Sally Armstrong, noted Canadian journalist, human rights activist and author of several books on women in Afghanistan and the film Daughters of Afghanistan . Sally was the interviewer of the women at the Canadian Forum on Women’s Activism in Constitutional and Democractic Reform. She interviewed the women you see in Constitute! the film – Marilou McPhedran, Michele Landsberg, Doris Anderson, Linda Palmer Nye, Pat Hacker, and Sharon McIvor.
Sally Armstrong Interviews
Dr. Sima Samar is the Chairperson of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission. A medical doctor, she set up illegal clinics for women and girls under the Taliban, and has dedicated her life to the liberation of women from the repressive Taliban and Afghan regimes. She was briefly appointed as the Deputy Prime Minister of Afghanistan and the Minister of Women’s Affairs after the first democratic elections in 2004.
Dr. Sima Samar LINKS
Sima Samar
Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan
Little Women for Little Women
Malalai Joya is a young woman who was an Afghanistan Member of Parliament for her community. An outspoken critic of the Afghan regimes, she has published a book called “Raising My Voice” and has been called the ‘woman who will not be silenced’ while she exposes the dangerous and difficult situation for the Afghan people.
Malalai Joya LINK
Mary Balikungeri, the Director of the Rwanda Women’s Network, talks about the Rwandan genocide and its impact on women and children and the role at the network plays in reconciliation and building a health society in Rwanda. She is proud of the fact that Rwanda has the highest percentage of women in Parliament in the world, while Canada has slipped to 47th in the world.
Mary Balikungeri LINKS
Dr. Gertrude Fester, a feminist activist, educator, poet and writer from South Africa, who is a former Member of Parliament, and a Commissioner of the Gender Commission. A long time activist, she spent time in solitary confinement for her political work during the 1980’s struggle against apartheid. She discusses a brief herstory of South African women’s rights and the parallels to the Canadian women’s movement.
Sally Armstrong LINKS
Sally Armstrong Bio
Daughters of Afghanistan Documentary.
TVO interview about Afghanistan.