A Lone Woman Protests Taliban's Education Ban With Single Word Of God, Iqra, Or 'Read'
New
Age Islam News Bureau
31 December 2022
•
Iranian Chess Player Sara KhademTo Move To Spain After Playing Without Hijab:
Report
•
Dania Akeel, The Saudi Woman Taking On One Of The World’s Toughest Motor Races
•
Rape Of 513 Women This Year A Scar On the Face Of Karachi Conscience
•
Saudi Women’s Team Draw 3-3 With Bhutan In First Ever International At Home
•
When Women Said Enough Is Enough To A Repressive Regime In Iran
•
392 Women Fell Victim To Femicide In Turkey In 2022
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL:
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Woman
Protests Taliban's Education Ban With Single Word Of God, Iqra, Or 'Read'
By
Noor Gul Shafaq
December
31, 2022
Adela
held her protest in front of the gate of Kabul University but it was stopped
within 15 minutes
------
"I
did not feel any fear because I believed that my demand is just," said a
defiant 18-year-old Afghan woman whose ambition to get a university degree has
been frustrated by the Taliban's ban on women in higher education.
Angered
at the prospect of seeing her future disappear, the woman (whose name we have
changed for her safety) staged an extraordinary solo protest in front of Kabul
University, invoking words from the Quran.
On
Sunday 25 December, Adela stood in front of the entrance holding up a board
with a particularly powerful word written on it in Arabic - iqra, or 'read'.
Muslims believe this was the first word revealed to the Prophet Muhammad by
God.
"God
has given us the right to education. We need to be afraid of God, not the
Taliban who want to take away our rights," she told the BBC Afghan
service.
"I
knew that they treat the protesters very badly. They beat them, hit them, use
weapons - they used Tasers and water cannon on them. But still I stood in front
of them.
"At
first they didn't take me seriously. Later, one of the gunmen asked me to
leave."
Initially,
Adela refused to go and stood her ground, but the paper board she was holding
gradually caught the attention of the armed guards around her.
While
clutching the placard, she started engaging a member of the Taliban.
"I
asked him, 'Can't you read what I have written?'," she said.
He
said nothing, so Adela went further: "Can't you read the word of
God?"
"He
became angry and threatened me."
Her
placard was taken away and she was forced to leave after about 15 minutes of
her lone demonstration.
While
she was protesting, her elder sister had been sitting in a taxi taking pictures
and recording a video of the protest.
"The
taxi driver became very scared of the Taliban. He was pleading with my sister
to stop filming. Fearing trouble, he asked her to leave the car," Adela
said.
Increasing
restrictions on women
Following
the hasty withdrawal of the American-led international forces, the Taliban
returned to power in Afghanistan in August 2021.
First
they banned girls from going to secondary schools. In September this year, they
banned girls from studying certain subjects and told them they could only
choose universities within their province.
On
20 December, they banned women from attending university, provoking
international condemnation, and then a few days later from working for local
and international NGOs.
Women,
especially university students have been protesting against the ban on
education ever since.
Some
have used the slogan "women, life, freedom" popularised by the recent
demonstrations in Iran.
Officials
at Kabul University, where four faculties are currently headed by women, told
the BBC that female professors were not allowed to enter the campus now.
Calling
on men
Protesting
against the Taliban is not easy for women such as Adela. She wants men to show
similar courage, but it can come with a cost.
"During
my protest, a young man wanted to make a video of me to support me. They hit
him hard," she said.
One
male professor tore up his educational diplomas on a live TV show to register
his protest and sources have told the BBC that more than 50 university teachers
have resigned in protest.
One
teacher who gave up his job said that he withdrew his resignation after he was
beaten up by the Taliban.
But
Adela believes that it is crucial that Afghan men join the struggle.
"There
are very few men in Afghanistan who stand with us now. In Iran, men stand with
their sisters and support women's rights. If we also stand together for the
right to education, we will be 100% successful," she said.
Continuing
defiance
There
is external pressure on the Taliban as well: the UN Security Council said on
Tuesday that the banning of girls and women from education "represents an
increasing erosion for the respect of human rights and fundamental
freedoms".
