womensphere

January 2011

• 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
• Highest number of domestic violence cases recorded in Fiji
• Women’s groups in Israel slam ‘problematic’ trial despite satisfaction at outcome
• We want back the hours, Days and Years we have spent on housework! We want back our due in the house!
• Craigslist shuts down adult services worldwide
• Women defectors from North Korea fall victim to domestic violence

December 2010

• On rape the left still doesn’t get it
• Rape incidents in Pakistan up 13pc in 2010
• Rape victims ask – US military won’t tell on assaults
• Abortion ruling ‘not relevant’ to Malta – ‘No suggestion of a right to abortion’
• Crackdown on sex-selective abortions in India
• ‘Honour’-based Violence in Iraqi Kurdistan: Report Launch
• Craigslist pulls sex ads from Canadian sites
• More than 100 children in sex work in Fiji
• Women’s Liberation: Looking Back, Looking Forward
• UN votes to name alleged rapists in war
• Join the global outcry against “corrective rape” in South Africa
• Rise in rape incidents in Delhi due to low conviction and poor policing say experts
• Criminalized Abortion Overshadows Good News of Reduced Unsafe Abortion Deaths
• Domestic violence kills one Russian woman an hour says report
• Control and Sexuality: The Revival of Zina Laws in Muslim Contexts
• The ICC’s failure to prosecute gender violence is symptomatic of the way human rights advocacy has come to overlook women
• Activists in Lebanon Stand Against Domestic Violence
• Displaced women’s aid and security needs overlooked
• Malaysia Struggles With Baby Abandonment
• Human Rights Day is on 10 December
• The children left behind: A league table of inequality in child well-being in the world’s rich countries – UNICEF
• A 72-year-old Ghanaian woman has been burned to death on suspicion of being a witch, prompting condemnation from the country’s human rights groups
• Some thoughts on “sex by surprise”
• Latest news from WLUML
• Europe’s largest brothel has just opened in Spain where no fewer than 39 per cent of men admit to visiting sex workers
• Participants at a seminar on the dissemination of a research report on the abortion situation in Ghana have called for increased public education on the country’s abortion law
• A Kenyan cleric has lashed out at fellow African clergy who castigate women seeking safe abortion, saying religious conversion does not make one foreign to the world realities
• The discovery of 2,002 foetuses at a Bangkok temple has revived campaigns to legalise abortion among legislators and women groups
• The Women, Family and Community Development Ministry has expressed concern over the marriage of a 14-year-old girl to a 23-year-old man in Malaysia
• An Ontario court judge has ruled that Canada’s laws on prostitution will stay in force for a few more months despite a September ruling striking them down
• 6th December is the anniversary of the Montréal Massacre
• Gender-based violence has played a major role in the spread of HIV/Aids in the province, leaving women and young girls powerless to avoid infection
• Social inequity behind female HIV prevalence
• WHO in Manila lauds Pope on condom stand
• 1st December was World Aids Day
• More than half of about 100 rape reports that Baltimore police had originally discarded as false have been reclassified as crimes
• NGO demands Israeli government form program to fight sexual violence
• One in three South African men admit to rape, survey finds
• 34.7 percent of Chinese families report incidents of domestic abuse
• Immigration officers barred from women’s shelters in parts of Canada
• “1 in 3″ campaign launched in the Maldives to break domestic violence taboo
• Statement from CEM-H to commemorate 25th November

