Widows urge govt. to support them economically, socially

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: A number of widows in Baghdad called on the government to support them economically and socially on the occasion of the International Women’s Day after some of them lost their husbands during the armed operations in the past five years. “ We urge the government to take care of the widows and support them economically and socially because of the tough living conditions that they live in after they lost their husbands,” Fadhila Abdul Nabi, a 46-year-old widow from al-Maamel neighborhood who lost her husband in an explosion in 2006, told IraqiNews.com news agency. “ I have two sons and two daughters and they are in the high school and I have no source of income except what we get from the social security network in the labor ministry which reaches 150,000 Iraqi dinars ($125) every two months which is not enough for us,” she added. The ministry of labor and social affairs is assigned to distribute salaries to widows, orphans and unemployed people in Iraq. The widow said she intends to open a store at her house but she needs money to open it. For her part, another widow, Suheil Hamed, 39, who is working as an employee in a primary school in Sadr City in eastern Baghdad, said “my husband was a blacksmith and was killed by gunmen more than two years ago in Baghdad.” “ The school could sack me anytime and I have two daughters. I urge the government to give more attention to widows,” she added. Alyaa Taher, 38-year-old teacher, said “my husband died because of a chronic illness but I was deprived from the social security salary because of my job.” “ I have a son and two daughters in the primary school and my salary is not enough,” she said. She urged the government to increase the salaries of widow teachers.   SH (S)/SR 1