In the meantime..


June 15, 2013.
I have received an award. The Royal Academy of Science, Arts and Literature of Belgium awarded me the Academy Award for my struggle for women’s rights and secularism. image

After receiving the award I spoke at the Royal Academy about women’s rights and the importance of secularization of state, society and education system.

Royal

Got standing ovation.

June 4, 2013.
Bilateral meeting with European Parliament Vice President Isabelle Durant. And with the members of DROI, FEMM and DEVE committees and the Delegation for Relations with South Asia at the European Parliament. Meeting with Human Rights Actions Unit on the Sakharov Prize Network. Planning to make the world a better place.

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Le Soir published an interview on the right to blaspheme.

Le Soir


More discussion on atheism and secularism.

More here.

June 3, 2013.

I was welcomed, introduced and honored by Senators Marie Arena and Jean-François Istasse at the Belgium Senate. Members of UN WOMEN were present. I gave a speech on women’s education and independence, I also encouraged people in the Muslim countries to fight for a true democracy and a secular state – a state which affirms a strict separation between religion and state, and maintains a uniform civil code, a set of secular laws that are not based on religion, but instead, on equality, and an education system that is secular, scientific, and enlightened.

belgium senate1

Spoke as a guest speaker at the plenary session of the European Parliament.

What I tried to say was that the Islamists have gained unbelievable strength in Bangladesh over the years. They have been showing off their strength by harassing, abusing, stabbing and murdering anyone who protest against their atrocities. Atheists have the right to criticize religion, but no one has the right to kill them, just like no one has the right to kill religious people for being religious! EP must condemn the attacks and threats against atheists, secularists and freethinking bloggers and call on the Bangladeshi government to guarantee their safety, respect free expression and prosecute Islamists who threaten, attack and harm critics. Freedom of expression, including to criticize Islam and Islamism as well as to blaspheme, is a basic right. The barbaric and brutal anti-blasphemy law must be abolished.

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Attended the debate on the role of media to change the society at the Millennium Film Festival in Belgium. I said, media is busy to entertain people rather than to enlighten people.
millenium fest

Comments

  1. StevoR : Free West Papua, free Tibet, let the Chagossians return! says

    Congratulations. Well done Taslima – great to hear and well deserved. 🙂

  2. Badland says

    Very well deserved indeed. It is wonderful your voice and advocacy is getting the international recognition it so thoroughly deserves

  3. Christian R. says

    Best wishes to you and congratulations for your well-earned and deserved award!
    Greetings from Germany

  4. skeptomai says

    Dear Dr. Nasreen,
    Congratulations on your award. I would also like to thank you for making me more aware of the world I live in.

  5. SOWTW says

    Stop Oppression of Women in the Third World

    http://stopow.tumblr.com/

    We are a new organization that is committed to stopping the oppression of women in the third world countries.

    Women in the Third World suffer considerably from the following problems:

    -daily domestic violence

    -brutal rape and torture

    -patriarchal culture without any moderation

    -abusive men

    -honor killings

    -forced poverty and are unable to free themselves since women are considered as property, not human beings, in many third world countries

    We are committed to trying to END this oppression. One of our goals is to create a political lobby or organization that lobbies for visas for single or divorced women from third world countries, so that we can bring them to the West and help them escape the abuse, rape, poverty, and violence of the patriarchal system in most third world countries.

    If you are interesting in helping out by donating, or web designing, or campaigning for us, please drop me a line at sowtw1987 AT hotmail DOT com

  6. says

    Congratulations!

    “EP must condemn the attacks and threats against atheists, secularists and freethinking bloggers and call on the Bangladeshi government to guarantee their safety” – I’m afraid the only thing they bother with currently is better conditions for workers in the clothing industry (which is also important of course, but serves a direct economical need to the EU, as opposed to dead atheists).

    Also, what’s up with the left hand under the chin in these pictures? 🙂

  7. American Women Suck says

    American Women Suck, Do Not Marry American Women

    http://saynotoamericanwomen.blogspot.com/

    Why do American women make such bad wives?

    American women are the most likely to cheat on you, to divorce you, to get fat, to steal half of your money in the divorce courts, don’t know how to cook or clean, don’t want to have children, etc. Therefore, what intelligent man would want to get involved with American women?

    American women are generally immature, selfish, extremely arrogant and self-centered, mentally unstable, irresponsible, and highly unchaste. The behavior of most American women is utterly disgusting, to say the least.

    I encourage ALL American men to NEVER MARRY American women, and date/marry only foreign (non-American) women.

    If you want to get married, find a nice foreign girl from Asia, or South America, or Russia/Eastern Europe. DO NOT MARRY AN AMERICAN WOMAN UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES!

    Give American women the husband they deserve- NONE!

  8. A Hermit says

    Bravo!

    Well deserved, and a testament to your courage and hard work.

    And how good it is to see the issues you have fought for being taken seriously. Gives one hope for the future.

  9. miles says

    Wow, congratulations! Much deserved!

    Re: Mr. American Women Suck
    I had a roommate who made the same sorts of arguments back when I was in job corps. He was a great guy, funny, compassionate and all that so long as certain subjects didn’t come up (hey, I shared a room with him) – but then there was this cultural side of him that seemed whackaloon off-the-wall dangerous. It was like this block, this walled off part of him that ignored all human decency.
    His argument against american women wasn’t from being snubbed by one, but instead he said “they are crazy – they think they can do anything, without a man’s permission!” He talked about wanting to bring a girl from oversees who didn’t have “crazy american woman ideas” and that he wouldn’t let her watch TV or go outside or learn to drive or read because she’d get “bad ideas”. He also bragged about having witnessed an adulterer getting stoned to death back in his home country. Not all of his stories were horrifying – he also once told me about his first time driving in the US and getting pulled over, “License? You need some license to drive in this country?!”
    I wish I remember where he was from… it was an african country, I remember that much.

    It was weird to live in such close proximity to somebody with that attitude, and with his experiences (at least, from my sheltered privileged westerner white-boy point of view). It was also the most personal glimpse I’ve ever had into that backwards mindset that we find in so many countries (and to a lesser extent here). Whatever caused that attitude, those ideals… it must be stopped. He could have been a genuinely good guy if it weren’t for whatever twisted him like that.

    Thank you for your hard work and sacrifice.

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