National Press Club to Host "NEWSMAKER" Media Briefing: Status of Women and Human Rights in Afghanistan

News provided by

Mar 02, 2012, 11:31 ET

WASHINGTON, March 2, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Sima Samar, MD, Chair of the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) and a former member of the Afghan Cabinet will speak at a National Press Club Newsmaker press conference at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, March 7, 2012, in the Bloomberg Room of the National Press Building, 529 14th St., N.W., Washington, D.C.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20080917/NPCLOGO)

Sima Samar, an outspoken advocate for women's rights, will address the issues faced by Afghan women and human rights situation in Afghanistan especially with international forces including U.S. announcing their imminent departure.

In 2001, Samar joined the Afghan Transitional Administration as Deputy President and then as Minister for Women's Affairs but she was forced to resign after receiving death threats and harassment for questioning Islamic laws. She served as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Sudan from 2005 to 2009.

SOURCE National Press Club