'Tragic protest' of Iraqi Kurdish women (BBC) {self-immolation}

[eppur_se_muova]

By Crispin Thorold
BBC News, Irbil, Iraq

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But since the fall of Saddam Hussein there has been an alarming trend - hundreds of women have died after setting themselves on fire.

Anecdotal evidence from medical sources and women's activists indicate that on average a woman a day tries to kill herself in the Kurdistan region. Most of them do so because of family problems.
***
The workers at the centre have several theories about why so many women try to kill themselves in such an agonising way.

Some believe that religion is to blame - if a woman does something wrong, so the theory goes, she faces burning in hell.

Others argue that in a conservative, patriarchal society, the pain of women is only recognised through dramatic gestures. The kerosene heaters that are in every home provide a way to be noticed.
***
more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7235021.stm

[fenriswolf]

1. k&r

[RuleOfNah]

2. Hundreds?

There are a lot of desperate people in a lot of countries but hundreds of women have set themselves on fire in Iraq? Hundreds?

I once saw a documentary about a young boy that grew up in poverty. He may have grown up in Brazil. One day the boy saw an old woman eating dog droppings. He begged her to stop. The old woman cried out "I'm Hungry!". The boy said that day something broke in his heart. He began to organize his friends. They worked to better their community. The boy grew into a young doctor and had become very organized, still helping his community.

Some days it feels like there are too many things breaking too many peoples hearts, faster than young children can grow to heal.