The United States has Denied Malai Joya a travel visa into the country stating that she was told she was being denied because she was “unemployed” and “lives underground. Malalai Joya, an acclaimed women’s rights activist and former member of Afghanistan’s parliament. Ms. Joya, who was named one of TIME Magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world in 2010.
The right of authors to travel and promote their work is central to freedom of expression and the full exchange of ideas.” Joya’s memoir has been translated into over a dozen languages, and she has toured widely including Australia, the U.K., Canada, Norway, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, and the Netherlands in support of the book over the past two years.
Then 27, Joya was the youngest woman elected to Afghanistan’s parliament in 2005. Because of her harsh criticism of warlords and fundamentalists in Afghanistan, she has been the target of at least five assassination attempts. Joya has also become an internationally known critic of the U.S.-NATO war in Afghanistan. Organizers of her speaking tour are encouraging people to contact the Department of State to ask them to fulfill the promise from the Obama Administration of “promoting the global marketplace of ideas” and grant Joya’s visa immediately.
Title: U.S. government denies entry visa to Afghan women’s rights activist and author Malalai Joya.
Source: Rabble.ca, 3/17/11
Author: Derrick O’ Keefe.
Student researcher: Sean Lawrence, Sonoma State University
Advisor: Randy Pollock. Masters in Business