Anne of Carversville will main a strong commitment to covering International Women’s Rights news, even if it’s not our heavily-trafficked news channel.

This morning, the two other defendents in the Lubna Hussein case were found guilty and sentenced to 20 lashes in a public flogging, along with fines of 250 Sudanese pounds each.

If the sentence is carried out, the two women will join the more than 43,000 women flogged in Sudan last year for public indencency. For a review of the situation in Khartoum, read our Lubna, Amal and Women of Sudan journal.

The news out of Somalia is equally disturbing. Simply stated, women are now subject to “bra inspections” by the insurgent, ultra-Islamist group Al Shabaab. If they are found to be wearing a bra, women must remove it and shake their breasts for the morality inspector.

Secy of State Hillary Clinton speaks at the African Growth and Opportunity conference in Nairobi Aug. 2009, via CNNThe good news is that consciousness about international women’s rights is a significantly higher priority in the Obama administration and Clinton foreign policy camp.

The bad news is that fundamentalist Islam is on the move, attacking all in its path, but women in particular.

As one who tracks these subjects every day, I must say — at the risk of public criticism and censure — that moderate Muslims express no significant concern over these arrests and floggings.

I expect the web to be overflowing with Muslims expressing grave fears about the future of women under radical fundamentalism.

When it comes to Judaism, reform Jews even in Israel don’t hesitate to criticize the ultra Orthodox factions. I see no similar debate in Islam, with few exceptions.

We are quick to post any essay or opinion in Google search from Muslim leaders on this subject, and they are not plentiful, on English-speaking, Arab websites. I freely admit that we don’t have a regular Arabic translator onboard yet.

For obvious reasons, I may be missing a heated debate on Arabic-speaking websites.

This comparative silence doesn’t comfort those of us who wonder what will stop the forward march of the Islamic morality police. Anne of Carversville welcomes input on this topic.

Having been personally accosted in Brooklyn, NY for wearing a halter dress, I take this matter very seriously, not so much for myself, but for our daughters and granddaughters, living in 21st century America and around the world.

Please, I’m a liberal Democrat, so no attacks on me for being ultra Conservative and living in the Pajama Media camp, although they do speak up more than anyone on this subject. I just don’t know where moderate Muslims stand on this whole topic of flogging women, bra inspections and other retreats on women’s rights.

In a nutshell, it’s getting real scarry out there, and I wish Muslims had more to say on these topics, pro and con.

As I wrote in my original ‘burqa article’, Islam is shrouded in mystery for me and burqas make me nervous, because I can’t communicate with any visual clues, with the woman who is shrouded before me. One of these days, we must discuss what actually builds trust among peoples.

Of course, I understand that trust goes all ways. Whenever I raise this topic, the entire mixed-bag reality of American foreign policy comes into play, and important topics like Iraq deservedly hit the radar with “Trust — how dare you speak of ‘trust’, Anne!”

I understand the sentiment from Muslims, but the furor doesn’t address the problem of silence as increased numbers of women fall victims to the Islamic morality police, vowing to control women around the world.

Not every topic gets rolled into the same diplomatic waste basket.

In fact, the subject of women’s rights gets gets crumpled up and tossed into trash cans regularly, as women increasingly become pawns of diplomacy and war machines worldwide. Anne

More reading: Controlling Women’s Bodies Is a Fight to the Finish Anne

Somali Women Subjected to Breast Inspection: Bras Become Offensive to Islam