Somali Still Lagging Behind in Women's Rights
John Johnston
5:15pm
November 7, 2008
Some weeks before October 27, young Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow was raped while returning from a trip in which she went to visit her grandmother. While traversing back from Mogadishu, Aisha was raped by three men and then left where she stood, a completely violated female human. As she returned home, she informed the al-Shabab militia where they, instead of finding and convicting the three men of rape, accused her of adultery and sentenced her to death. On October 27, 2008, she was put into a dug hole and then the hole was filled up to Aisha's neck, in which they then proceeded to throw stones at her until she was dead. Onlookers say she pleaded with her captors not to kill her. Moroccan Islamist Justice and Development Party MP Bassima Hakkaoui condemned the act, stating that religion was not, and should not, be involved in her trial, as she had done nothing wrong. Many other activists and justices joined Hakkaoui in his condemnation of the handling of this case, stating that this was terrorism against a nation and against women as well.
-------------
Each week I write about women's rights violations, some weeks better than others, but then something like this surfaces and I'm back at square one. It makes me upset that this is still occuring in today's society, as I have said time and time again. As the semester winds to a close, I find myself constantly asking who I am and where I am going. Is a blog like this going to change anything within the world concerning women's rights? Of course not. It is us, the people, who have to want to do something to help change this kind of attitude and discrimination against women.
Having said that, what about the Somali situation? It's unfortunate, yes, but without support from Western powerhouses and most notably, industrialized countries in general, nothing like this will ever change. A people have to want change, firstly, for it to begin. Secondly, after change is wanted, action must be taken. How much action can we as American's do to combat situations like these? Get involved. Write a senator or local House representative, donate money to causes like the UN's programs, or spread the word. The more awareness that is generated the more buzz that gets talked about and the more action is taken. I can only hope and pray for the hundreds of thousands of women in Somali and so many other countries that have sufferend and probably will continue to suffer throughout this ordeal.
http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/reportage/2008/11/07/reportage-01
No comments:
Post a Comment