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Iraq: Women in War
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Over
the past 30 years, Iraqi women have repeatedly suffered the effects of armed
conflict. Since 2003, they have increasingly been caught in the crossfire,
killed or wounded in mass explosions and displaced from their homes. Women
are targeted for their behaviour and role in society, they are raped,
kidnapped or assassinated and they are especially vulnerable to trafficking
and exploitation.
Women
killed or kidnapped during conflict
Hundreds
of women have been targeted as professionals or for their public role in Iraq. In the medical profession alone, many have fled or
abandoned their work, triggering a brain drain and crippling the health
system.
While both men and women are kidnapped, for many women the trauma of
abduction does not end with release. The shame associated with the event is a
lasting stigma.
Women in custody
Women
are a small minority of the detainees visited but as most prisons are
designed to house male detainees, the ICRC closely monitors their specific
needs during visits.
Time does not always heal
Thousands
of Iraqis have gone missing over the last decades. Wives and children are
suspended in limbo, unable to mourn or to move on with their lives. Many
spend years searching. In the absence of any proof of death, widows cannot
obtain a pension or remarry.
The plight of households headed by women
Decades
of conflict in Iraq have left an estimated 1 to 3 million households headed
by women. Thousands of families have been torn apart because a husband and
father has been killed, is still missing or detained.
Iraqi society and its patriarchal system do not make life easy for a woman
without a man. Without a male relative, a woman lacks economic, physical and
social protection and support.
Left without support
Deprived of traditional sources of income, women are forced to adopt roles
that women are not expected to take on in Iraq, and for which they were not brought up. The community
is often unprepared for this shift. Jobs are difficult to find without
previous experience or a diploma. Social barriers and discrimination limit
women's access to work. There are few options left for women whose relatives
refuse to help, or are unable to help because they are already struggling to
make ends meet.
Without an income or family support, women can only turn to the government
for help. Not nearly enough manage to access this kind of support and at any
rate the widow's pension is a fraction of what is needed for a family to
survive.
The struggle to survive
Many households headed by women live in poverty and destitution. This was
underlined during an ICRC survey, where the average income among vulnerable
households headed by women interviewed was below IQD 150,000 per month
($125), most of which comes from relatives and charity. This is less than
half the estimated minimum monthly expenditure per household.
Low income and poor living conditions affect women's health and make it more
difficult for them to obtain medical care. A significant number suffer from
anaemia and many have difficulty paying for medicines or a doctor. In a
number of cases, they are unable to pay for their children's education.
State responsibility
A wide network of charity support exists, including humanitarian
organizations, the public food distribution system, mosques, neighbours and
relatives. All these help families to stay afloat and survive, but they do
not enable them to change their situation long-term. Families need
independent sources of income, either from work or from the State. Strong,
comprehensive support from the government, together with income-generating
activities for those who have the skills, are desperately needed to alleviate
the plight of many families headed by women.
Helping households headed by women
In 2008, the ICRC worked with a number of local NGOs to supply food and
hygiene items to vulnerable families headed by women. All these families had
lost their male breadwinners due to the conflict. Over 3,000 such households
received food, hygiene items, or essential household items, depending on
their needs.
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