Religious Fervor Results in Violence Against Afghan Women
With thousands more US troops going to Afghanistan, an Atheist public policy group is urging President Obama and other world leaders to increase support for gender empowerment, women's rights, and the building of secular, civil society institutions.
Dr. Ed Buckner, President of American Atheists, praised a courageous group of Afghani women protesting outside a mosque against that country's latest law which requires females to be available for sex with husbands and bans women from the public square without a male escort.
"American men and women shed blood in helping to overthrow a despotic Taliban theocracy," said Buckner. "Now, the Taliban and other Muslim fundamentalists are again using violence to oppress women and shut down political opposition."
Buckner added that the status of women "is a barometer of how any society values human rights. History shows that across the world, when women are oppressed, everyone loses their freedom."
Buckner also noted that a military response is not the only answer. "We need to raise the status of women in Afghanistan and elsewhere, and 'separate mosque and state.' "
Dave Silverman, Communications Director for American Atheists, said that the issues of civil rights and Sha'ria (Islamic fundamentalist) law are front-and-center in other Islamic countries as well, including Pakistan.
"Religious fundamentalism is on the rise in Pakistan, for example, where over 50 people including Christians, Moslems, and atheists - now face the death penalty for 'blasphemy' and criticizing religion. The civilized world must stand together to fight such oppression, and not coddle Islam under the guise of political correctness."
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Hate to be the bearer of bad news but trying to institute the "building of secular, civil society institutions" to Afghanis is their version of culture rape .
I'm not quite sure why Americans still don't understand this - since the fall of the Ottoman empire and the loss of a Caliphate, the Islamic world has despised Christian oppression, secularist ideals, and Western imperialism in their cultures. They aren't interested in converting to secularism any more than they're interested in converting to Christianity. History can prove this point - check out how Iran received the American instituted Shah from the 1950's - 1970's (spoiler: they overthrew him.) Or how Afghanistan enjoyed their mosques being turned into government buildings by the Soviets (they responded with a decade long war that left the country in ruins). They do not want communism, socialism, democracy or any such thing in their country, and it is barbaric of Americans to assume that they do, even in the face of past historic indicators to the opposite.
Conservatives think we should fight them because of their brand of Islam, and liberals think we should fight them because of their treatment of women . Here's an idea: how 'bout we just back off, hmmm?
This is one thing I can side with a atheist with.
The only way there will be peace in Afghanistan is to get religion out of there.
Religion kills JESUS CHRIST SAVE!!
I am not talking about the western christian church.
Christians,atheists and moslems are being put to death there for not being like the religious fundamentalist.
That is way we in the USA have freedoms and liberties and we should fight to keep ALL of them not the ones that is only in your religion.
This is the way the USA would be if we had a church ran state.