This old chain letter has long since resulted in the mentioned email account being shut down. Months ago. It seems to me that the appeal skirts the border of anti-Islamic prejudice (just as folks rightly accuse Buchanan of deliberately stepping up to the border of anti-Semitism.) Would we refer to Israel as an "extreme Jewish society"? I don't question the good intentions of those who've circulated this. But I would hope that the sorry record of U.S. and other Western intervention in Afghanistan, the responsibility of the Western powers in creating the present situation, and the continued promotion of warlords by the West as late as last year would give folks some pause in circulating things like this. -b At 10:43 AM 10/21/99 -0400, you wrote: >------- Forwarded Message Follows ------- >From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >Date: Thu, 21 Oct 1999 09:17:09 EDT >Subject: Women and the Taliban >To: PROGRESSIVE SOCIOLOGISTS NETWORK <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Reply-to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > > The government of Afghanistan is waging a war upon women. Since the > Taliban took power in 1996, women have had to wear burqua and have been > > beaten and stoned in public for not having the proper attire, even if > this means simply not having the mesh covering in front of their eyes. > > One woman was beaten to DEATH by an angry mob of fundamentalists for > accidentally exposing her arm while she was driving. Another was stoned > > to death for trying to leave the country with a man that was not a > relative. Women are not allowed to work or even go out in public > without a male relative; professional women such as professors, > translators, doctors, lawyers, artists and writers have been forced from > their jobs and stuffed into their homes, so that depression is > becoming so widespread that it has reached emergency levels. > There's no way in such an extreme Islamic society to know the suicide > rate with certainty, but relief workers are estimating that the > suicide rate among women, who cannot find proper medication and treatment > for severe depression and would rather take their lives than live in such > conditions, has increased significantly. > > Homes where a woman is present must have their windows > painted so that she can never be seen by outsiders. They must wear > silent shoes so that they are never heard. Women live in fear of their > lives > for the slightest misbehaviour. > > Because they cannot work, those without male relatives or husbands are > either starving to death or begging on the street, even if they hold > Ph.D.'s. There are almost no medical facilities available for women and, > relief workers in protest have mostly left the country, taking medicine > and > psychologists and other things necessary to treat the sky-rocketing > level of depression among women. > > At one of the rare hospitals for women, a reporter found still, nearly > lifeless bodies lying motionless on top of beds, wrapped in their > burqua, unwilling to speak, eat, or do anything, but slowly wasting > away. Others have gone mad and were seen crouched in corners, > perpetually rocking or crying, most of them in fear. One doctor is > considering, when what little medication that is left finally runs out, > leaving these women in front of the president's residence as a form of > peaceful protest. > > It is at the point where the term 'human rights violations' has become > an understatement. Husbands have the power of life and death over > their women relatives, especially their wives, but an angry > mob has just as much right to stone or beat a woman, often to > death, for exposing an inch of flesh or offending them in the slightest > way. > > Women enjoyed relative freedom, to work, dress generally as they > wanted, and drive and appear in public alone until only 1996. The rapidity > of this transition is the main reason for the depression and suicide; > women > who were once educators or doctors or simply used to basic human freedoms > are now severely restricted and treated as sub-human in the name of > right-wing fundamentalist Islam. It is not their tradition or 'culture,' > but is alien to them, and it is extreme even for those cultures where > fundamentalism is the rule. > > Everyone has a right to a tolerable human existence, even if they > are women in a Muslim country. If we can threaten military force in > Kosovo in the name of