But
Taliban leaders seem unfazed. Education minister Nida Mohammad Nadim was quoted
in the Guardian as saying the decisions would not be reversed "even if
they drop an atomic bomb on us".
Adela
is similarly determined.
"If
I cannot fly, I will run. If I cannot run, I will take slow steps. If I cannot
do that either, I will crawl. But I will not stop my struggle, my
resistance," she said.
She
says she can count on the support and appreciation of her friends. "You
are so brave and we all are with you," they tell her.
Adela
also believes that women in Afghanistan today are better placed to win this
fight than in previous generations.
"We
don't want to go back to the dark ages of 20 years ago. We are braver than the
women of that time, because we are more educated and know our rights," she
said.
Source:
BBC
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-64129401
--------
Iranian
Chess Player Sara KhademTo Move To Spain After Playing Without Hijab: Report
30
December, 2022
Sara
Khadem of Iran sits in front of a chess board at the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz
Chess Championships in Almaty, Kazakhstan on December 30, 2022. (Reuters)
----------
Iranian
chess player Sara Khadem, who appeared this week without a hijab at an
international tournament in Kazakhstan, will not return to Iran and instead
move to Spain, a Spanish newspaper reported.
Khadem
has been participating at the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championship in
Almaty, Kazakhstan without a headscarf – a violation of Iran’s laws governing
female dress code.
Khadem’s
decision to appear without the hijab was seen as a gesture of support for
anti-regime protests back home, which were triggered in mid-September following
the death of 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman MahsaAmini after her arrest by
Tehran’s morality police for “inappropriate attire.”
Khadem,
25, plans to move to Spain with her husband, a film director, and their child,
Spanish newspaper El País reported. The couple own an apartment in Spain,
according to the report.
“She
is aware that her life would be in danger if she returned to Iran because she
has been shown playing without a head covering in several photographs,” El País
quoted sources close to Khadem as saying.
Laws
enforcing mandatory hijab wearing have become a flashpoint during the protests,
with a string of sportswomen competing overseas appearing without their
headscarves in public.
Khadem
is ranked 804 in the world, according to the International Chess Federation
website. The website for the December 25-30 event listed her as a participant
in both the Rapid and Blitz competitions.
Source:
Al Arabiya
--------
Dania
Akeel, The Saudi Woman Taking On One Of The World’s Toughest Motor Races
By
Jonathan Hawkins
December
30, 2022
Dania
Akeel: Meet the Saudi woman taking on the Dakar Rally
----------
Her
head cradled in a crash helmet, Dania Akeel’s voice crackles through the
intercom above the roar of the engine and the rush of wind through the
windowless cabin of her rugged, black UTV.
“We’re
so lucky,” Akeel tells CNN Sport. “I mean, look at this place, it’s so
beautiful.”
The
Saudi grasps the wheel, deftly navigating the vehicle past rocks and Joshua
trees along a winding dirt track, blasting it past the rusting shell of a
long-abandoned pick-up across the dry sand.
“We
get to do this for a living, right?” continues 34-year-old Akeel, reflecting on
her chosen profession as she prepares for her second tilt at the infamous Dakar
Rally, one of the world’s longest and most demanding endurance races.
CNN
is about an hour north of Phoenix, Arizona, riding shotgun in a Can-Am Maverick
X3 X RS Turbo RR with one of cross-country racing’s more remarkable stories.
Barely
over two years ago, the Jeddah-born athlete had never even tried this type of
racing. Not only that, Akeel also hails from a country in which women have only
been allowed to drive on public roads since 2018.
The
Dakar
‘The
Dakar’ began life in 1978 as the Paris-Dakar Rally. It ran annually from France
to Senegal until 2007 but when the 2008 event was cancelled due to security
concerns, the rally was transplanted across the Atlantic, and ran through South
America until 2020, when it moved again, to Saudi Arabia.
Today
there are five major vehicle categories in the rally: cars, motorbikes, trucks,
UTVs and quad bikes.
Akeel’s
interest in motor vehicles goes back much farther than the arrival of this
world-famous rally in her home country.
“I
had a big interest in cars when I was younger,” she tells CNN. “It wasn’t
necessarily cars, actually, it was anything that could that I could drive and
that included bicycles.
