After the earthquake, protecting Haitian women and girls from violence

31 March 2010 in Campaign, Climate Environment, Rape and Sexual Assault, South America, Violence Against Women

The effects of the earthquake that struck Haiti some two and a half months ago have reverberated across the country. Both in and beyond the capital, Port-au-Prince, progress made in tackling long-standing human rights issues – including the problem of gender-based violence against women and girls – seems a distant memory. In too many cases, [...]

International Herald Tribune launches viral campaign to promote Female Factor series

31 March 2010 in Gender Mainstreaming, Global, Media, North America

The International Herald Tribune (IHT) today launched a viral campaign to raise awareness of its new editorial series, The Female Factor. Aimed at influential women in business and government around the world, its release coincides with the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day. The viral, entitled It’s a girl, was developed by London based creative [...]

Fury as new Ukraine PM appoints all-male cabinet because ‘conducting reform is not women’s business’

31 March 2010 in Campaign, Equality, Europe, Government, Women's Group

A feminist group in Ukraine has called on wives, girlfriends and lovers of the country’s new Cabinet ministers to impose a sex ban after accusing the prime minister of being anti-women. Mykola Azarov defended his decision to appoint an all-male government, saying he needed ‘people who can work 16-to-18 hours a day’ to fix the [...]

Iceland has just banned all strip clubs. Is it now the most female-friendly country?

31 March 2010 in Europe, Feminism, Gender Mainstreaming, Government, Opinion Comment, Pornography, Trafficking, Women's Group

Iceland is fast becoming a world-leader in feminism. A country with a tiny population of 320,000, it is on the brink of achieving what many considered to be impossible: closing down its sex industry. While activists in Britain battle on in an attempt to regulate lapdance clubs – the number of which has been growing [...]

Prostitute Diversion Initiative in Texas is helping prostitutes off the streets

31 March 2010 in Legal Police, North America, Prostitution

After two years of research that included enforcement operations targeting prostitutes, the Dallas Police Department (DPD) is seeing the benefits of their innovative new approach of going to the streets to provide comprehensive services and a complete exit strategy for those seeking a way out of prostitution. Data evaluated at the University of North Texas [...]

French sex workers protest legal brothels

31 March 2010 in Europe, Legal Police, Prostitution, Women's Group

Dozens of French sex workers proclaiming themselves proud to be prostitutes last week marched to protest a lawmaker’s proposal to legalize brothels in France, arguing that such a law would deny them the freedom to work on their own. A lawmaker in France’s governing party has proposed reopening brothels just over six decades after they [...]

Would legalising sex work help fight Aids?

31 March 2010 in Funding, HIV/AIDS, Prostitution, South America, Women's Group

Giving sex workers condoms and advice will not bring down HIV rates, says Elena Reynaga, general secretary of the Latin American and Caribbean Sex Workers Network. But giving them their rights will. It is of little use giving condoms and HIV prevention advice to women who are harrassed by the police and abused and cheated [...]

Kenya’s Abortion Ban Fires Constitutional Debate

31 March 2010 in Abortion Contraception, Africa, Government

Earlier this month church leaders here threatened to mobilize their faithful against a draft of a national constitution if it included language allowing abortions under any circumstance. Kenya currently outlaws abortion unless three doctors certify that the pregnancy puts a woman’s life in immediate danger. In a sign of official acknowledgement of the widespread use [...]

Obama has angered women’s groups by reaffirming no federal funds for abortion

31 March 2010 in Abortion Contraception, Government, North America

President Obama, who quietly signed an executive order last week reaffirming that no federal funds can be used for abortion, is facing fury from a core part of his constituency: women’s advocates. “Women elected him,” said Terry O’Neill, president of the National Organization for Women. “He campaigned as a pro-choice president. We wished he would [...]

Kayan – advancing the status of women in Israeli-Palestinian society

31 March 2010 in Feminism, Middle East, Women's Group

We are a group of feminist who aim to advance the status of women in the Israeli-Palestinian society. We believe that social change can be achieved if women are empowered to take a more active role in private and public life, encouraged to contribute their experiences and perspectives and to confidently demand recongnition of their [...]