Iraq: Kurdish women demand more rights
Erbil-Iraq – 17/6/2016
Women from Kurdistan region called for more rights for the Kurdish women and to preserve the gains that have been achieved by the efforts of the government and women’s organizations and the authorities responsible in reducing the rates of violence against women, where Kurdish women are less vulnerable to violence compared to other parts of Iraq.
A study of the National Committee for Population policies in Iraq confirmed that Kurdistan Women are less prone to violence than women in the rest of Iraq’s provinces and that the men in the province are less supportive of the use of violence against women. Kurdish women activists pointed out the need to protect what has been achieved for women and to work more for a culture of respect for women and to give them greater opportunities in communities.
The study on violence against women found that 23% of women between (15 – 45 years) are subjected to physical, psychological and verbal violence, 10% are exposed to sexual violence and 40% are subjected to control. The study also pointed out that the women of the Kurdistan region, “are less vulnerable to violence” from the women in the rest of Iraq’s provinces, and that the men in the province are less supportive of using violence against women, and more respectful than the men in the rest of the provinces.
While another study for the year 2013, has said that Iraq is the second-worst place in the Arab world, after Egypt, where women can live. It showed that only 14.5% of Iraqi women have careers while there are 1.6 million widow.