.
"Women are being strangled by religion and tribalism," said Muna Saud, a 52-year-old activist in Basra.
The activists' struggle is part of a broader battle over the identity of a nation in transition. Driving the debate are questions central to Iraq's future: What role should Islam play in government, politics and society? And to what extent should Western attitudes and ideas influence the country?
"Without changing the way society thinks, changing laws on paper is useless," Rashid said.
Hawjin Hama Rashid, a feisty journalist and women´s rights activist in Iraq.
Rashid has received numerous death threats. In an e-mail, someone threatened to rape her for being un-Islamic. When Rashid complained, a police officer told her to stop fighting for women's rights.

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Puede justificarse la violación de libertades y derechos de las mujeres en nombre de la religión o la cultura? El multiculturalismo "inventado" por las sociedades occidentales ha venido a clausurar cualquier esperanza de igualdad de las mujeres de otras culturas...Y los derechos y el respeto a la dignidad no son relativos.

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