Progress in Iraq

Today was one of the most violent days in Iraq. Having just finished Khaled Hosseini's best-selling novel "A Thousand Splendid Suns," about the women of Afghanistan under Taliban rule, I recoil at the fact that the once free and modern women of Iraq are facing a similar plight.

I hope when the progress report to Congress comes in on September 15 that the American people ask a lot of questions.

One of the benchmarks assumed already met is the drafting and aproval of a constitution. Yet for women in Iraq, that constitution provides no protection of rights. Although Article 14 states that Iraqis are equal without discrimination based on gender, Article 2 states "Islam is the official religion of the state and is a basic source of legislation." It further states "No law can be passed that contradicts the undisputed laws of Islam."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_Iraq

Women are increasingly being denied employment in Iraq simply because they are women - leading some who are widows, to be unable to feed their children. "Honor" killings of women are returning to Iraq prompting the creation of shelters and even an underground railroad for those women who cannot leave the shelter for fear of being killed. When walking out in public, women may be told to go home and dress decently - or worse they can be beaten.

This is not progress for women by any definition of the word.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=10543975
http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RS21968.pdf