November 2010

• Structures of Violence: Defining the Intersections of Militarism and Violence Against Women
• 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence
• UN Trust Fund To End Violence Against Women Issues Annual Call For Proposals by 20th January 2011
• Abortion affects human rights of women say Korean Womenlink
• Ensure safety of Asia Bibi and her family and repeal Pakistan’s Blasphemy Laws
• VNC/WLUML Statement on Sakineh Mohammadi-Ashtiani’s latest TV ‘confession’
• Transfer Women Out of Male Prisons in Syria
• Gaza’s Blockade Silences Voices of Women
• Faith in service: what has gender got to do with it?
• UN envoy challenges composition of UN Women’s Board
• Egypt women’s groups points to election flaws
• The Women’s League of Burma Welcomes Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s Release And Demands Ongoing Action to Ensure Freedom for All of Burma
• Burma awaits release of Aung San Suu Kyi
• Winner of Award Dedicates it to Women Activists in Iran
• Gloria Steinem: “We Need to Eroticize Equality”
• Germany’s Family Minister views on feminism rejected as “uninformed”
• Please sign the petition for free birth choices in Hungary
• World March of Women IC member is deported from South Korea
• Women Declare War on Gender Violence
• Questionnaire on Women Human Rights Defenders and those working on Women’s Rights and Gender Issues – Contributions/Responses by 30th November 2010
• Human Rights Groups File Legal Petition on Sexual Violence Against Women and Girls in Camps for Displaced in Haiti
• Denying access to sexual health services has fatal consequences for women in Indonesia
• Italian opposition derides Berlusconi for prostitute steps
• Women Protest Turkish PM Erdoğan in Women’s Meeting
• A response to the Islamic Republic of Iran’s deceptions regarding Sakineh’s impending execution
• CURRENTS – UNIFEM’S Electronic Newsletter – October 2010

October 2010

• womensphere is now on twitter – please follow out tweets!
• Maternity rights: European Parliament votes for more equality between women and men and a more sustainable future!
• Women’s forums protest against new state policy in India
• Spousal Abuse Never a ‘Right’ says HRW of UAE court decision
• Forcing an employee out of the company for being pregnant is not only discriminatory but also a violation of labour laws say Malaysian women
• Radical Women and Freedom Socialist Party condemn ultra-right attacks at the XXV Encuentro Nacional de Mujeres
• In the North American media men dominate shows for kids
• Taiwan women’s rights groups balk at decriminalizing prostitution
• Congolese Women March Against Mass Rapes
• Women Sterilised Against Their Will Seek Justice Again In Peru
• A win for women’s reproductive rights in Australia
• Italy’s gender equality worst in EU
• EU to Strengthen Anti trafficking Laws
• 19 Year Old Syrian Woman Blogger Detained in 2009 Still Not Charged
• Redefining masculinity is key to stopping rape
• Sex for sale: Why Sweden punishes buyers
• First Woman President of Kyrgyzstan
• Liberian Women Find Their Voice
• Greater push needed to ensure women’s rights says UN expert
• For Too Many in China Domestic Violence is Part of Family Life
• Communiqué on the African Women’s Decade (2010-2020): From West African Women’s Organisations
• Dr Halima Bashir wins 2010 Anna Politkovskaya Award
• “There is a Partner in Peace” – Women Key to Peace in Israel and Palestine
• The Conservative government wants to help unemployed Canadians find careers as strippers and for-hire escorts
• Canadian feminists split over judicial decision overturning some legal restraints on prostitution
• Bangladesh PM calls for empowering South Asian women
• Presenting Data Unifem Calls For Gender Justice And Ending Discrimination Against Women For Achievement Of The Millennium Development Goals
• Autumn apologies!