“You
know, I just love movement. I love being outdoors. I just love how it felt to
communicate to the machine, to get it to go from A to B.”
Her
childhood was spent trying all kinds of different modes of transport.
“I
started driving things like go karts at a young age, and things like quad
bikes,” she explains. “When I was a bit older, I drove two wheeled dirt bikes.
“These
are just vehicles that would be in private homes, on a farm or things like
that, where I had access to these types of machines, and I would just use them
for fun with my cousins and my friends on the weekends.”
Her
interest in motor vehicles solidified when her family moved to the UK, where
she went to high school and, eventually, college.
“I
was very lucky to travel frequently with my parents,” she recalls. “We used to
go to kart tracks in England and that was really fun.”
The
chance to drive on the road
Another
door that opened for Akeel in the UK was one at that point firmly closed to her
at home – the chance to drive on the road – and she wasted no time obtaining
her driving license, aged 17.
She
even admits her choice of destination for her undergraduate studies – the
University of London’s picturesque Royal Holloway College, on the English
capital’s western outskirts – was influenced by the opportunities it presented
to drive.
It
was a move onto two wheels that set Akeel’s mind towards racing.
“When
I was 27, I got my motorcycle license, and that was a lot of fun. So, the
motorcycle started to direct me towards the racing world.”
After
gaining a master’s degree in International Business, from Hult University, she
moved to Dubai and started riding on the Dubai Autodromo racetrack.
“I
could see that I was really loving the sport and having a good time and some of
the racers encouraged me to join them, to race the in the national series,”
says Akeel.
“I
went and got the tests and the exams done for the racing license, and then I
got a license issued from the Saudi Motor Sports Federation. And that’s how I
started racing.”
The
impetus to switch to cross country racing came, quite literally, as the result
of an accident.
In
February 2020, at a 600cc Superstock meeting in Bahrain, Akeel lost control of
her bike and fell.
“I
had a ‘low side’ fall, which means I fell onto the track on the side that the
bike was leaning toward, which is, you know, the, the lesser and easier fall.”
The
six-feet-one-inch-tall Akeel considers herself fortunate.
“I
was very lucky. I had some broken bones in my pelvis, my spine, but they were
all fractures that could heal naturally. So, I considered that to be a very
lucky outcome and I was very relieved and very grateful.”
Mentally
prepared
At
the time, the Covid pandemic was beginning to precipitate widespread border
closures and lockdowns, so Akeel returned home to Jeddah to recuperate.
While
resting up she began to consider the appeal of off-road and rally racing,
especially as Saudi Arabia was welcoming the Dakar Rally for the first time.
“It’s
a great event. It’s international. It hosts a lot of people from all over the
world, coming in big numbers, and it’s a lot of fun,” she explains.
Akeel
began competing in the FIA World Cup for Cross Country Bajas, a global rally
series inspired by the eponymous races on Mexico’s Baja peninsula.
“(I
wanted) to get used to the idea of being in different situations, different
terrain, which Dakar gives you, across 9,000 kilometers of Saudi Arabia and
it’s actually very diverse,” she says.
“So,
when I went to the cross-country Baja World Cup, I had two rounds in the Middle
East and three in Europe and each of those locations was a completely different
way of driving.
“So,
I found, for example, it was muddy in Italy, and there was a lot of gravel and
water in Hungary. There were a lot of bumpy, rocky parts in the Middle East
with sand, with dunes. So that just got my mind prepared for variety and to be
able to engage with the unknown.”
Being
ready for the unexpected is a key feature of preparation for the Dakar, Akeel
says.
“If
you have this mentality that anything can happen at any moment and you expect
things to constantly evolve, then you can be well prepared mentally,” she
explains.
“And
then physically, that’s a different story: so, I have my workout routine and I
eat well and sleep well.”
‘I
have every right to be there’
With
women only recently able to drive on the road in Saudi Arabia, Akeel is aware
that she could be seen as a role model by her countrywomen, but she is
philosophical about her own path and what she might represent to others.
“I
was very lucky to get my license when I was 17 and I had a head start on
building that response time and those skills and driving skills,” she says.
