Women’s rights and Iraq constitution.
When Ambassador Paul Bremer led the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq, it was US policy to not allow Islamic sharia law into the Iraq constitution. (*) Now that Iraq has its sovereignty, and is governed partially by elected officials, a new constitution is drafted that will make sharia part of the Iraq constitution, significantly reducing women’s rights. (†) The US should tell the government that we will not accept this, and we will remove most of our economic aid to Iraq and accelerate troop withdrawal unless it is removed. Sharia should serve no more than a heritage or background role in Iraqi law.
Women had some rights under Saddam, but those were often unenforced and unprotected.
Most likely, the Bush Administration will not risk offending the Iraqi government. Iraqi women will have a chance to vote down this overmastering draft constitution, however. Let’s hope they do.