Focus on Iraq

Iraq is a nation rich in culture, with a long history of intellectual and scientific achievement, especially among its women. But Saddam Hussein's brutal regime had silenced the voices of Iraq's women, along with its men, through violence and intimidation. In 1979, immediately upon coming to power, Saddam Hussein silenced all political opposition in Iraq and converted his one-party state into a cult of personality. The Iraqi people were systematically repressed, tortured, raped, and terrorized. The regime frequently imprisoned and executed people without any kind of trial. As a woman in Saddam's Iraq, you could have faced:

Beheading. Under the pretext of fighting prostitution, units of "Fedayeen Saddam" (the paramilitary organization led by Uday Hussein, Saddam's eldest son) beheaded in public more than 200 women, dumping their severed heads at their families' doorsteps.

Rape. The regime used rape and sexual assault of women to:

• Extract information and forced confessions from detained family members;

• Intimidate members of the opposition by sending them videotapes of the rape of female family members; and

• Blackmail Iraqi men into future cooperation with the regime.

Torture. Saddam Hussein's thugs routinely tortured and killed female dissidents and the female relatives of Iraqi oppositionists and defectors. Children were imprisoned if they or their parents were not viewed to be faithful supporters of the Saddam regime.

Murder. In 1990, Saddam Hussein introduced Article 111 into the Iraqi Penal Code. This law exempted men from any kind of punishment if they kill their female relatives in defense of their family's honor.

The U.S. Government will help Iraqi women in a secure and liberated Iraq to pursue projects that they identify as the best way to achieve their goals. Administration officials have met and continue to meet with free Iraqi women, exchanging ideas about their path forward in a free and open Iraq. As Under Secretary of State for Global Affairs Paula Dobriansky said after a meeting with Iraqi women:

"It is clear that the women of Iraq have a critical role to play in the future revival of their society. They bring skills and knowledge that will be vital to restoring Iraq to its rightful place in the region and in the world."