“I
think it’s important to watch people do it because then you understand that it
is possible for you, whoever you are, to get into the sport.
“I
mean, I remember when I was joining the first race, I didn’t think twice about
… how many women had done this? Had they been from Saudi? Not Saudi? I didn’t
think too much about that because the rules say I can be there.
“You
know, I have every right to be there. I have my license. I belong here. I have
my car, I have my gear, I have my helmet. You know, so I meet all of the
requirements. I have a full set of rights of belonging in the sport and that
was what I needed.”
A
costly mistake
In
her first attempt at the Dakar, Akeel finished a creditable eighth in her class
in the 2022 race, but it could have been even better.
“We
were sixth (in the T3 class), which I was very happy with, being a first
timer,” said Akeel. “But on the seventh day I had a problem with the turbo and
the car had a bit less power. I started to use the brakes less and carry
momentum through the turns. But that means more risk.
“(My
co-driver) said, ‘you know, if you don’t stop what you’re doing, you’re gonna
have a problem’. But I ignored him, and I ended up turning a corner and was
caught off guard by a rock and hit the brakes really quickly, and the impact
broke the front of the car.
The
mistake cost Akeel four hours and several places.
“I
reacted in an emotional way, and I didn’t make the right call,” she admits.
“Dakar is a race that forces you to look at yourself and your decisions. And
after that, I did change the way I drove.”
Creating
a path for women
Akeel’s
story has proven attractive to major sponsors, including the likes of Toyota
and Canadian off-road specialist, Can-Am, which provided her with the
all-important car.
“Dania
isn’t afraid to get in there and compete with the boys in a male-dominated
sport,” said Anne-Marie LaBerge, Chief Marketing Officer at BRP, which owns
Can-Am, of Akeel.
“She
is helping to create a path for women and future generations of young women to
follow in Saudi Arabia, similarly to what Molly Taylor is doing in Australia,
Cristina Gutierrez is doing in Spain, and Cory Weller is doing in the United
States.
“These
are women creating a path for other women to push their limits and get in the
game, whatever the rules are.”
As
for the challenges of Dakar itself, Akeel sees it as a learning experience, but
also primarily as fun.
“Dakar
reminds me of summer camp,” she says. “You know, every day we wake up, we get
our gear on and we just drive for 400 plus kilometers. It’s the finest two
weeks.
“When
I get in the car, it’s me and the co-driver and the car and the track. That’s
it. That’s all that exists. Nothing else exists.”
Source:
CNN
https://edition.cnn.com/2022/12/30/motorsport/dania-akeel-dakar-rally-spt-intl/index.html
--------
Rape
Of 513 Women This Year A Scar On the Face Of Karachi Conscience
Imtiaz
Ali P
December
31, 2022
KARACHI:
The outgoing year of 2022 left painful and ugly scars on the face of Karachi
when it comes to the violent crime of rape as over 500 women and girls were
subjected to sexual assault in the last 12 months, it emerged on Friday.
The
shocking figures were compiled with the help of record of medico-legal officers
posted at the three major hospitals of the metropolis — the Jinnah Postgraduate
Medical Centre (JPMC), Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi (CHK) and Abbasi
Shaheed Hospital (ASH).
The
data, maintained by Police Surgeon Office, Karachi, showed an extraordinary
increase in rape and murder cases in Karachi. Also, incidents of shooting
people over resistance during mugging incidents showed an upward trend.
Speaking
to Dawn, Police Surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed said that 513 women were sexually
assaulted while 3,649 women became victim of domestic violence, who had been
brought to the hospitals for medical examination.
Commenting
on the official figure of rape cases, lawyer and rights activist Maliha Zia
Lari believed that the actual figure might be higher than the reported one.
3,649
women fell victim to domestic violence in 2022
“Good
thing is that under relevant anti-rape law, so far 27 gender-based violence
courts have been established in Sindh,” she told Dawn.
MsLari,
who is associate director of the Legal Aid Society, said that a recent survey
conducted by her organisation suggests conviction ratio of the gender-based
violence courts was over 11 per cent. It also showed that only 14pc people in
Sindh were ‘satisfied’ with performance of these courts.
