We are looking for real leadership for the women in Afghanistan:

Sign this petition to tell your member of Congress to stop using the women of Afghanistan as an excuse for war.
We will deliver your signature to their offices.

Dear Representative:

Protecting the rights of women is often given as a rationale for the war in Afghanistan, but what we hear from the women of Afghanistan is that the ongoing combat in their country causes incalculable suffering.

After three decades of war and privation, the average life expectancy in Afghanistan is age 44. One in five children die of preventable diseases before turning five, and 1,600 out of every 100,000 Afghan mothers die while giving birth or of related complications.

A $94 billion war supplemental spending bill is flying through Congress and the Senate, yet only 10% of that money is allocated for development assistance. If we really care about the women and children of Afghanistan, why are we spending so little on their real needs--health care, education, food security--and so much on weapons systems and combat troops?

We call on you to quit hiding behind the skirts of Afghan women and come forward in support of real and sustained peace.  As Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, recently warned "We cannot succeed... in Afghanistan by killing Afghan civilians." Bombing villages only serves to alienate people and fuel support for the Taliban’s armed resistance. What Afghanistan truly needs is a surge in doctors, teachers, and economic development. Please use your power to support the women and children of Afghanistan by pushing for diplomacy and by increasing funding for human needs.  Please use our resources wisely--for peace, not endless war.

Sincerely,

http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/424/t/8834/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=1957