human rights for the sake of ethnic Albanians, > citizens of the world can certainly express peaceful outrage at the > oppression, murder and injustice committed against women by the Taliban. > > STATEMENT: In signing this, we agree that the current treatment of > women in Afghanistan is completely UNACCEPTABLE and deserves > support and action by the United Nations and that the current situation > overseas will not be tolerated. Women's Rights is not a small issue > anywhere, and it is UNACCEPTABLE for women in 1999 to be treated > as sub-human and as so much property. Equality and human decency > are RIGHTS -- not freedoms -- whether one lives in Afghanistan > or elsewhere. > > 1) Suzanne Dathe, Grenoble, France > 2) Laurence COMPARAT, Grenoble,France > 3) Philippe MOTTE, Grenoble, France > 4) Jok FERRAND, Mont St Martin, France > 5) Emmanuelle PIGNOL, St Martin d'Heres, FRANCE > 6) Marie GAUTHIER, Grenoble, FRANCE > 7) Laurent VESCALO, Grenoble, FRANCE > 8) Mathieu MOY, St Egreve, FRANCE > 9) Bernard BLANCHET, Mont St Martin, FRANCE > 10) Tassadite FAVRIE, Grenoble, FRANCE > 11) Loic GODARD, St Ismier, FRANCE > 12) Benedicte PASCAL, Grenoble, FRANCE > 13) Khedaidja BENATIA, Grenoble, FRANCE > 14) Marie-Therese LLORET, Grenoble,FRANCE > 15) Benoit THEAU, Poitiers, FRANCE > 16) Bruno CONSTANTIN, Poitiers, FRANCE > 17) Christian COGNARD, Poitiers, FRANCE > 18) Robert GARDETTE, Paris, FRANCE > 19) Claude CHEVILLARD, Montpellier, FRANCE > 20) gilles FREISS, Montpellier, FRANCE > 21) Patrick AUGEREAU, Montpellier, FRANCE. > 22) Jean IMBERT, Marseille, FRANCE > 23) Jean-Claude MURAT, Toulouse, France > 24) Anna BASSOLS, Barcelona, Spain > 25) Mireia DUNACH, Barcelona, Spain > 26) Michel VILLAZ, Grenoble, France > 27) Pages Frederique, Dijon, France > 28) Rodolphe FISCHMEISTER, Chatenay-Malabry, France > 29) Francois BOUTEAU, Paris, France > 30) Patrick PETER, Paris, France > 31) Lorenza RADICI, Paris, France > 32) Monika Siegenthaler, Bern, Switzerland > 33) Mark Philp, Glasgow, Scotland > 34) Tomas Andersson, Stockholm, Sweden > 35) Jonas Eriksson, Stockholm, Sweden > 36) Karin Eriksson, Stockholm, Sweden > 37) Ake Ljung, Stockholm, Sweden > 38) Carina Sedlmayer, Stockholm, Sweden > 39) Rebecca Uddman, Stockholm, Sweden > 40) Lena Skog, Stockholm, Sweden > 41) Micael Folke, Stockholm, Sweden > 42) Britt-Marie Folke, Stockholm, Sweden > 43) Birgitta Schuberth, Stockholm, Sweden > 44) Lena Dahl, Stockholm, Sweden > 45) Ebba Karlsson, Stockholm, Sweden > 46) Jessica Carlsson, Vaxjo, Sweden > 47) Sara Blomquist, Vaxjo, Sweden > 48) Magdalena Fosseus, Vaxjo, Sweden > 49) Charlotta Langner, Goteborg, Sweden > 50) Andrea Egedal, Goteborg, Sweden > 51) Lena Persson, Stockholm, Sweden > 52) Magnus Linder, Umea ,Sweden > 53) Petra Olofsson, Umea, Sweden > 54) Caroline Evenbom, Vaxjo, Sweden > 55) Asa Pettersson, Grimsas, Sweden > 56) Jessica Bjork, Grimsas, Sweden > 57) Linda Ahlbom Goteborg, Sweden > 58) Jenny Forsman, Boras, Sweden > 59) Nina Gunnarson, Kinna, Sweden > 60) Andrew Harrison, New Zealand > 61) Bryre Murphy, New Zealand > 62) Claire Lugton, New Zealand > 63) Sarah Thornton, New Zealand > 64) Rachel Eade, New Zealand > 65) Magnus Hjert, London, UK > 67) Madeleine Stamvik, Hurley, UK > 68) Susanne Nowlan, Vermont, USA > 69) Lotta Svenby, Malmoe, Sweden > 70) Adina Giselsson, Malmoe, Sweden > 71) Anders Kullman, Stockholm, Sweden > 72) Rebecka Swane, Stockholm, Sweden > 73) Jens Venge, Stockholm, Sweden > 74) Catharina Ekdahl, Stockholm, Sweden > 75) Nina Fylkegard, Stockholm, Sweden > 76) Therese Stedman, Malmoe, Sweden > 77) Jannica Lund, Stockholm, Sweden > 78) Douglas Bratt > 79) Mats Lofstrom, Stockholm, Sweden > 80) Li Lindstrom, Sweden > 81) Ursula Mueller, Sweden > 82) Marianne Komstadius, Stockholm, Sweden > 83) Peter Thyselius, Stockholm, Sweden > 84) Gonzalo Oviedo, Quito, Ecuador > 85) Amalia Romeo, Gland, Switzerland > 86) Margarita Restrepo, Gland, Switzerland > 87) Eliane Ruster, Crans p.C., Switzerland > 88) Jennifer Bischoff-Elder, Hong Kong > 89)Azita Lashgari, Beirut, Lebanon > 90)Khashayar Ostovany, New York, USA > 91)Lisa L Miller, Reno NV > 92)Danielle Avazian, Los Angeles, CA93) Sara Risher, Los Angeles, Ca. > 94) Melanie London, New York, NY > 95) Susan Brownstein , Los Angeles, CA > 96) Steven Raspa, San Francisco, CA > 97) Margot Duane, Ross, CA > 98) Natasha Darnall, Los Angeles, CA > 99) Candace Brower, Evanston, IL > 100) James Kjelland, Evanston, IL > 101) Michael