“We
see that the response is improving but there is a need to focus on prevention,”
she said.
Over
1,290 people killed in city
The
police surgeon said that a total of 1,291 bodies of people killed because of
various motives were brought to the three major hospitals of the city.
She
added that the total number of post-mortem examinations conducted was a
‘misleading’ figure for actual deaths occurring due to various causes, as the
relatives/people generally did not allow autopsy and preferred to take away the
body without completion of medico legal formalities.
Giving
details of the three hospitals data, the police surgeon said a total of 12,511
miscellaneous medico-legal cases were brought to the JPMC till Dec 29.
A
total of 267 female sexual assault cases and 1,938 female physical
assault/domestic violence cases were also brought to the same hospital. As many
as 540 bodies were brought for autopsy to the JPMC.
Regarding
Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, she said that a total of 10,951 miscellaneous
medico-legal cases were brought to the tertiary-care hospital.
A
total of 145 female sexual assault cases and 1,318 female physical
assault/domestic violence cases were reported at the ASH till Dec 29.
Doctors
at the hospital conducted autopsies on 554 bodies brought from different areas.
At
the Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi, the MLOs (medico-legal officials)
dealt with 6,787 medico-legal cases, she added. Out of them 101 pertained to
rape of women and 393 were domestic violence cases.
A
total of 197 bodies were brought to the hospital for post-mortem examination
while 10 bodies were exhumed on directions/orders of the courts concerned.
Dr
Syed said that this was also very common situation in road accidents and more
importantly, in sudden suspicious deaths as the attendants/heirs did not allow
the doctors to fulfil legal formalities of conducting post-mortem examination.
Coining
a new term SurkhKafan, or red shroud, she said: “One occurrence that I followed
this year was cases of suicide by girls after three to six months of marriage.
However, eight such cases turned out to be murder/homicide,” said the police
surgeon.
“We
are trying to improve our data collection mechanism and shall now be opening up
a research wing at the Police Surgeon Office Karachi,” said Dr Syed.
Source:
Dawn
https://www.dawn.com/news/1729126/rape-of-513-women-this-year-a-scar-on-citys-conscience
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Saudi
women’s team draw 3-3 with Bhutan in first ever international at home
KHALED
ALARAFAH
September
25, 2022
The
Saudi women’s national football team made history on Saturday night at Sultan
bin Abdul Aziz Stadium with a 3-3 draw against Bhutan in their first ever international
played on home soil.
The
team, led by German coach Monika Staab, had previously played only two
internationals, against the Seychelles and Maldives in February.
Bhutan
took the lead in the fifth minute through BimaShoden, before Bayan Sadaka equalized
with a powerful shot from outside the penalty area 10 minutes later.
The
visitors retook the lead through Dickie Yangdon on 40 minutes and extended
their advantage only two minutes later with a goal from Sonam Shoden to leave
the Falcons trailing 3-1 at the break.
However,
Staab’s team produced an inspired second half performance with Al-Bandari
Mubarak reducing the deficit in the 75th minute, before Noura Al-Ibrahim
managed a 90th minute leveler.
The
Saudi team will meet the same opponents again on Wednesday at Prince Sultan bin
Abdul Aziz Stadium in the Asir region.
Source:
Arab News
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2169056/sport
--------
When
Women Said Enough Is Enough To A Repressive Regime In Iran
Seema
Guha
31
DEC 2022
"It
was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it
was the age of foolishness, it was the season of Light, it was the season of
Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, …..” The opening lines (paraphrased) from Charles
Dickens’s novel A Tale of Two Cities, kind of summed up the situation for women
in two hotspots of the world -- Iran and Afghanistan this past year. Women were
the talking point in international forums across the world.
Many
important events including the war in Ukraine took place in 2022. But for me
the story was Iran. I feel strongly about Iran because that was one of the last
countries I visited before the 2020 lockdown. I was there in October 2019 with
a group of women journalists from India. Iran turned out to be different from
the image I carried from news reports. I expected to find a country in shambles
with people struggling to somehow cope with over four decades of American
sanctions. We had read about high inflation and how the country’s economy was
ruined after the Iran-Iraq war and the sanctions that followed. Images of angry
Iranians stomping and shouting 'death to America!' were in my mind, from
pictures at the time of the US embassy siege. Every anti-American demonstration
in the country had similar photos of protesters shouting anti-American slogans.
