Women Elected on the Hamas Ticket? Yes!

The new Palestinian legislative council includes 17 women, six of whom were elected on the slate of Hamas, the Islamic Resistance Movement. Jamila al-Shanty, a professor at Islamic University in Gaza, is one of them. She spoke with Kate Raphael of KPFA Women's Magazine about her agenda, which she says, will focus on meeting the needs of women.

Shanty says unequivocally that Hamas will not make any laws requiring women or men to follow Islamic law. But, she says, Hamas hopes that by setting a good example, fighting corruption, and working for the good of all the Palestinians, they will inspire people to "imitate us."

You can listen to the raw, uncut half-hour interview at http://ia310136.us.archive.org/3/items/jamila_shanty_int/jamila-3-06.wav