There is no escaping the fact that the war on terror ended up not only as a struggle for democracy but also that democracy came to mean women's rights. Nowhere is that struggle more necessary than in the Muslim world. And the Muslim world means also in the THE EUROPEAN MUSLIM DIASPORA.

Center stage in that struggle is the late Canadian/Iranian journalist, ZIBA ZAHRA KAZEMI.

By withdrawing from Doing Business with Iran conference in Montreol, the federal govenment of Canada, demonstrates she places justice for a Muslim woman above commerical interests. Of course, she was under pressure to do so. Good. Responsiveness is a hallmark of democracy. Samira Mohyeddin wrote this poem for Kazemi:I am every women

I AM EVERY WOMAN
Sister,

I see your photography for the first time,
A random sampling on the news
Sensitive and layered
they reveal how you put your subject at ease
An uneasy subject
making passionate documents
perfectly still and strong
Bearing witness and capturing truth in frozen glances.

Where have they buried you sister?

Sister,
who witnessed your demise?
Who photographs the photographer?
They were watching you
they had seen you a generation before
Stuck between parallel worlds
there are so many of us
shy smiles
high cheekbones
photos of photos of photos of photos

How they must have outnumbered you
The soulless Goons
Our Brothers
How dare they touch your hair
Did they hit you with their bare hands
Their weapons hardening between their legs
Their rush of righteous power
Did anyone ever stop mid-blow
to doubt himself
his right

Where have we buried you sister?

In our collective past and present
that only dances with cliches and plays with prototypes
In our collective muted screams
we have buried ourselves with our own hands