We
were told before leaving that we should be careful to cover our arms and legs
and to make sure our hair was covered. I knew that since the 1979 Iranian
revolution, women were in hijab and expected to be shrouded in black chadors,
seen but not heard. I presumed shop shelves to be empty much like towards the
end of the Soviet-era in Russia. I stepped off the flight with these
preconceived ideas.
But
Iran was totally different. Far from being a jaded metropolis, Tehran was a
bustling city. The women wore scarves, but the younger generation did not wear
the hijab tightly bound so that not a single strand was seen. Instead, blonde,
brown, silver and purple strands peeped out from loosely thrown scarves. Jeans
and stilettoes were common and bright coloured lipstick, skinny jeans and long
smart flowing jackets was the common attire of stylish women. A perfect nose is
obviously at a premium. Many women were seen walking around with bandages on
their noses. We were told that these young women has gotten nose jobs done.
Plastic surgeons were in high demand to give Iranian women the perfect nose.
Everyone
was on the mobile either chatting, listening to songs or playing games. The
older generation wore black chadors and followed. Women were everywhere in the
workforce. Doctors, judges, professors, engineers and plenty of them work in
government offices. In research and scientific institutions and laboratories,
women were working side by side with men. And there were plenty of women
drivers across all major cities like Tehran, Shiraz and Isfahan. Tourist sites
like Persepolis have women tour guides. The media has plenty of women and many
of the newscasters in Iranian television are women.
Instead
of a sullen angry people, there were smiling teenagers all around, singing,
laughing and generally filling restaurants and pavement cafés. Young lovers
held hands openly. There was no sign then of the moral police. At a café near
the mosque in Isfahan, two large groups of young ladies around 30 to 35 of them
were listening with rapt attention to a band. When the vocalist belted out some
obviously popular numbers, the young girls went wild. Clapping, singing and
whistling loudly. Most of them wore scarves again with hair clearly visible.
Some got up to dance but there were no boys around. Perhaps Isfahan is a little
more conservative than Tehran.
In
another traditional tea house in Isfahan, a stunningly beautiful woman sat
alone while enjoying a sheesha. She was dressed in silk, and not a hair peeped
out of her scarf which was tightly bound; her bright red lipstick completed the
picture. She seemed perfectly at ease being photographed by us. Unfortunately,
she spoke not a word of English.
The
year 2019 was one of optimism for women in Iran. In September, a month before
we landed, the government allowed women to watch a football match at a stadium
in Tehran. This was the first time since the revolution that women were
admitted inside a soccer stadium to watch a World Cup qualifier between Iran
and Cambodia. More than 3,000 women packed the stadium to cheer for the home
team. Many believed this was a tentative first step and but felt much more had
to be done.
The
hijab debate was still on, and most of the young felt that the authorities
should give them the right of choice. The older women in their families
regarded the hijab as a part of the traditional attire and wanted the young to
to cover their hair. Others wore the hijab to show their support for the
revolution and was basically an anti-Shah act. The Shah of Iran during his term
was for westernization and encouraged women to discard the head scarf. But the
young women we met, were against the hijab. They were keen to be like teenagers
in other parts of the world and were mostly non-political.
The
President then was Hassan Rouhani, a moderate cleric keen on enhancing women’s
representation in public life. He wanted 30 percent major decision-making posts
in his administration going to women. The number of female vice ministers had
recently increased from 10 to more than 60, there were 73 deputy ministers, 10
deputy governors and three women ambassadors. However, Rouhani’s inability to
get sanctions lifted, or get any concession from the US, made Ayatollah Ali
Khamenei and the hardline clerics turn against the moderates. The elections of
2021 brought in Ebrahim Raisi, a former chief justice and prosecutor, known for
his harsh judgements and his uncompromising attitude towards any deviation from
the Islamic path. Since then, all the trappings of a religious state were back
with a bang. The morality police were on the streets now to enforce discipline.
