Archive for October, 2008
Never mind the drugs and booze that go hand-in-hand with the sex trade – prostitution itself is an addiction. So says Lauren Casey, a Victoria, B.C., researcher, advocate and former prostitute. She says there must be specialized rehab for people addicted to a lifestyle that’s built around fast, easy money, living on the edge and [...]
Some prefectures tackling problem, but police finding crackdown difficult elsewhere Cases of child prostitution involving dating-service cafes have been increasing sharply, prompting some local governments to take measures such as banning people under 18 from entering such establishments. Inside the cafes, men choose women from among the female clientele and try to secure dates with [...]
Child prostitution has reached alarmingly high levels in Congo, a local NGO reported after conducting a state-sponsored, UN funded investigation. “Prostitution increasingly affects underage girls who sometimes do not use protection. They have no money,” said Elie Sosthene Nganga, the head of Attac 3 – an NGO set up to fight drugs, prostitution and HIV [...]
The UN chief has urged world leaders to follow through on their commitment to poverty elimination United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon said poverty in sub-Saharan Africa had increased between 1990 and 2005, and women and girls are most affected by bias and neglect. He was addressing the 63rd annual UN General Assembly on [...]
Rape Crisis, a non-governmental organisation which has helped survivors of rape and sexual violence in Cape Town since 1976, warned it was facing a “very serious” financial crisis which could force it to close its doors. “In the last two years, two core funders ended their relationship with Rape Crisis, one of them leaving the [...]
At least 300 women are victims of sexual violence every year in Bamako, according to local police records, but the actual figure is much higher said the president of the Bamako-based non-profit, Women in Law and Development in Africa. “Victims and their families rarely denounce rapists in order to preserve the family’s dignity and honour,” [...]
A Netherlands-funded project is aiming to provide better protection for women and children exposed to violence and sexual abuse. Sisters Arab Forum (SAF), a local non-governmental organisation (NGO), will implement the US$700,000 project – the first of its kind in Yemen. All 21 governorates will be covered in the four-year project. Amal al-Basha, chairwoman of [...]
Prime Minister Helen Clark says a big rise in recorded domestic violence offences is because the issue has been brought “out from under the carpet”. Annual crime statistics released on 1st October showed a small drop in the crime rate for the year ended June 30, but a surge in reported family violence offences which [...]
The Chinese government has ordered police to respond at the scene to all complaints of domestic violence in a new regulation to protect the rights of women. The regulation, issued by seven ministries, including the ministries of public security, justice and health, requires police to be dispatched whenever they receive a 110 emergency call regarding [...]
The Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development has set up a temporary task force to investigate allegations of sexual abuse against Penan women and girls in Sarawak. Its minister Datuk Dr Ng Yen Yen said the ministry would be working closely with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) such as the Women’s Centre for Change (WCC) and [...]
Nepali HIV-infected women have complained that the present policies and programs of the government have failed to address their problems and claimed for free treatment a state-run newspaper The Rising Nepal reported earlier this month. At a press conference in the Nepali capital of Kathmandu, organized by Shakti Milan Samaj, a social organization working for [...]
Women are increasingly clamouring for their sexual rights in a social environment that is often discriminatory and outright demeaning. “Women should know about their sexual rights; it is very important especially for women in rural areas where men, more often than not, abuse women,” commented Vicky Schimming after a week-long workshop on women’s sexual rights, [...]
The Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) Ghana and Women in Law and Development in Africa (WILDAF) have condemned the spate of marginalization of Ghanaian women in leadership positions and called for effective affirmative action to address the problem. The two bodies admit there has been an increase in the number of women in leadership positions [...]
Can the stringent and controversial Section 498A, commonly called the ‘dowry law’ last another quarter-century in its present form? Women’s groups say ‘yes’ because when it was inserted into the Indian Penal Code 25 years ago, it gave women a matchless legal shield against violence and cruelty at the hands of the husband and his [...]
