CHOP OFF VOTERS FINGERS?

Chop off voters fingers if they vote?
That’s what the Vancouver Sun reported from the Daily Telegraph in article by Ben Farmer titled Afghanistan Votes (8/15/09). Evidentially the Taliban are threatening to chop off fingers of anybody who votes in this week’s presidential election in Afghanistan. I wonder why. Oh, I know the Taliban are a ferocious, bloody bunch, but they can’t be entirely stupid as they are succeeding in stymieing western powers, including Canada. However, there is this: the president of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai, has just signed into law edicts that are also dear to the heart of the Taliban. These edicts concern the behavior of women. Isn’t it remarkable how so very many of the laws stemming from Islam have to do with the behavior of women? An outsider might think that controlling women is the very basis of Islam, at least how it is practiced in Afghanistan.

For instance, in the same article in the Sun it is reported that President Karzai earlier had signed into law a ruling that was said to condone martial rape and decreed that a wife must satisfy her husband’s sexual desire at least every forth night. A somewhat amended version says that a husband can stop feeding his wife if she does not submit to him and in case the wife runs away she cannot take her children, as the custody of children is granted only to fathers and grandfathers. I don’t think there is such a great difference between President Karzai’s rulings and the Taliban rulings. So why the finger chopping threat? The big quarrel on the treatment of women between the Taliban and President Karzai must hinge on the difference between what can be done with women who disobey their husbands and fathers and even sons. Can you image that, dear sisters out there who can hardly wait for sons to leave the house, of having to ask your son if you can go out of the house yourself? Can you even imagine such a thing? It boggles the mind. But the Taliban say that a woman who disobeys her husband or father or son can be gang raped along with other punishments such as being killed. So why are Canadian soldiers giving up their lives to a foreign government that despise women only to a modicum degree less than the Taliban who are killing Canadian soldiers? And some of the police officers over there who have assisted? And all corrupted by the price of cocaine? More on the drug issue later.