by Mac a'Bhaird

Created on: February 23, 2010   Last Updated: February 24, 2010

The plight of women in Afghanistan or any other Muslim country for that matter is not our business. Not that it is wrong to have empathy for them; but it simply isn’t our business. By ‘us’, I am referring to a political or national entity. What people do in private or individual sectors is totally another thing.

For one thing, for our nation to attempt to change the plight of women in Muslim countries is to meddle with their religion and culture; and as a country or political entity, Super Power that we are, we’d best keep our ‘dirty infidel’ hands off.

No, not that I think our hands are really 'dirty infidel', but that is how they look at it. And as much as we are able to, we need to leave religious and cultural things alone.

I recall an incident that happened many years ago. A former girlfriend called me and tried to get me to help her in a distressful situation she was facing. I had already gone down the rabbit trail with this girl, and I didn’t want to be the leading man or even a minor part in her drama any more.

I knew that to help her would draw me into a triangle in which it was better for me to keep my distance from, so I sought some advice as to what to do. The advice came back, that there are others much better suited than myself to help her; and by me attempting to help her, I was opening myself up to certain exposures and pitfalls.

From that advice, I deduced that #1, there were other people more suited than I to help her, and she can get help from those people if she really wants it, and #2, I would be risking a chance getting drawn back into a relationship with her, which I DID NOT want.

Applying the above situation to the plight of women in Muslim countries, there are other people more suited to help them than us, the great Super Power. Doesn't it seem like Muslims in Indonesia or other more moderate Islamic countries are better suited to help these women than Western influenced nations?

Even if there are individual or private sector organizations that support women’s issues, that in itself is certainly much more suited to help them than it being a political or national policy to foist our beliefs upon them while we are there attempting to crush the Talaban.

As per Afghanistan itself; if we wish to avoid being drawn into a quagmire, we best leave the social or religious issues alone, and concentrate on our primary focus.

We are ‘occupying’ that country; let’s mind our manners, and maybe we'll end up being heros instead of villains. At best, perhaps they'll respect us more.

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