By Laura J. Brown, Washington File Staff Writer

Washington -- Afghan delegates working to establish an interim government for their country have come a step closer to reclaiming a role for women in public life. After a final round of negotiations December 4 outside of Bonn, Germany, the four rival delegations agreed to an administration that includes two women.

The delegates settled on a 29-member administration headed by a chairperson, with five vice chairs and 23 ministers and deputy ministers. Sima Samar, a doctor who runs health centers for Afghan refugees in Pakistan was named minister for women's affairs -- she will also be a vice-chair in the new government lead by Hamid Karzai, according to press reports.

Dr. Samar, an ethnic Hazara from Ghazni province, will be the first woman to hold such a senior post in Afghanistan.

In addition to Dr. Samar, independent candidate Suhaila Seddiqi, a surgeon and former army general who still lives in Kabul, is to become minister for public health.

White House Spokesman Ari Fleischer welcomed the agreement, which marks Afghanistan's transition to a broad-based government in contrast to the cruel Taliban regime. "It will allow the people of Afghanistan to take their country back, and the President is very pleased by that," he said.

"He's pleased by the multiethnic nature of the agreement. He's pleased by the role that women will play in the future government of Afghanistan. But much more work remains ahead," Fleischer said during the White House press briefing December 5.

The agreement follows multiple calls from U.S. officials and others worldwide for Afghan women to have a part in rebuilding their war-ravaged country. In a radio address November 17, First Lady Laura Bush drew widespread attention to the oppression of women in Afghanistan, who under the Taliban rule were forbidden to work or study outside the home or to leave the house without a male relative.

"The plight of women and children in Afghanistan is a matter of deliberate human cruelty, carried out by those who seek to intimidate and control," she said, adding that the Taliban treatment of women is a form of "gender apartheid."

At a meeting with 11 Afghan women at the White House November 27, Mrs. Bush stressed that the new Afghan government must protect the rights of women and children and ensure that all children, "not just boys," are offered an education.

"We are at a very, very crucial time as Afghanistan forms its new government," Mrs. Bush said on that occasion. "The stability of Afghanistan, the stability of the region is very dependent on making sure that human rights are a very clear part of the new government. And of course human rights includes the rights of women and children."

Activists for Afghan women watched the nine-day talks in Germany with a keen interest in seeing participation of women in the transitional government. Sara Amiryar, a Georgetown University administrator who was born and educated in Afghanistan, said that Afghan women must be part of the peace process and the reconstruction at all levels.

"Afghan women should not be underestimated," Amiryar said as the delegations began talks. "Despite the fact that Afghan women were the primary victims of two decades of conflict and atrocities, they were the ones who kept Afghan culture alive."

At a conference in New York November 29 entitled "Women for Afghan Women: Securing Our Future," some participants expressed disappointment that the Bonn conference included only three women delegates, compared to the 60 male delegates, while women make up more than half of Afghanistan's population.

"There are not enough Afghan women included in the political delegations at conferences such as the Bonn conference," said Fahima Danishgar, co-founder of the Women for Afghan Women group.

Danishgar, who moved to the United States at the age of 10, described the country she hopes to help rebuild. "I remember an Afghanistan where women walked about the streets freely, took part in education, went to school, universities, and were part of society in professional fields, governments," she said of the pre-Taliban era. "That is the Afghanistan that I envision in my mind and hold dear to my heart." While international pressure for the full participation of women in Afghanistan's new government will continue, U.S. officials emphasize that the decisions on the government structure are for Afghans themselves to make.

"The future shape of Afghanistan will fundamentally be determined by the people of Afghanistan," Ari Fleischer told reporters at a November 27 White House briefing. "We cannot dictate every day's events to everybody all through Afghanistan, but the president will speak out clearly about the need for people in Afghanistan to follow human rights procedures and treat people well, including the women of Afghanistan."