September 2010

• Iraqi women embrace American mothers of war dead
• Nicaraguan Women Seek to Restore Legal Abortion
• UN promotes health campaign for women and children
• US Senate Should Act to Tackle Violence Against Women – Comprehensive Global Strategy Needed to Engage and End Abuses
• US Senate Hearing Probes Botched Sex Crime Investigations
• UN launches anti-rape campaign in Haiti
• Chilean Michelle Bachelet to head new UN women’s entity
• Five Million Women Have Fallen Prey to Trafficking Networks in Latin America
• Women in Argentina demonstrate for the legalisation of abortion
• Pioneer in Mainstreaming Gender Perspective in Argentinean Justice System
• Nepal detains activists seeking transgender identification
• Polish equality minister criticised for outing gay man on television
• Armed guards barred women without headscarves from festivities in Russia’s Muslim Chechnya region marking a new holiday – to honour women
• To Remarry a Jewish Widow must First Kneel to Custom
• Hamas enforces ban on women smoking water pipes
• Afghanistan adds female officers to swelling army
• Iranian Parliament Receives Petition To Scrap Polygamy
• Step Ahead for Women in Libya on Nationality Rights
• How the trafficking of women today is on a par with genocide
• It’s one of the last great taboos: the murder of at least 20,000 women a year in the name of ‘honour’. Nor is the problem confined to the Middle East: the contagion is spreading rapidly
• Advertising site Craigslist takes down adult services content from US servers but ‘erotic’ ads remain in place elsewhere
• Aid the fight to legalize abortion in Australia!
• Seven women in Mexico freed from prison after legal reform of ‘miscarriage’ cases
• Release Human Rights Lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh
• Single women over 30 count the cost of the war in Iraq
• Hopeful women candidates face particular risks in Afghan poll
• UN peacekeepers “failed” when they did not stop the mass rape of more than 500 men, women and children in the Democratic Republic of Congo a senior official has admitted
• “Our Bodies Are Still Trembling: Haitian Women’s Fight Against Rape” – A New Report from MADRE
• Prohibit Degrading ‘Test’ for Rape in India says Human Rights Watch
• Parliamentary Assembly Council of Europe Report on gender-related claims for asylum
• Support Relief Efforts in Pakistan: Global Fund for Women Grantees Mobilize
• DRC Community leaders say they begged UN to protect civilians from mass rape
• Gender Equality Goals Miss the Mark say Women’s Groups
• Zimbabwe land reform leaves women farmers far behind
• Feminist groups in Israel urge PM to add woman to peace talks team
• Bureaucracy Limits Rights of Palestinian Women
• Stop Forced Dress Code for Women in Chechnya – Humand Rights Watch
• Female genital mutilation persists despite ban in Indonesia
• Empowering women to fight FGM/C in Ethiopia
• More sterilizations of HIV-positive women uncovered in Southern Africa
• Increase in Polish women seeking abortions abroad
• Women’s Groups in the Philippines Push for Divorce Bill
• Philippines women’s groups call for legalised abortions
• Killing women in the name of religion in Bangladesh

August 2010

• Amnesty criticises TV ‘confession’ of Iran stoning case woman
• About EQUALITY: How much further away? The Issues Magazine
• Pornland: How Porn Has Hijacked Our Sexuality – Gail Dines interviewed
• Craigslist is accused of being hub for child prostitution
• Governments Evade UN Queries on Allegations of Sexual Abuses by Peacekeepers
• Equal powers for Malaysia’s women Islamic judges
• Mexico Court Upholds Capital’s Same-Sex Marriage Law
• Guarantee Women’s Access to Health Care in Argentina
• South Africa celebrates Women’s Day
• High rates of suicide and domestic violence against Afghan women says new report
• Police detain activist for sex worker rights in China
• Woman Named Chief Has Now Fled Her Home in Kenya
• Women’s groups in Malaysia are lobbying the country’s government to make child marriages illegal and raise the minimum age for marriage to 18
• Reports of rape are on the rise in Malaysia
• Women not included in HIV/Aids decision making says UNIFEM
• Philippines urged to reform its tough anti-abortion law
• Women’s groups in India demand passing of quota bill
• A quarter of a century after its modest start, the Penang-based WCC is firmly focussed on its goals

