Archive for Girls Empowerment

Making New Opportunities for Iraqi Women

Posted on January 9, 2012 by

2012 is the year set by the Iraqi government to begin implementing new hiring quotas regarding government workers. The new system would require that 50% of hires in the Ministries of Health and Education be female, as well as 30% of hires in all other government ministries. This echoes Iraq’s already existing quota of 25% female elected officials in parliament and has been impatiently awaited by the highly educated, ambitious women of Iraq.

Iraqi women have historically been represented well in the work force. Women began entering prestigious career paths as early as the 1920′s. During times of war they were often called upon to fill gaps in the workforce. Laws that protect their rights in the work place have been on the books since 1969. They are legally protected from discrimination and sexual harassment, as well as guaranteed maternity leave, time off to care for sick children, and equal pay and benefits.

Although women currently hold jobs in all areas of Iraqi society including universities, hospitals, the army, and the police, the government is, by far, the largest employer in all of Iraqi society. The required quotas are an important step for the entire country because women now outnumber men, and women are solely providing for their families at greater rates than ever before. Imposing a quota on all of the government ministries would open the door for qualified female candidates to enter the public sector and might even give preference to widows with children over men.

Widows, or female heads of households, account for almost 10% of the women in Iraq. Imagine if 10% of the women you know were widows. In a country where men are usually the main breadwinner, widows sometimes struggle to make ends meet. Furthermore, when women enter the work force, they sometimes face difficulty obtaining a position, discriminatory practices from their employers, or hitting a glass ceiling.

Critics of the quota argue that the plan does not explain how it will enforce these quotas, however, many are hopeful that Iraq will once again have the success of its own not-so-distant past. From the 1950s to the 1980′s, Iraq’s system of universal, free education was the envy of the Arab world. Iraq was also the first Arab country to have a female cabinet minister and was known for its high number of female teachers, professors, doctors, and civil servants. Iraqi women had successfully campaigned for the right to vote, the right not to wear the veil, and the right to travel abroad without a male relative (revoked under Saddam Hussein).

Many  professional women lost their positions or left the country during the recent decades of sanctions and conflict. But the new quota system is an opportunity to fight discrimination and give smart, educated women a chance at the meaningful employment that has been promised to them and could set the stage for the next generation of working women.

We at EPIC believe in the potential of Iraqi women and girls. By partnering with Iraqis and Iraqi community organizations, together we can create opportunities for young women to mature into the strong, confident professionals and leaders that Iraq needs.

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Basketballs and Peace: the professional player’s story

Posted on November 15, 2011 by

It might seem antithetical that something competitive could  lead to positive youth development goals. But participating in sports can instill confidence, broaden social networks, and provide people with the skills to tackle challenges and achieve goals. That’s one reason EPIC is researching and developing programming around athletic endeavors. It is with that goal in mind we welcome to the team our newest adviser and blog contributor, Leah Rush.

After graduating from the University of Oklahoma in 2007, Leah began playing basketball professionally, both in the US and abroad. In addition to being a professional athlete, she is a humanitarian, working in youth development and community building all over the world.

During her first year of playing professionally she became conflicted between a desire to compete and a yearning to see the world. Leah in her own words:

So I started wondering how I could incorporate some of the things I love. I began writing down the things that were important to me and I kept coming back to travel, helping people, and activity. Basketball wasn’t necessarily on the list. I loved to play, but there’s a beauty to amateur athletics that I love that was missing in professional sports. I realized it was always about so much more than just the game for me, so at that point I decided I wanted to turn basketball into a tool for me, rather than just playing for the game’s sake.

Leah hanging out with kids at Red Dust Role Models.

From that point, Leah’s career in sport took on a new dimension. Though she was still playing professionally, she became involved in various sport for development initiatives. One of her first big projects was in cooperation with Global Sports Partners, where she spent time as a Sports Ambassador implementing projects in Iraq and Algeria. For Leah, the experience was incredibly enjoyable, but also particularly educational in multiple capacities, including understanding how to plan and implement sport for development projects and the Iraqi people.

More recently, Leah finished a professional season in Australia while at the same time partnering with Red Dust Role Models and studying the efficacy of sport as a vehicle for development in remote Aboriginal communities in Australia’s Northern Territory. From this research, she created a Sport for Development Efficacy Model, which she continues building onto. This experience was the subject of her master’s degree thesis in Development Anthropology from the University of Durham in the United Kingdom, where she recently graduated with honors.

In addition to using sport as a way to connect with people and communities, Leah also loves the outdoors, where you will likely find her barefooted, kayaking, biking, or trail running. Solo travel in remote places with rich culture is one of her greatest passions and she has plans to visit Papua New Guinea, Bhutan, and Peru in the coming year.

For the past four years Leah has moved around the world frequently, never staying in one place for very long. For the next few months, Leah is living and working out of Washington, DC and advising EPIC as we prepare to take on the next challenge of youth development in Iraq.

 

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Celebrating the Successes of Iraq’s Female Judges

Posted on October 6, 2011 by

Historically, Iraqi women and girls have fought for, and received, relatively equal protection under the law, according to Human Rights Watch. Iraqi women began attending universities and entering the work force in the 1920’s, but it wasn’t until the 1960’s that large numbers of women entered the public sphere. The Iraqi Provisional Constitution, drafted in 1970, guaranteed women’s equality before the law and, in 1980, also guaranteed their right to vote and hold office. Iraq was also the first Arab country that allowed women to serve as judges.

For a few decades, the roles of women in the public sector continued to improve. In 1979, Sahud Daddagh and two other women graduated from Iraq’s Judicial Institute and became the country’s first female judges. However, by the mid 1980’s the government shut its doors to women seeking to become judges, leaving only six presiding female judges. After the Gulf War in 1991, the position of women deteriorated rapidly. Women were disproportionately affected by the United Nations economic sanctions and, as a result, lacked access to education, health care, and nutrition. This was compounded by laws limiting women’s mobility and preventing their attainment of certain jobs.

Despite the challenges they face, in the last decade, Iraqi women have made impressive strides in the public sector, the arts, and the humanities. Today, there are 72 female judges, with two women working in the senior appeals courts and one woman working as part of the Supreme Iraqi Court Tribunal, which deals with crimes committed by officers of Saddam Hussein’s regime. (There are 1,470 male judges.)

Despite the rapid increase in numbers, Iraqi female judges face obstacles to their advancement; of the 72 female judges, 63 of them work in the Juvenile Courts. Only 7 of them have made their way into Criminal Courts, where judges deal with more serious offenses. Top Iraqi Lawyer and constitutional expert Tariq Harb recently stated “Women manage the courts with wisdom and justice.” However, he also admitted that he preferred for women to manage juvenile courts because, “women tend to take into consideration social conditions which may have led to a juvenile’s offending. And they do this more than male judges who often only consider the concrete evidence.”

There has been a ceiling on seniority for women looking to move up in the judicial system. Some contend that this trend has more to do with the limited experience of female judges; after all, most of them only joined the field within the last decade. Recently, however, legislation was proposed to the Iraqi Parliament that would require every criminal court to appoint at least one female judge. If passed, the law would provide space for women to advance within the judicial system and could inspire a new generation of female students to become lawyers and judges.

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