RIP Safia Ama Jan

Muslim activists for Islam riding by on motorcycles successfully assassinate Safia Ama Jan, Provincial Director of Afghanistan’s Ministry of Women’s Affairs. She was a middle aged woman, unarmed and unguarded on the street, so it was not an especially difficult murder to accomplish. The killers are probably on their knees in prayer somewhere, waiting for the adrenaline rush to subside while chanting their obedience to the will of Allah.

Street Murder: Ama Jan, who was in her mid-fifties, was a "very dedicated woman", said an official with the women's ministry in the capital Kabul. Ama Jan had served as the head of the province's women's affairs department since shortly after US-led troops overthrew the Taliban in 2001.

The United Nations drafts a talking point saying they are “appalled” by the senseless murder which only illustrates how they have no sense of the real problem at all. If you recall, the UN can not even agree on a definition of terrorism. The Taliban, however, knows the definition and how to utilize it effectively.

Killed in a Burqa: A Taliban commander, Mullah Hayat Khan, said Ama Jan was killed because she worked for the government. “We have told people time and time again that anyone working for the government, including women, will be killed,” he said by telephone from an undisclosed location.

The silence from US based women’s rights groups may be understandable since they are probably exhausted from their recent meetings and workshops on how to end Middle Eastern violence. Giving PowerPoint presentations to achieve peace is fraught with dangers, such as a suddenly weak wifi signal during the projected cost in dollars slide.

NOW and CODEPINK Work to End Violence: On Sept. 20 the National Organization for Women and CODEPINK will cosponsor Women for Peace Day at Camp Democracy. NOW President Kim Gandy and Medea Benjamin, cofounder of CODEPINK, will kick off the day with speeches at 9:30 am. Throughout the rest of the day, there will be a variety of workshops and discussions concentrating on ending the violence in the Middle East.

Amidst the frantic details of her busy schedule, however, Laura Bush finds the time to notice this most recent civilian death by the followers of the prophet.

White House: Ama Jan's brutal killing is further evidence of the threat posed by terrorism - and of how the struggle to end terrorism is also a struggle to preserve the fundamental rights and dignity of women. The oppression of women is central to the Taliban's vision for Afghanistan. In the weeks following September 11, Americans were shocked to see the images of Afghan women living under the Taliban regime - denied the right to work, the right to move about freely, and the right to be educated. As Ama Jan's assassination shows, five years later, Taliban fighters still cling to their repressive worldview.

RIP Safia Ama Jan.