Subject: [fem-women2000 717] Fundamentalism the Root of Terrorism (Statement by AIWUSA)
From: AIWUSA <aiwusa@aiwusa.org>
Date: Mon, 17 Sep 2001 20:53:13 -0400
Seq: 717

AIWUSA-ASSOCIATION OF IRANIAN WOMEN-USA
 WEBSITE: http://www.aiwusa.org/
 Email: aiwusa@aiwusa.org
  TEL: 703-941-8584
  Contact person: Behjat Dehghan

Fundamentalism the Root of Terrorism

An act of violence and terrorism shook the American Nation in an
unprecedented tragedy.  After devastating the nation's heritage and
killing  hundreds of innocent victims; the country was plunged into
pain and  sorrow.
The effect of this evil act crossed the borders of the nation and bound
the  international community with United States in their fight against
the
evil of terrorism.
Association of Iranian Women USA (AIWUSA) expresses its deepest sympathy

to the aggrieved, their families, and the nation.
We read the statements made by some of the leaders of women's movement
such as Anne Walker, Donna Hughes, Leslie Wright, Charlotte Bunch, and
Elie
Smeal.
In her statement Elie Smeal from Feminist Majority Organization, made a
connection between the terrorist act in New York and the Islamic
Fundamentalism in Afghanistan. We believe her statement entails an
instrumental value in the fight against terrorism.
We believe the fight for terrorism should start from a deeper layer,
which is fundamentalism. Terrorism is the tip of the arrow being fed and

supported by the mother source, fundamentalism.
We as Iranian-American, have witnessed the evils of fundamentalism, to
name but a few  are gender inequality, family violence, and
constitutional
violence. Fundamentalism is in direct antagonism with democracy.
Fundamentalism believes western democracy leads to sexual promiscuity,
and that all their affiliations stem from the social inclusion of an
evil,
seductive being, called women.
When it comes to foreign policy, fundamentalists believe in meddling in
the affairs of other countries by issuing "fatwa" to murder foreign
nationals and launching terrorist operations.  Such a foreign policy is
an
inherent nature of fundamentalism. Since the establishment of theocracy
and
ruling of fundamentalists in Iran, more than 120,000 Iranians have lost
their
lives for the aspiration of democracy.
We must emphasize that the fundamentalists' misogyny is in no way
related to Islam or the call to faith by prophet Mohammad. According to
Quran
and the teaching of some of the most authoritative sources of the
Islamic
sects, the Islamic fanatics have no Quranic justification whatsoever for

their atrocities or denying women right to rule or to judge.
These realities demonstrate how the ominous specter of religious fascism

haunts global peace. The world community has a moral duty to confront
and overcome this phenomenon. Since women are the first victims of this
onslaught, they have a special role to play in the struggle against
fundamentalism as a threat to world peace.

For more information on fundamentalism please refer to:
http://www.aiwusa.org/









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