Comments on: THE COOPERATIVE FOR PEACE AND UNITY http://andthewomengather.com/2009/04/19/the-cooperative-for-peace-and-unity/ The number one site dealing with women issues. We have thousands of women coming to our site daily. Sat, 21 Jan 2012 10:09:46 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: Natasha Mostert http://andthewomengather.com/2009/04/19/the-cooperative-for-peace-and-unity/comment-page-1/#comment-26 Natasha Mostert Sun, 19 Apr 2009 05:51:26 +0000 http://andthewomengather.com/?p=552#comment-26 I've been involved with CPAU, trying to help them get funded, ever since I stumbled -- quite by chance -- across a BBC article about these ladies and the Fighting for Peace program. Afghanistan is a terrifically difficult place to be a woman. Those of us who are fortunate to live in the West can hardly imagine the kind of challenges Afghani women face. 57% of Afghan brides are under the age of 16. 87% of women are illiterate. 1 in 9 die in childbirth. Pulling on boxing gloves may seem an unconventional route to empowerment but it is not only a highly symbolic gesture that packs a big punch, it also provides great joy to these women who still lead very restricted lives. I am a kickboxer myself and I know how energised and liberated I feel when I am in the dojo. I can only imagine how much more so it must be for these ladies who live in a community where women are still subjected to male dominance to a staggering degree. This is a program worth supporting and I thank you for your interest in our sisters in that part of the world! Natasha Mostert, author of Keeper of Light and Dust. I’ve been involved with CPAU, trying to help them get funded, ever since I stumbled — quite by chance — across a BBC article about these ladies and the Fighting for Peace program.

Afghanistan is a terrifically difficult place to be a woman. Those of us who are fortunate to live in the West can hardly imagine the kind of challenges Afghani women face. 57% of Afghan brides are under the age of 16. 87% of women are illiterate. 1 in 9 die in childbirth. Pulling on boxing gloves may seem an unconventional route to empowerment but it is not only a highly symbolic gesture that packs a big punch, it also provides great joy to these women who still lead very restricted lives. I am a kickboxer myself and I know how energised and liberated I feel when I am in the dojo. I can only imagine how much more so it must be for these ladies who live in a community where women are still subjected to male dominance to a staggering degree.

This is a program worth supporting and I thank you for your interest in our sisters in that part of the world!

Natasha Mostert, author of Keeper of Light and Dust.

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