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Women’s issues key to Afghanistan success

The health and safety of Afghan women will be a key issue in the success of U.S. military operations in that nation, a key lawmaker said Thursday.

Rep. Susan Davis, D-Calif., a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee and a member of the Congressional Women’s Caucus, said getting Afghanistan politically and economically to the point where U.S. troops can leave will involve, in part, providing a secure environment for Iraqi women and improvements in women’s health care.

Much of that work involves addressing such issues as Afghanistan’s high maternal mortality rate and oppression of women, which are not directly the responsibility of the military and are being addressed by nongovernment agencies. But Davis said the security umbrella of U.S. forces allowing the establishment and growth of programs that help Afghanistan women is a critical factor in creating an environment stable enough that U.S. forces are no longer needed.

Davis, chairwoman of the House Armed Services Committee’s military personnel panel, said she has discussed protection of women with U.S. military commanders in Afghanistan and has been assured the issue is a component of U.S. plans.

“During a recent trip to Afghanistan, I learned that women in Afghanistan have the same aspirations of women everywhere — a focus on family, community and children,” Davis said. “Afghans are working hard to address these health issues and we stand with them in these efforts.”

Her remarks come as lawmakers, current and former administration officials, and health care experts are focusing on improving the lives of women in Afghanistan, which could have a significant long-term effect because women generally do not seem to favor the Taliban.

Health of women in Afghanistan is poor, Davis said. The nonpartisan public policy group Women’s Policy Inc. reports that one in eight Afghanistan women die during pregnancy or childbirth, compared with one in 4,800 in the U.S.

Davis said one reason could be some brutal cultural practices, such as men standing on the stomachs of pregnant women who are about to deliver “to walk the baby out by stepping on her.”