Sir, - Since the terrorist attacks of September 11th I have become increasingly alarmed about the huge humanitarian impact of the US/UK bombing campaign in Afghanistan and the arrogance of the coalition that seems to know what is the best for Afghanistan.
My concerns are particularly with the impact that this is having on Afghan women who have been conveniently used as symbols of the repression imposed by the Taliban and a justification for the continued bombing. The result is that the voices of the Afghan women are lost in the West's military campaign.
We should be treating this as an opportunity to enhance women's human rights by insisting that ratification to and implementation of the UN's International Convenant on Civil and Political Rights and the UN Convention Against All Forms of Discrimination are part of the pact made with Pakistan, the Northern Alliance, and whatever settlement is being planned behind closed doors for Afghanistan.
Central to this settlement is that Afghan women must be given a voice with support and aid to help fund women's organisations in their work with Afghan refugees in Pakistan and in the rebuilding of Afghanistan.
Organisations like the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan which is providing support for women and children in the camps in Pakistan and which, for years before the missiles were pointed at Afghanistan once more, had been arguing tirelessly for the world to recognise the persecution and oppression of Afghan women. Let their voice be heard and support their action as feminists and human rights activists to bring some sanity to the debate about the future of Afghanistan.
It is imperative that women are involved in building a new future and that the lessons learnt in international development work, in the UN and other international agencies be used at this time, notably that women can bring cohesion, they bind societies together and they are core players in economic and social reconstruction. It is imperative that women are given the scope and power to shape their own futures. - Yours, etc.,
Dr Jane Pillinger, Glasthule, Co Dublin.