The 7000 strong guidance patrols do pretty much what they please and are
protected by the state.
Masha
Amini was waiting to happen. The 22-year old young women was arrested for not
following the strict protocol approved by the moral police, she was beaten and
tortured and eventually died. That was the flashpoint. Women had had enough of
the strictures. The welled up anger burst like a dam, people were on the
streets across Iran, not just in the Kurdish areas where she lived, defying the
authorities. Many threw off the hijab, others publicly cut off their long
stresses surrounded by cheering crowds. "Woman, Life, Freedom" is the
new slogan that is chanted in every protest. "Death to the dictator"
is another.
The
protests are led by young women, but men have also joined. The Islamic regime
is facing its toughest challenge since the 1979 revolution. The crackdown has
been brutal, yet the protests continue. But at a heavy cost. Nearly 500
protesters including 69 children have been killed. Prisons are overcrowded with
protesters. Two young men were executed, and nearly twenty-six others are on
death row, according to the Human Rights Activists News Agency. Iranian
celebrities have not kept quiet. Well known actress TaranehAlidoosti was
arrested and jailed after she condemned the execution of a young protester. She
had published a photo of herself without a mandatory headscarf, holding a sign
with the protesters' slogan. The courage and resilience shown by Iranian women
gives me goose bumps. I wonder if the women we met during our stay in Iran are
safe. No way of knowing.
In
Afghanistan, women are being steadily stripped off their rights by the new
Taliban regime. They are out of public spaces. It began with a ban on girls
going to school, being accompanied by a male relative while out of the home,
not being allowed to take flights on their own, being permitted only in certain
professions. Parks and gyms are closed to them and now they have been stopped
from attending universities. Afghan women put up a resistance, but the
ultra-orthodox Taliban would have none of it. Afghan women who enjoyed two
decades of freedom when the US and NATO forces were in the country have now
been literally thrown to the wolves.
Despite
verbal assurances by the Taliban negotiating team in Doha while signing a deal
with the Americans, they have done nothing to honour their commitment.
International community may issue statement after statement condemning the
Taliban’s regressive ways but can do little to influence the leadership.
Afghanistan is now back to the time of the first Taliban rule and would have to
device new ways to defy the system.
Journalist
Christina Lamb’s book The Sewing Circles of Herat is a vivid account of Afghan
women and how they coped during the first Taliban rule. She wrote about women’s
passion for learning and how they hoodwinked the authorities in Herat. Groups
of women gathered to learn sewing at individual homes. Once inside, pupils
threw off the sewing needles and got out their books as teachers conducted
classes and kept alive the schooling for girls. Women are innovative and will
have to come out with such plans to keep learning alive in Afghanistan.
Source:
OutlookIndia
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392
women fell victim to femicide in Turkey in 2022
December
30, 2022
At
least 392 women were murdered by men and 226 women died under suspicious
circumstances in Turkey in 2022, although the government claims that the number
of femicides in the country is trending downward, according to data from the We
Will Stop Femicide Platform.
Two
hundred eighty women were killed by men in 2021, with 217 suspicious deaths the
same year.
Femicides
and violence against women are serious problems in Turkey, where women are
killed, raped or beaten every day. Many critics say the main reason behind the
situation is the policies of the Justice and Development Party (AKP)
government, which protects violent and abusive men by granting them impunity.
Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan sparked outrage in Turkey and the international
community after he issued a decree in March 2021 that pulled the country out of
an international treaty that requires governments to adopt legislation
prosecuting perpetrators of domestic violence and similar abuse as well as
marital rape and female genital mutilation.
The
Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women
and Domestic Violence, better known as the Istanbul Convention, is an
international accord designed to protect women’s rights and prevent domestic
violence in societies and was opened to signature of member countries of the
Council of Europe in 2011.
In
April 2021, just one month after withdrawing from the Istanbul Convention,
Interior Minister SüleymanSoylu said, “Femicides have decreased since pulling
out of the convention,” which the We Will Stop Femicide Platform and other
women’s rights platforms claimed was disinformation.
Source:Stockholmcf
https://stockholmcf.org/392-women-fell-victim-to-femicide-in-turkey-in-2022/
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