California Women Leaders Welcome Afifa Azim; Bay Area Women Invited to Become Part of Historic Circle of Power.

News Editors & Political Writers

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 28, 2003

Change is in the air, but will it reach the women of Afghanistan? An incredible array of California women leaders are joining Afifa Azim, Founder and President of the Afghan Women's Network, to determine ways and funds that ensure Afghan women become full partners in democracy. Bay Area women and men are invited to become part of this historic effort on November 14th at a special reception and celebration sponsored by the Women's Intercultural Network (WIN) and the Afghan Women's Association International (AWAI). Tony and Sam Abrahim, owners of International Marketing Gallery (IMG) from 6:00-8:30p.m., are hosting this gala reception at their San Francisco Gallery on 1830 Harrison Street.

This event will benefit the groundbreaking initiative, "Calling the Circle of Women from Partners in Democracy" (U.S.-Afghan Circle) and give Bay Area communities the opportunity to experience first hand the extraordinary leader, Afifa Azim. While celebrating the union of powerful women of California and Afghanistan, attendees will enjoy Afghan cuisine, music, dance, silent auction and view the premier of the US-AFGHAN Circle documentary, "Afghan Women Raise Their Voices." This event is part of a series of special gatherings hosted to support a delegation of eight emerging women leaders to travel from Afghanistan to California in March 2004, International Women's Month, for a leadership exchange with California women leaders.

As background it is important to realize that only 1% of the $87 billion dollars proposed by President Bush for aid to Iraq and Afghanistan will go towards reconstruction. None of it will go to support women in Afghanistan. The Afghan Women's Network (AWN) under the leadership of Afifa Azim is part of a movement to earmark funds from Bush's proposal to support women in Afghanistan. AWN is just one of the non-governmental organizations that recently drafted the Women's Bill of Rights and is proposing to integrate it into the new constitution of Afghanistan. Furthermore, this movement has successfully convinced the President of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai, to appoint women to be half of the 50 new candidates to Loya Jirga at the end of 2003. The movement for women's human rights in Afghanistan is beginning to make significant strides.

WIN, a San Francisco-based consultative organization to the UN, coordinates the million women California Women's Agenda (CAWA), US Women Connect (USWC), and leadership exchanges between women in Uganda, Afghanistan and Japan. AWAI, based in Fremont, has been advocating on behalf of the Afghan-American community since 1992. In May 2003, WIN and AWAI took eight California women leaders to Kabul to meet with members from 27 Afghan women's organizations.

Please join Bay Area community leaders on Friday, November 14th to welcome Afifa Azim and to celebrate the union of powerful women of California and Afghanistan. For information and reservations, call 415-221-4841, email: [e-mail] or -- go to our website: www.win-cawa.org.