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Afghanistan Loses Female Minister in Row Over Sharia Law
Tuesday, June 25, 2002
By Kathy Gannon
Associated Press Writer

Deputy Afghan Premier Dr. Sima Samar takes her seat prior to speaking during a news conference in Montreal, Canada, December 10, 2001. She is one of only two women in the 30-member transitional Afghanistan government. Dr. Samar was in Montreal to accept the 2001 John Humphrey Freedom Award.
Image Credit:
AP -- Wide World Photo / Andre Forget -- CP.

... she allegedly said: "I don't believe in sharia [Islamic law]." [ ... ] The chief justice, Abdul Hadi Shinwari, said her reported words were "against the Islamic nation of Afghanistan."

KABUL, Afghanistan -- AP
A former women's affairs minister in Afghanistan fears for her safety because she is opposed by the country's powerful religious establishment.

Sima Samar's opponents, some of them allied with the President, Hamid Karzai, have even branded her the Afghan Salman Rushdie – raising chilling memories of the fatwa that haunted the Indian-born writer for more than a decade. "I don't want to leave," Ms Samar. "But I think I need protection."

Mr Karzai swore in his new cabinet yesterday but he was unable to find someone for the women's affairs portfolio after Ms Samar opted for a lower-profile job.
(More: Company News Source)
2002 © The Associated Press.

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