Earlier last week three women, Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberian Leymah Gbowee and Tawakul Karman of Yemen, were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their work as women’s rights activists. They have pushed for the safety of women, and also have participated in “peace-building work”. The committee responsible for awarding the Nobel Peace Prize hoped that this would “help to bring an end to the suppression of women that still occurs in many countries, and to realize the great potential for democracy and peace that women can represent".
Mrs. Tawakul Karman from Yemen is the first Arab woman to win the award but unfortunately she was not able to celebrate for long. About fifteen thousand women marched in three different Yemni provinces, for her honor, and were attacked by pro-government thugs. Women were getting rocks thrown at them and were getting beaten by batons. They were getting abused just because they were supporting Mrs. Karman, and what she stands for, women’s rights.
As we learned in our textbook, men continue to control most political and economic life in many countries, and feminists have called this the “legacy of patriarchy”. It is evident that in Yemen men want things to remain this way and do not want a democratic government where women have a say. However, worldwide feminist movements are still active and women continue to want to change this “legacy of patriarchy” so women will be seen as equal to men and will no longer be overpowered and silenced.
http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/10/world/meast/yemen-women-injured/index.html?hpt=wo_bn8
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-15211861
October 14th, 2011 4:32pm
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