Women Targeted and Attacked
Gangs of men dressed in track suits disembarked from chartered buses and then launched violent attacks against pro-democracy activists conducting peaceful protests in Baghdad's Tahir Square on Friday, June 10. According to a news release from the international women's rights group, MADRE, the attackers targeted women in their assaults.
Since the protests of the Iraqi people began during the "Day of Rage" on February 25, 2011, the Organization of Women's Freedom in Iraq (OWFI) has been a part of the phalanx of protestors striving to use peaceful means to end years of violence and unrest and create a stable and free society for the people of Iraq. On Friday, June 10, OWFI female activists paid a dear price for this leadership role.
Four of OWFI's young, female activists were among the women targeted by this anonymous horde of men unleashed on protestors. These women were violently attached and sexually groped. Track-suited men tried to tear the clothes from one 19-year-old woman, and when a male OWFI supporter intervened, he was severely beaten. Another woman lost a tooth during the attacks.
Intimidation Tactics
Although no uniforms were worn by the attackers, those victimized assume the assailants were part of ongoing intimidation efforts on the part of the current regime of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki. In an effort to appease Day of Rage protestors, Maliki promised reforms would be enacted within 100 days. The deadline has passed with no sign of reform. Instead, activists suffer from the escalated use of intimidation tactics.
Numerous demonstrators were detained and tortured during the February 25 Day of Rage protests. Detainees included Alaa Nabil, Ahmad Husein, and Ahmad Jassim, young men who are a part of OWFI's Equality Club, an effort to empower Iraqi youth. In recent weeks, armed men have invaded OWFI headquarters, threatening those present, calling them "terrorists" and detaining more young men who led and organized protests. As of June 12, all of the young men affiliated with OWFI had been released, but not without long-term mental and physical scars from their experience.
OWFI president Yanar Mohammed reported that a young woman victimized in the June 10 attacks by the track-suited intimidation team was slated to participate in a news conference. Efforts to discourage such participation involved someone breaking into her apartment and extensive vandalizing of her home and property.
Commitment to Freedom
Despite the victimization of protestors, many Iraqi citizens remain committed to a "siege" of weekly protests. OWFI participates with a coalition of diverse non-governmental organizations committed to fighting for democracy, decent jobs and the end of wide-spread corruption. Through the use of peaceful protests in the face of force and intimidation, leading activists hope to end the cycle of violence that has dominated Iraq for decades and to create a political and social environment furthering individual freedom and improved quality-of-life for all Iraqis.
Sources:
MADRE, "Iraqi Human Rights Activists Are Sexually Assaulted and Beaten," Friday, June 10, 2011 news release.
Mohammed, Yanar, President of Organization of Women's Freedom in Iraq. Personal interview on June 11, 2011.
Organization of Women's Freedom in Iraq, "The Iraqi government detains and tortures peaceful demonstrators from Tahir Square," April 12, 2011 news release
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