Felicity Arbuthnot: Women's Rights in Afghanistan, A Justification for War!

The Tony Blair Faith Foundation is honoring International Women's Day. Tony Blair Faith Foundation, 5th March 2013. It was former British Prime Minister Harold Wilson, who is attributed with the quote a week, is a long time in politics, referring to the speedy shifting sands of political priorities. If a week is a while, approaching twelve years is a millennium. Remember the deluge of political concern over the subjugation of Afghan women, at the time of the October 2001 invasion? The tsunami of documentaries, articles, books on their plight, contributing to the justification of another invasion? The tsunami of documentaries, articles, books on their plight, contributing to the justification of another invasion, actually for trillions of minerals, a geographically strategic country and a pipeline. It is salutary to recap a few: In November 2001, First Lady Laura Bush gave the President's weekly radio address, stating that the fight against terrorism was also a fight for the rights and dignity of Afghan women. The State Department marked her broadcast with an eleven page document on the Taliban's war against women. Hillary Clinton wrote of: A post Taliban country, where women's rights are respected. The then UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, talked of aid to Afghanistan, being conditional on restoration of rights to women and girls. General Colin Powell stated: women's rights will not be negotiable. Eight years later, UK politicians still said publicly, that women's rights were a justification for war. Mark Malloch Brown, former Minister of State in the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office, with responsibility for Africa, Asia and the UN, subsequently Administrator of the UN Development Program, said in 2009: The rights of women was one of the reasons the UK and many in the West, threw ourselves into the struggle on Afghanistan. It matters greatly to us, and to our public opinion. In a major speech, the same year, the then Foreign Secretary, David Miliband stated that the UK's relationship with Afghanistan was a partnership. Fast forward then, to March 2013, International Women's Day, for which the UN had declared this year's theme as: The Gender Agenda Gaining Momentum. On the eve of Women's Day, the Kabul Girls Boxing Team, who were to participate in various events, marking the Day, were refused entry to Britain by the UK Border Agency. Organizations who had long planned welcomes, events and raised funds for the visit of three remarkable young people, who had overcome the restrictions of the most conservative of Afghan culture, expressed their frustration.