WUNRN
August.18, 2010
IRAQI WOMEN WANT STABLE GOVERNMENT & WOMEN'S VOICE, IMPACT
Nisreeen Yaseen, a 2009 candidate for provincial council, speaks to Iraqi women, (AP Photo/Alaa al-Marjani)
(CBS) Manal Omar has
worked with Women for Women International, a nonprofit NGO, as regional
coordinator for
When leading prominent Iraqi women leaders from all across the country gathered
in
The group of over ninety Iraqi women from across
However, only a few months later, women leaders from different political,
ethnic, and religious backgrounds felt that discussions to address challenges
facing women were futile if an Iraqi government was not in place. The growing
fear that the dire security situation of 2006 and 2007 could reemerge
overshadowed all other concerns and prompted the challenge to the leading
parties: Until when?
The statement issued by the women called on Iraqi political parties and
decision makers to fulfill their role as duty bearers and place the national
interest of Iraqi society at the forefront of all negotiations. Liza Hido,
President of the Baghdad Women’s Association, explained that "the delay of
forming an Iraqi government continues to be among the most difficult
[situation] facing our people."
Like many other female leaders, Hido describes an emerging sense of despair
among Iraqi citizens about
Sundus Hasan, an Iraqi lawyer and the Director of the Iraqi Women’s Leadership
Institute emphasizes that this delay has stronger impacts on women. Hasan
explains that women face a “double hardship” in their daily lives. Women are
among the most marginalized and vulnerable groups in
Hala Al Sarraf agrees. As the Director of an Iraqi organization focused on
public health and a lead facilitator for a program bridging grassroots women
with leading female policy makers, Al Sarraf explains that her programs are
impacted by the delay.
"I can't plan unless I see who will be my counterpart in government,"
explains Al Sarraf. She also describes a decrease in government functions
related to social services payments for women since the elections.
"The lives of many women in grassroots is bound to the office of social
services for women which is swinging between local government, Ministry of
Labor and the Cabinet of the Prime Minister. I understand that now it is back
to the Prime Minister's office. This is dangerous to link the destiny of
hundreds of thousands of women to a position that is subject to change..."
Women in
Buthayna Mohammad Abbas, President of the Hawa Organization for Aid and
Development in the governorate of Diyala and one of the steering committee
members for Silm, a network working on conflict mitigation and transformation
shares the same concerns. Abbas explains that the delay has impacted the new
government negatively, saying that the "new government has lost its
credibility even before its formation. The citizens have come to view the
government and its winning coalitions as if they have come into their positions
not to enact solutions or build the nation."
There is a recognition that women in
Al Sarraf describes the large number of wives and mothers who have lost their
loved ones. She explains that they lose "their hearts, source of income,
social protection and for some of the vulnerable ones, this has led to the
woman selling her own body for terrorists. Prior to 2003,
Despite the negative impact the delay has had on women's lives, Iraqi women
still expressed hope for the future. Women leaders outlined that despite the
challenges, the silver lining has been women across the nation are beginning to
work together to initiate change.
The director of a grassroots woman’s organization that works throughout the
southern governorates explained that her optimism was rooted in the protection
provided under the Iraqi constitution that all Iraqis were equal under the law.
She described the emergence of several campaigns demanding attention to women’s
issues in
Despite Al Sarraf’s concerns, she too shares this optimism. She describes the
2010 elections as more mature than the last national elections, with stronger
candidates nominated by the political parties. "They now understand better
what Iraqi women expect and maybe in the coming election, they [government]
will be more capable of meeting the needs of
The consensus among the women leaders is that once government is formed,
women’s rights defenders will need to make demands for change that will have a
visible impact on women’s lives. The central question remains when will they
have the opportunity to step forward?
One month after issuing their statement, and five months after the elections,
the only answer from political parties is silence.