The New York Sun March 9, 2004 On Paper They Had Rights By TAMARA CHALABI Ms. Chalabi, Ph.D., is a writer and an expert on Iraq and the Middle East. She is working on civil society projects in Iraq.
It was surprising and disappointing to read Senator Clinton's recent speech at the Brookings Institution in which she discussed the plight of Iraqi women today. Mrs. Clinton rightly advocates Iraqi women rights. However, it is one thing to say that they still suffer from lack of rights and another to say, as Mrs. Clinton did, that their situation was better under Saddam since "on paper women had rights." What Mrs. Clinton said, according to a transcript of her remarks, is, "I have been deeply troubled by what I hear coming out of Iraq. When I was there and met with women members of the governing councils and local - of the national governing councils and local governing councils in Baghdad and Kirkuk, they were starting to express concerns about some of the pullbacks in the rights that they were given under Saddam Hussein. He was an equal opportunity oppressor, but on paper women had rights; they went to school; they participated in the professions; they participated in government; and business and, as long as they stayed out of his way, they had considerable freedom of movement." This statement has already being gleefully advertised by the Arab press as Clinton's praise of life under Saddam for women. This harms the cause of women in Iraq more than it promotes it. Many have argued about the positive aspects of Saddam's regime, at least on paper. The references to socialism and freedom and the Baath regime's so-called secularism all suggest echoes of a utopian ideal. That is, until one actually delves deeper into the texts to note the chauvinism, racism, and total arbitrariness of these concepts. They were hollow words that enslaved an entire nation for more than three decades at the mercy of one man and one party. There was nothing rational or idealistic about these words on paper. Women were not an exception to this. The women's movement in Iraq began before Saddam. Education for both sexes was already a key agenda in the governments preceding Saddam's regime. The civil code much debated last week was put in place in 1959, before the Baath regime came to power. To assume that the long trajectory of progress that has impacted Iraqi society over the years only came with Saddam is false. Likewise is the assumption that women's rights, even on paper, appeared and disappeared with him.The long tradition of education for women in Iraq preceded Saddam, as did Iraq's intellectuals and high academic standards. In fact, they declined under Saddam. One only has to compare the standard of education of a 50-year-old woman today and that of a 22-year-old woman in Iraq to note the decline. Mrs. Clinton is mixing two issues here. One is the serious question of security that is still hindering Iraq from stepping into its rightful bright future. The other is the question of the Islamic component within Iraqi society and the Governing Council. The question of security is being addressed. Miscalculations were made as to Saddam's post-war plans. Reactions have been too slow in coming, but they are improving every day. The more Iraqis are involved and empowered in this, the more security there will be, for women as well. As for the religious component in Iraqi society and the Governing Council, it is about political dialogue.We may not like or agree with the content, but it is taking place. It is still expressed defensively, as a need to prove these political parties' existence after so many years of repression and abuse, because they were Shi'a. It is still the problem of the majority struggling to step out of the minority mode it has been in for so long. For that, Saddam is to blame. The level of brutality by which Saddam has tortured, murdered, and raped Iraqis is unimaginable. It is too easy to dismiss these horrors by saying, as Mrs. Clinton did,"He was an equal opportunity oppressor."It is insulting to the many mothers that still weep beside randomly dug up skeletons of their sons' remains; for the many raped women whose children are from three different soldiers; how is it for them to live every day raising these children that are an eternal reminder of their violent rape? What is being done for these women today? The one certain thing about Iraq today is the level of devastation that Saddam left it in. This includes Iraqi society. One has to only drive through the towns in the south to see the levels of depravity I am referring to. No electricity or potable water, let alone education, for men or women. In such circumstances, it is not a surprise that religion is sought as a reference and a refuge. How can a woman think of her rights of equality or even know them when she is barely able to feed her children and worries that at any moment she or her family can be targeted by the secret service? That is where Saddam succeeded, in unleashing the demon of fear that paralyzed people from opposing him. It is important to recognize the reasons for the religious trends in Iraq today in order to address them properly and secure the rights of women through grassroots movements, economic development, and most importantly, through education and building self-confidence.Without education, the cause of women in Iraq will be lost. This is a long-term project whose foundations have already been put in place.Early this week, Iraqi women scored an important victory by defeating the move to refer family and personal matters to religious courts.The basic law discussed by the Governing Council is also positive for women; it states that there should be a minimum of 25% of women in the assembly. It is not perfect, but it is a start. Saddam did not believe in women's rights. Women had no freedom, whether they stayed in or out of his way. They could not control when they would be targeted. In fact, his total disrespect for women was so blatant in reducing them to mere sexual objects only defined in terms of honor for men. There are so many women in Iraq that are covered today. This is not out of any religious belief. It is out of self-protection of their most basic selves, their bodies. This trend did not suddenly appear postliberation. It was already growing, certainly after the first Gulf war. Saddam revoked the penal code in 1990, permitting honor killings for women. He decreed that women could not travel alone without a male relative; he encouraged women covering up. Women were barred from majoring in specific subjects such as engineering because they were not "womanly" enough. Women were sexually degraded. I urge Mrs. Clinton to promote projects addressing Iraqi women's legacy of fear and trauma. Empowering them is not only a question of paper; it is a question of understanding and educating. The rest, Iraqi women are already doing for themselves, through their hope, participation, and sheer will for a better future. Today, they can travel, work, have the right to education, and they can protest. There is no guarantee that they will achieve the same rights as women in the West, but they certainly have a much better chance than they ever did under Saddam. When was the last time that women protested freely during Saddam's rule? Saying that they were better off under him simply does not help further their cause.
