The United States Marine colonel supervising the reconstruction of Najaf's government indefinitely postponed the swearing in of its first-ever female judge today after her appointment provoked a wave of resentment, including fatwas from senior Islamic clerics and heated protests by the city's lawyers. The sudden firestorm was emblematic of the tension between the American desire to leave an imprint on the levers of government in Iraq versus a conservative religious establishment determined to fight what its sees as a military invasion dragging Western cultural norms in behind the tanks. Some of the Iraqis protesting the appointment were women, leaving the Americans even more surprised and confounded. "There is a woman on the Governing Council and nobody batted an eye," said Lt. Col. Christopher C. Conlin, the senior commanding officer here. "Sometimes you just don't know until you hit a point of sensitivity."
| Either that, or the opposition picks its battles... |
The swearing-in ceremony was scheduled for today for Nidal Nasser Hussein, a 45-year-old lawyer with a history of breaking precedent in Najaf. She was the first female lawyer to begin working here when she started 16 years ago. There are now 50. A huge white cake decorated with multicolored flowers surrounded by dozens of cans of chilled Pepsi sat at one end of the chief judge's somewhat battered chambers when Colonel Conlin arrived for the ceremony. Outside, a group of about 30 male and female lawyers were chanting in English: "No No Women" and "Out Out Roe," referring to Specialist Rachel Roe, a Wisconsin lawyer serving as the adviser to the court system in Najaf. A lone Marine gunnery sergeant prevented them from storming the chambers. "We refuse the appointment of a woman judge, because it contradicts Islamic law," said Rajiha al-Amidi, one of the women in the group protesting the appointment. "This is what the Americans wanted to achieve in the first place with their invasion, to undermine Islam."
| "We prefer to live in our present state of bliss!" |
A woman cannot be a judge, she explained, because "women are always ruled by their emotions."
| ... waving her hands and shrieking emotionally, as a woman named Ginsberg wearing a becoming black robe led her away. |
Colonel Conlin huddled with Najaf's chief justice, who showed him at least three fatwas — religious fiats by senior clergy. One was dated June 5, well before the current controversy, but it carried extra weight because it was issued by Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the most revered Shiite cleric in Iraq. A follower had asked the grand ayatollah two written questions — whether perfume was permissible to wear, given its alcohol content, and whether women could be judges. Although Islam forbids drinking alcohol, wearing perfume is fine, the grand ayatollah ruled, and as for judges, they had to be mature, sane and masculine.
| Women, of course, are none of those, except possibly for antique, heavily zolofted lesbians... |
Another fatwa was issued by Sheik Moqtada al-Sadr, whose decisions carry virtually no theocratic weight because he is a 30-year-old seminary student.
| So why waste any time on what Junior sez? And he lies about his age. He's 22... |
But he commands a mass popular following because of love for his late father, an ayatollah who opposed Saddam Hussein and was assassinated.
| So maybe somebody should find a fatwa from Pop, instead. Children should be seen and not heard... |
The young sheik wrote that filing a case before the female judge was forbidden.
"This will cause big, big problems in all governorates, in all cities," said Iltifad Abdul Sadeh, one of the female lawyers opposed to the idea. "It will lead to confrontations."
| It's your country. Screw it up any way you want. |
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