Jampole, Beach Park, IL, USA > 102) Diane Willis, Wilmette, IL, USA > 103) Sharri Russell, Roanoke, VA, USA > 104) Faye Cooley, Roanoke, VA, USA > 105) Celeste Thompson, Round Rock, TX, USA > 106) Sherry Stang, Pflugerville, TX, USA > 107) Amy J. Singer, Pflugerville, TX USA > 108) Milissa Bowen, Austin, TX USA > 109) Michelle Jozwiak, Brenham, TX USA > 110) Mary Orsted, College Station, TX USA > 111) Janet Gardner, Dallas, TX USA > 112) Marilyn Hollingsworth, Dallas, TX USA > 113) Nancy Shamblin, Garland. TX USA > 114) K. M. Mullen, Houston, TX - USA > 115) Noreen Tolman, Houston, Texas - USA > 116) Laurie Sobolewski, Warren, MI > 117) Kellie Sisson Snider, Irving Texas > 118) Carol Currie, Garland, Garland Texas > 119) John Snyder, Garland, TX USA > 120) Elaine Hannan, South Africa > 121) Jayne Howes, South Africa > 122) Diane Barnes, Akron, Ohio > 123)Melanie Dass Moodley, Durban, South Africa > 124) Amy King Dejardin, Ornex, France > 125)Eve Hall, Matumi, Schagen, South Africa > 126) Catherine & Khanya Jele, Johannesburg South Africa > 127)Sylvie & Alain Grunfeld, La Roche - Yon, France > 128)Lydie et Pascal Iscache, Paris, France > 129)Richard Linskell, London, UK > 130)Agnes Poitevin-Navarre, London, UK > 131)Zineb Sedira, london, UK > 132)Poulomi Desai, London, UK > 133) Julian Samuel, Montreal, Canada > 134) Srinivas Krishna, Toronto, Canada > 135) Pola Rapaport, New York, NY USA > 136) Volker Euler, Sydney, Australia > 137) Gabi Brill, Sydney, Australia > 138) Bernie Buko, Sydney, Australia > 139) Melissa Power, Sydney, Australia > 140) James Black. Sydney Australia > 141) Anthony Jones, Sydney Australia > 142) Gordon Monro, Sydney, Australia > 143) Andrew Del Riccio, Sydney, Australia > 144) Sonya Knapman, Sydney, Australia > 145) Fiona Hanrahan, Perth, Australia > 146)Katrina Lord, Perth, Australia > 147) Richard Kowalski, Melbourne, Australia > 148) Craig Morgan, Guildford, England > 149) Annalena Rhodes, Woking, England > 150) Leanne Walton, Bracknell, England > 151) Sarah Young, Sevenoaks, England > 152) Beverley Lightley, England > 153) Lindsay Simmonds, London, England > 154) Paul Ryan, London, England > 155) David Axelbank, San Francisco > 156)Justin O'Neill, New York, NY > 157) deborah kossman, nyc, ny > 158. Adam Goldstone, NY, NY > 159. Chiara Nath, New Delhi, India > 160. Sangram Kachwaha, New Delhi, India > 161. Michelle Davis, Cincinnati, OH > 162. Jan Greenberg, Cleveland OHIO > 163. Margaret Dayan, Los Angeles, CA > 164. Jean Sieffert, Tampa, FL > 165. Terri Simons, Tampa, FL, USA > 166. Elizabeth Locklear, Tampa, FL, USA > 167. Phronie Tollett, Birmingham, Al,USA > 168. Sophronia K. Grantham, Boston, GA, USA > 169. Sophia K. Locklear-Jensen, Tampa, FL, USA > 170. Andrea Evans Locklear, New Jersey, USA > 171. Jenny G. Jozwiak, New York, NY , USA > 172. Diana Amsterdam, New York NY, U.S.A. > 173. Karen Kohlhaas, New York, NY, U.S.A. > 174. Eoin O'Callaghan, London, UK > 175. Anne Simpson, Belfast, UK > 176. Patrick Duncan, Belfast, UK > 177. Kevin Carrigan, Chicago, U.S.A. > 178. Cassie C. Carrigan, Atlanta, U.S.A > 179. Robert Thomas Weems, Athens,Georgia,U.S.A. > 180. W. Jonathan Rue, Palmer Lake,Colorado,U.S.A. > 181.Caleb Garling, Boulder, Colorado,USA > 182. John Whitehead, Atlanta, GA, USA > 183. Phyllis Faber, San Francisco, California, USA > 184. Carla Dingillo, San Francisco, California, USA > 185. Melvyn B. Schupack, MD, Fitzwilliam, NH, USA > 186. Elise Snyder, MD, New Haven CT, USA > 187. Ralph Roughton, MD, Atlanta, GA, USA > 188. Ricardo Duchesne, NB, Canada > > PLEASE COPY this email on to a new message, sign the bottom and > forward it to everyone on your distribution lists. If you receive this > list > with more than 200 names on it, please e-mail a copy of it to : > sarabande @brandeis.edu (Send after every 100 names.) Even if you > decide not to sign, please be considerate and do not kill the petition. > > Thank you. It is best to copy rather than forward the petition. > > Anne > Development Coordinator, Radio Drama > Extension: 38234 Tel: 01232 338234 > E-mail: anne.simpson > bc.co.uk > > Elise W. Snyder, MD Phone: 203-624-0029 180 Linden Street Fax: > 203-498-0944 New Haven CT 06511 Email: elise.snyderale.edu > > > ------------------------------- Robert Naiman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Preamble Center 1737 21st NW Washington, DC 20009 phone: 202-265-3263 x277 fax: 202-265-3647 http://www.preamble.org/ -------------------------------
