Women's Rights Can Defeat Terrorism

PEOPLE COULD ARGUE fruitlessly over religion or the right to believe as you want or whether this or that terrorist has a legitimate grievance. But one thing almost all of us can agree on is that women should have the same rights as men. And that is one subject Islamic terrorists are completely against.

Most Muslims want human rights and freedom of speech. Most of them want women to have equal rights. But Islamic fundamentalists are fighting and dying to prevent it in Iraq and around the world.

In the West, we have two broad categories of people who are at odds with each other about Iraq: conservatives and liberals. This dissension is making it more difficult for Iraq to establish a democracy. If westerners could operate with more unity of purpose, the whole project would work better. I believe women's rights is a purpose that could accomplish that unity of purpose.

We're already in Iraq. Let's stop bickering about whether we should be there or not. Let's take advantage of the opportunity we have now to help millions of people attain the freedoms we take for granted. They need our help. The people who want to prevent democracy are powerful and well-funded, but they do not represent the majority of Iraqis.

Many groups, including the Global Fund For Women, are working to establish women's rights. We can support these groups. But maybe more importantly, during everyday conversations about Iraq, you could work to establish this point of unity. A friend of yours might argue that Bush shouldn't have started the war in Iraq. You might say maybe so, but now that we're there, we have an opportunity to help establish one more government in the world where women are not treated like second-class citizens (or worse). It would shift the conversation in a productive way.

If conversations like that happened all over the free world, I think it would help. I got to thinking about this when I read a little blurb (Iraqi Grantee on CNN) about a woman who received a grant to help her do her work in Iraq. Here's an excerpt:

"'What rights are we speaking about if we do not have the right for life?' said Yanar Mohammad of the Organization of Women's Freedom in Iraq. In a recent interview on CNN's People You Should Know Yanar discusses how Iraqi women are protecting women threatened by honor killings and organizing to change Iraqi laws that allow perpetrators to go unpunished. The Global Fund has supported the Organization of Women's Freedom in Iraq since 2005."

Democracy is taking hold in Iraq. Just like everywhere else human freedoms have been gained, it is hard slugging sometimes. Even in the U.S., it took women 70 years to gain the right to vote. Old ways are hard to give up, but it is a struggle worth the effort. Women deserve human rights.

Read more: Strengthen Women's Rights To Reduce Terrorism