My understanding is that prior to the war women had the right to vote, to drive and to own businesses; more than half of all attendees at Iraqi universities were women, 48 percent of faculty were women--education, overall, was very much emphasized.
72.14.203.104
womenwarpeace.org
peacewomen.org
There was a real estate market, a stock market; markets of goods were abundant and visible on the streets (no Walmart, of course) and shops stayed open late; musicians played happy at weddings, and Sunnis married Shiites/vice versa, etc.
qando.net
afamilyinbaghdad.blogspot.com
rosebaghdad.blogspot.com
In fact, the vice president of Iraq under Saddam was a Christian, Tariq Aziz.
Message 22354695
Bottom line is Iraq, under Saddam--although repressive and brutal to those who opposed the government-- was a secular society and likely the most secular government in the whole of the MidEast. Today, we see Bush acting like a 'flipflopper' moving his support back and forth from the Shiites to the Sunnis, in effect perpetuating a statemate and a continued US presence. |
