'WORSE THAN TALIBAN' - LAW ROLLS BACK RIGHTS FOR AFGHAN WOM

[Daanyeer]

Source; http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/ma ... nistan-law
'Worse than the Taliban' - new law rolls back rights for Afghan women
Jon Boone in Kabul The Guardian, Tuesday 31 March 2009




Hamid Karzai has been accused of trying to win votes in Afghanistan's presidential election by backing a law the UN says legalises rape within marriage and bans wives from stepping outside their homes without their husbands' permission.

The Afghan president signed the law earlier this month, despite condemnation by human rights activists and some MPs that it flouts the constitution's equal rights provisions.



The final document has not been published, but the law is believed to contain articles that rule women cannot leave the house without their husbands' permission, that they can only seek work, education or visit the doctor with their husbands' permission, and that they cannot refuse their husband sex.

A briefing document prepared by the United Nations Development Fund for Women also warns that the law grants custody of children to fathers and grandfathers only.

Senator Humaira Namati, a member of the upper house of the Afghan parliament, said the law was "worse than during the Taliban". "Anyone who spoke out was accused of being against Islam," she said.

The Afghan constitution allows for Shias, who are thought to represent about 10% of the population, to have a separate family law based on traditional Shia jurisprudence. But the constitution and various international treaties signed by Afghanistan guarantee equal rights for women.

Shinkai Zahine Karokhail, like other female parliamentarians, complained that after an initial deal the law was passed with unprecedented speed and limited debate. "They wanted to pass it almost like a secret negotiation," she said. "There were lots of things that we wanted to change, but they didn't want to discuss it because Karzai wants to please the Shia before the election."

Although the ministry of justice confirmed the bill was signed by Karzai at some point this month, there is confusion about the full contents of the final law, which human rights activists have struggled to obtain a copy of. The justice ministry said the law would not be published until various "technical problems" had been ironed out.

After seven years leading Afghanistan, Karzai is increasingly unpopular at home and abroad and the presidential election in August is expected to be extremely closely fought. A western diplomat said the law represented a "big tick in the box" for the powerful council of Shia clerics.

Leaders of the Hazara minority, which is regarded as the most important bloc of swing voters in the election, also demanded the new law.

Ustad Mohammad Akbari, an MP and the leader of a Hazara political party, said the president had supported the law in order to curry favour among the Hazaras. But he said the law actually protected women's rights.

"Men and women have equal rights under Islam but there are differences in the way men and women are created. Men are stronger and women are a little bit weaker; even in the west you do not see women working as firefighters."

Akbari said the law gave a woman the right to refuse sexual intercourse with her husband if she was unwell or had another reasonable "excuse". And he said a woman would not be obliged to remain in her house if an emergency forced her to leave without permission.

The international community has so far shied away from publicly questioning such a politically sensitive issue.

"It is going to be tricky to change because it gets us into territory of being accused of not respecting Afghan culture, which is always difficult," a western diplomat in Kabul admitted.

Soraya Sobhrang, the head of women's affairs at the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, said western silence had been "disastrous for women's rights in Afghanistan".

"What the international community has done is really shameful. If they had got more involved in the process when it was discussed in parliament we could have stopped it. Because of the election I am not sure we can change it now. It's too late for that."

But another senior western diplomat said foreign embassies would intervene when the law is finally published.

Some female politicians have taken a more pragmatic stance, saying their fight in parliament's lower house succeeded in improving the law, including raising the original proposed marriage age of girls from nine to 16 and removing completely provisions for temporary marriages.

"It's not really 100% perfect, but compared to the earlier drafts it's a huge improvement," said Shukria Barakzai, an MP. "Before this was passed family issues were decided by customary law, so this is a big improvement."

Karzai's spokesman declined to comment on the new law.

[LaQaNyO]

[quote="Daanyeer"]A briefing document prepared by the United Nations Development Fund for Women also warns that the law grants custody of children to fathers and grandfathers only. [quote]


Subxaan'allah... everything else i could slowly digest, but this part i just could no go without ignoring!
This is just ludicrous.. and then they wonder why some women are so quick to adapt to western cultures... duh- this level of oppression is obviously a catalyst... Ilaahey oo caqliga'yaga taxi ha naga saarin...Amiin

[SultanOrder]

A briefing document prepared by the United Nations Development Fund for Women also warns that the law grants custody of children to fathers and grandfathers only.

