My Tv Debut... Oh and I Voted hehe

I was dead tired and about to have my evening sleep (Its just heaven to sleep at 6ish ahhhhhhh) when my father suggested that it would be a good time to go and vote in the iraqi elections!!! So the whole family got in the car and off we went! When we got there, there was a queue of around 100 people waiting to get inside!!! It was overwhelming to see so many people waiting to vote! Vote for the first time in Free elections in Iraq (well 2nd time but u know what i mean!).

After around an hour it was time for myself and my family to get inside and after being frisked twice! i made my way into the room. A young lady approached me and my mother and asked us whether we'd like to be on Sky news!!! She asked us a few questions and said we would be perfect!

I was so nervous but i rehearsed what i wanted to say in my head 'Iraqis, Women, free vote' . And so i was Live at 9pm and the first question she asked me was 'what does this mean for iraqi women? And so when i started talking i couldn't stop! I said how it was an achievement not just for iraqi women but for all the women in the middle east! How it would truly be an acheievement if women in other countries would see a day that they would experience a truly free day like this!

After all the excitement i went for the registration table in which the guy asked me 'where is your fathers nationality since u arent born in Iraq!!! The cheek!! Like hello cant you see i have an iraqi passport i was about to say my father is Iranian i can call him if u like hehe but the other guy on the table said her mother is over there so they let me go through! I looked through the paper to find the 541 number and ticked it, folded the paper in two and placed it into the ballot box as well as dipping my finger in purple ink!!! (to stop ppl from voting twice).. Wow it was over everyone was so happy Kurdish ppl in their traditional dresses dancing and although i felt a bit uneasy around all the Kurd youth and men 'hanging around' I'm sure they were just happy in their own way hehe :P

However the real day of joy is 2morrow when Iraqis in Iraq go to the polls!

One day all the women of the middle east will be able to make their voices heard loudly like the iraqis will tomorrow!

Women In action

Today we had the core meeting of the Shia Muslim womens network at my house. It has been set up quite recently and name could soon change!! Basically its an all womens group and it was created by my mother and a few other active women.

I think its a really good idea because unfortunately in the Muslim community we have so few women who are willing to speak up and make their voices heard. The media portrays us as being 'oppressed' but I would say that the women that have the ability to speak up are not enough to make a difference and the women who do not simply are not willing to participate due to many many reasons, cultural and literacy issues being the two most important!
This group basically is aimed at trying to empower women, to let them know exactly what role they play and what further they need to do to make an impact on society. 50% percent of the population are women however we live in world dominated by men. Someone once told me "no one will give you your rights at ease you have to fight for them".

Some men bully their wives into thinking that they cannot change anything and stop them from being active and taking charge of their lives and the women feeling helpless cannot change this through educating women about the real difference they can make not only to themselves but to others would be a great achievement!

The picture shows our last meeting in which we had around 20 attendees. I was the minute taker although I haven't actually finished typing them yet!!!! And personally being the young one out of them I see it as a learning experience and as a way of understanding the needs of women.

Iraqs Vote

Hi, everyone!! (ok ok just me )

I have not written in my blog for agesssss, and now that i wanted to people are messaging me and annoying me (it wasnt necessary to mention this but i would like the general public to know that i have friends hehe)...

So anyways to todays topic !!! Voting !!! yes its been a year !! Time flies dosent it, I voted last time and i intend to this time and i should be a observer as well so its all good!! I think its next week and the major parties are the Shia religious, Shia secularist, Kurds, sunnis and errm some other independants.

555.... That the number for the shia block .. i actually voted for them last time, i thought i
should give them a chance .. and yea they had their chance and now im voting for someone else!!. They have some akhoonds i disaprove of and their a bit too 'religious' for my liking .. im not sure if their faces have been seen on the moon yet but watch this space hehe. Also they have the leader of the lunatic mob .. Muqtada Sadr and there is no way im associating myself with a
murdering thug like him!!. However they have used a few tactics like placing the photo of Syed
seestani, a respectic ayotallah in their campaign when its widely known that he does NOT support any group!! So Iraqis will probably give significant votes to them!

Alawis group is also popular... shia secularists but he has a ba3thi background and it would be an insult to my uncles memories if i vote for someone who shares ideas with those who had them murdered!!

Kurdish groups... a bit wary of them... dont like the idea of them having too much power however they probably wont since no one else but kurds votes for them!! (multiple times under diff names i must add!!). They will probably will get alot of votes and form a govt alongside the shias.

Sunnis- I think its great they are participating this time cos im sure they regretted it not being in the elections last time !! The new iraq will only successfull if EVERYONE partipates every ethnicity every religion every sect!!!

People who dont know much about iraqis say oh why are ppl voting in accords with their ethnicity they should vote for ability! In principle in i agree 110% but in iraq people dont have political ties or even have much experience of these ppl the only things they hold dear is their religious ties and they probably would vote in line with that... Kinda similar to why do blacks always vote democrat ?? dontcha think

Now for the big questiooooon who am i voting for???? Well i have a checklist .... No Ba3thees former ex active watever, no akhoonds, no arab nationalist and errm thats it really!!!
It will probably be down to 2 ppl or groups Chalabi and Bahriloloom? Why? Iraqis owe chalabi big time he might have made up intelligence or watever but its down to him that saddam is walking around in chains and humiliated on public Tv.. he never left his country a true patriot he brought all sides together to be represented in the governing council!!! But he is abit dodgy i give u that! And then we have bahriloloom, decent guy, from a religious family but a secularist himself so he appeals to both sides of spectrum, shia and err hes educated and has i think an civil engineering and oil field background. We need someone to look after the only precious thing we have!!! (This oil is such a mosibat!!)

Phewww im done!! I think there are over 200 groups or more but these are mostly the important ppl!! Hussain Shahrestani is with 555 so sorry u dont get my ethnic vote!! (dafe dige inshalla)

Who will get the govt? Well with 70% Shia we should get most seats!

Im proud to be a shia, I wont be scared to tell ppl what i am, neither will the iraqis again... Their shia votes signifies the end of being scared of their faith their heritage and being able to stand tall and say : I7na Shi3at Imam ALi and we are so god damn proud. At the same time hopefully we can give a positive image of our faith and show that having faith dosent mean u have to be oppressive to other faiths and prove Iraq can work well as a multi-faith/sect ethnic democratic country!!