From WFWI UKs Blog

IN THE NEWS – Iraqi women’s rights activist an inspirational role model

May 1, 2013 by Gabbi Gray 

An Iraqi architect, Yanar Mohammed, was catapulted into action upon seeing the appalling abuses of women that occurred after the fall of Sadam Hussein’s regime in 2003.

Yanar Mohammed is an inspiration to women rights activists world wide. Despite having fled Iraq almost a decade earlier, Mohammed returned to her native Iraq after the American-lead invasion to help with the chaos engulfing the country. Seeing the women of her country abused and disempowered she took it upon herself to build a network of security for them and ensure that their rights are being fought for.

Disgusted by the human rights abuses against women since the fall of the regime, Mohammed and her colleague Nasik Ahmad set up the ‘Organisation of Women’s Freedom in Iraq‘ (OWFI). OWFI focused on gathering information from local communities regarding abuses towards women, focusing in particular on the number of women that had been kidnapped on a daily basis. In addition to the ground level work of the organisation, Mohammed and Ahmad also worked to increase global awareness of the atrocities being committed against women within Iraq.

Over the years OWFI has developed into a multi-faceted organisation, now organising shelters for women who are escaping honour-killings, advocating laws to make it harder for women to be forced into the sex industry, and conducting a Women’s Prison Watch to ensure the safety of incarcerated women, a group which often faces abuse.

When questioned on what inspires her to continue fighting for Iraqi women, Mohammed lists three factors: a global community of feminists that echo her ideologies surrounding a woman’s right to exercise her human rights, those who directly support her work within Iraq, and her own personal belief that she is fighting for something she truly believes in.

Her success, not only within Iraq but also within the wider global community, shows the extent of progress that can be made by a single person with a firm belief in their actions.