Subxaan'allah... everything else i could slowly digest, but this part i just could no go without ignoring!
This is just ludicrous.. and then they wonder why some women are so quick to adapt to western cultures... duh- this level of oppression is obviously a catalyst... Ilaahey oo caqliga'yaga taxi ha naga saarin...Amiin

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6196716.stm
Did you know that Women there are committing suicide by burning themselves

[LaQaNyO]

Perfect Order

Lord have mercy... stop showing me articles like these... or i will become no1 feminist i swear
Justice shall be served inshala by the All-Hakeem and the All-Azizz... But i tell you one thing.. i knew nothing about Afghanistan, Iraq and all those Kurdish places until i read some true story books based on the Afgani revolution in particularly addressing the way in which women were treated... However, i thought by now ..few things had changed!

[SultanOrder]

Perfect Order

Lord have mercy... stop showing me articles like these... or i will become no1 feminist i swear
Justice shall be served inshala by the All-Hakeem and the All-Azizz... But i tell you one thing.. i knew nothing about Afghanistan, Iraq and all those Kurdish places until i read some true story books based on the Afgani revolution in particularly addressing the way in which women were treated... However, i thought by now ..few things had changed!

LaQaNyO you don't need to be a feminist to be sympathetic.. but that place is crazy tho in this other article a women who burned her self was asked if she had any advice for other women in her situation and she was like use a gun its less painfull

[Netanel]

This is nothing but Kuffar propaganda

don't fall for it

[LaQaNyO]

Perfect Order

Lord have mercy... stop showing me articles like these... or i will become no1 feminist i swear
Justice shall be served inshala by the All-Hakeem and the All-Azizz... But i tell you one thing.. i knew nothing about Afghanistan, Iraq and all those Kurdish places until i read some true story books based on the Afgani revolution in particularly addressing the way in which women were treated... However, i thought by now ..few things had changed!

LaQaNyO you don't need to be a feminist to be sympathetic.. but that place is crazy tho in this other article a women who burned her self was asked if she had any advice for other women in her situation and she was like use a gun its less painfull

La xawla... I love my Somali Brothers walle... ayagu'na bac madow inta lo turo bey film (qabyo) ka matalan instead

Allahu Akbar...

[SultanOrder]

La xawla... I love my Somali Brothers walle... ayagu'na bac madow inta lo turo bey film (qabyo) ka matalan instead

Allahu Akbar...

Right Back atcha Big sis

[Cawar]

If I was a president/leader of a muslim country.. I would let all women free to choose and do what they want.. but warn them and let them know about the Xuduud of SWT..

You want to be a prostitute?? be my guest.. just pay your taxes..
You want to walk naked on the streets..?? do it even during winter times..
You want..this or that.. you got the gist of where I am headed by now I guess..

The west cries about women oppression in Islam and not by muslim/cultures..and they dictate to you what they want to hear/do...because they gave you few million $$..

Bal car aan maqalno...them gov.s talking about Saudi Arabia or even Chine for that matter..cos they need them countries.so their rules apply only to poor countries..


Whats wrong with women asking their men permission to go out esp. in a muslim country/environment?? unless its emergency or agreed upon before??
Why would any women deny her husband sex?? unless there is a good reason?? and who are they(the west) to interfere in private homes of muslim couples when they promote homosexuality and filth of that nature..invoking the same privacy they are trying to deny our muslim couples??

Fool is he/she who falls for this PR and forgets Allah's rules.

[LaQaNyO]

Fool is he/she who falls for this PR and forgets Allah's rules.

Indeed, very true... but giving custody to the father and grand father prior to a mother is an immoral act...that is if there is any truth in this article. The presence of a mother figure, (if possible)... Is really crucial in a child’s life and in their upbringing!

The way i understood was... Husband and Wife get divorced- Father and Grandfather get custody before the Mother (assuming there is nothing else wrong with the mother other than her being a divorcee)

Waxaas xaq maha... a child should be brought up by his mother if she is capable of doing so... After Allah swt and Rasuul of Allah pbuh, a mother has xaq 3x before the father!!

Anyway.. Allahu yaclam if there is any truth in this legislation and how it will be implemented if so…