Nigerian women featured prominently in the news last year. One
group fought multinational oil conglomerate ChevronTexaco and
won. They all witnessed the arrival -- and subsequent swift
departure -- of the Miss World contest.
In these excerpts from interviews conducted by FRONTLINE/World
in November 2002, five Nigerian women discuss the conditions
under which they work, pray, earn an education, survive riots
and stand up for themselves in what remains largely a man's
world. The interviews have been edited for length and clarity.
Hauwa Ibrahim, Amina
Lawal's attorney, describes her upbringing in northern Nigeria
and details the long legal fight to save Lawal's life.
Christine Anyanwu, journalist,
describes the crushing disappointment of learning that the
state of Kaduna was going up in smoke and talks about the
danger of being a journalist under current conditions.
Mario Bello, director,
Adolescent Health and Information Project, talks of the need
to educate women and to promote a more equitable and just
interpretation of sharia.
Stella Din, publicist
for the Miss World organization, details the pressures that
resulted in the decision to move the final stages of the beauty
contest to London.
Amina Ladan Baki Mohammed,
a women's rights activist, says that women in Nigeria
are making slow progress toward parity with their men.
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