Women’s rights violations in Iran continue to mount, especially where children are given to their fathers after divorce because of legislation based on religious laws. Sabri Bahman, a women’s rights activist in eastern Kurdistan, said “women in eastern Kurdistan and other parts of Iran are not equal in their rights.” Women’s families in Iran prevent [...]
Women’s groups called for reform of the parliamentary electoral law, including the introduction of a quota system to ensure 30 percent of Parliament members are female, lowering the voting age and an end to the confessional system. Speaking at a United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) center in Beirut, the coordinator of “The National [...]
The controversial Women on Waves foundation is on its way to Spain in order to carry out abortions in the international waters off the coast of Spain. The foundation’s ‘abortion boat’ is to dock at Valencia harbour on Thursday. Up till next Monday, the organisation intends to help Spanish women who wish to terminate an [...]
After much debate, mounting pressure from the Catholic Church and attempted legislative amendments, the Victorian Abortion Law Reform Bill was passed unamended by the Victorian Upper House on October 10. A week earlier, on October 4, more than 200 people had rallied to support the bill, which would finally decriminalise abortion in Victoria. The rally [...]
A bill currently under review by the parliament in Lithuania–which has one of the lowest abortion rates among Baltic nations–would create one of the most restrictive bans in all of Europe. The bill–formally called the Draft Act of the Republic of Lithuania on the Protection of Human Life in the Prenatal Stage–is currently pending review [...]
Recent postings- Towards a Future without Fundamentalisms: New Report Analyzes Religious Fundamentalist Strategies and Feminist Responses
- Statement on the Murder of Marisela Escobedo Ortiz, women’s human rights defender of Ciudad Juarez
- Sudan police arrest women protesting at flogging video
- UN Chief Leaves Women out of Year-End Summing Up
- Sex education is expelled from Egyptian schools
- Kurdish Parliament Turns Blind Eye to Prostitution
- Sexual harassment cases in Israel’s civil service rose 40% in 2010
- Women in south Sudan have been targeted in a string of abusive attacks by police cracking down on Western clothes
- Women and girls living in Haiti’s makeshift camps face an increasing risk of rape and sexual violence says Amnesty International new report
- Stand up against hatred and threats against LGBT in Malaysia
- new on womensgrid
- Tower Hamlets Residents Solidarity Campaign – Solidarity with women involved in prostitution in east London
- East London Fawcett: Free Gallery Tour ~ 12 May & Pay Gap Talk ~ 23rd May 2012
- The Light Bulb Moment and future of feminism Book launch and panel – Bristol ~ 15th May 2012
- Hollaback! Portsmouth launch event – Tuesday 22nd May 2012
- Run for Congo Women – Deadline extended to 25th May 2012!
- Fast fall in number of male-only FTSE 100 boards
- Why has the UK got so few women scientists?
- The Haven Wolverhampton E Bulletin May 2012
- 2 vacancies – Shakti Women’s Aid (Edinburgh) ~ 28th May 2012
- Volunteering for Dorset Rape Crisis Centre
- new on women in london
- Information added in March 2012
- Information added in February 2012
- Information added in January 2012
- Pro-Choice Public Meeting – Abortion Rights ~16th May 2012
- Fawcett on Queen’s speech: flexible parental leave / red tape challenge
- Policy and Campaigns Internship – Power and Agency campaign – Fawcett ~ 22nd May 2012
- Administration and Finance Worker – Women in Prison ~ 18th May 2012
- A Women’s Agenda for the Local Elections May 2012 – Survey Results
- Friends of the Women’s Library update on the future of the Library
- Women in Black, vigils and Facebook page
46 years on, women still not independent in Uganda
28 October 2008 in Africa, Equality, Opinion Comment
Independence marks the day the Uganda flag replaced the Union Jack when the British Colonialists let go of Uganda and its resources and left it in the hands of nationals. Over four decades later, we have lots of achievements rolling off our tongues, written in books by historians and extolled at international gatherings. One area [...]