July 2010

• Spain to ban sex adverts from national newspapers
• Uncertain Role for Female Shariah Judges in Malaysia
• NGOs blame lax government for rise in human trafficking in Nepal
• Sex Workers Face Unlawful Arrests and Detention in Cambodia
• Iraq fights another form of violence – in the home
• Domestic violence deaths rise 40 percent in Argentina
• The link between HIV and gender violence discussed at a workshop in Jamaica
• Polygamy ups HIV infection risk in Kenya
• Women in Ghana told to insist on their decisions on sex
• A Preventable Childbirth Injury That Ruins Lives in Kenya
• Women’s Groups Respond to Obama’s Ban on Abortion Coverage in High-Risk Insurance Pools
• Ignorance on abortion law in Ghana means death
• Debate over legalising abortion intensifies in Argentina
• Women’s Groups in Israel Petition to Include woman in Turkel Commission
• Feminist Women’s Groups in Israel say Zoabi Vote ‘Sexist’
• Women Resist All Male Czech Cabinet
• Women Join Forces for Political Equality in the Indian Ocean Islands
• Talks in Afghanistan Shouldn’t Ignore Taliban Abuse of Women
• Women’s groups welcome amendments to penal laws in Jordan
• New UN agency for women – first battle won
• Amnesty’s smoke and mirrors
• Iran stoning halted, but family in danger
• Proposed Decriminalisation Reveals Anti-Abortion Shift in New Zealand
• Most Australians support allowing women to have late-term abortions in at least some circumstances
• Spain’s unrestricted abortion law takes effect
• Lawyer Criticises Clerics in Kenya Over Abortion
• Catholics angry as church puts female ordination on par with sex abuse
• Malaysia appoints first female Islamic court judges
• Iceland’s Prime Minister is First Married Gay World Leader
• Report shows Swedish law of punishing purchasers not sellers of sex a sucess
• Sex is not work and our bodies are not for sale – 4th World Conference on Human Rights – Nantes France
• White House ties new pregnancy assistance fund to ‘common ground’ abortion plan
• The pope has handed one of the most powerful jobs in the Vatican to a cardinal who recently said abortion was wrong even in cases of rape
• Kurdish women fight for rights of both groups, Istanbul deputy says
• Women’s Groups in India suggest decriminalising consensual sexual activity for 16-18 yearolds
• Campaign against domestic violence in India wins Cannes trophy
• G8 and G20 Roundup: Promises and Protestors
• Call on the Government of Iran to stop the imminent execution of Sakineh Mohammadi-Ashtiani sentenced to death by stoning

June 2010

• WLUM Update: Revolutionary Court agrees to integrate 2 cases brought against Nazar Ahari in Iran
• Abortion hotline not welcome in Pakistan
• G8 women’s health initiative fails to inspire
• Over 115 million widows live in poverty
• Women Adamant for Change as the Maldives Struggles to Reform
• Aung San Suu Kyi celebrated her 65th birthday confined in the house in which she has spent most of the past two decades
• Gillard’s triumph is a profound moment for women and feminism, but are there dangers ahead?
• A Chance for Women’s Voices to be Heard in Zimbabwe?
• Kidnapped for rape and ransom in Haiti’s ruins
• Silence about sexual violence endangers girls in Senegal
• Police attacks on Chechen Muslim women for not wearing headscarves prompt outrage
• Honour killings show Talibanisation of society say women’s groups in India
• Girls and Women Suffer the Consequences of Female Genital Mutilation in Iraqi Kurdistan
• Women’s rights take one step forward, two steps back in Swaziland
• First Round Victory in ILO Fight for Domestic Workers
• Statement of Anne Slater, National Organizer of Radical Women, on the nomination of Elena Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court
• UN committee moves to keep out gay-lesbian NGO
• US domestic violence law covers gay victims, justice dept confirms
• African Governments keep your MDG promise!
• World Parliamentarians pledge action on women and girls rights
• Alleged victim of gang rape sentenced to one year in prison
• Stop sex trafficking and prostitution of women – Sign the Petition
• Don’t let sex slavery turn South Africa into a pimp state
• The United Nations and Women: Walking the Walk on Empowerment?
• Working with women’s groups is more efficient – a rupee spent on women goes further than on men
• Women worry Afghan peace jirga will harm rights
• WLUM action alerts June 2010
• The brutal crackdowns only make Iran’s women stronger
• Syrian Women Reflect on Rare Political Victory
• Universal Education an Empty Promise for Liberia’s Girls
• A law on gender parity in electoral lists approved by a large majority in Senegal’s National Assembly has been welcomed by women from diverse walks of life
• Women’s Groups From Across Belize Converge For One Day Conference
• Giving a Voice to Unpaid HIV Care Workers – Commonwealth Women’s Affairs Ministers Meeting
• Civil society organisations in Namibia have called for the re-formation of the country’s public health system in support of the women who were allegedly sterilised without their consent
• Illegal Abortions Proliferate in Brazil Despite Abortion Ban
• Russian Church calls for tougher abortion laws
• Spanish conservatives challenge new abortion law at nation’s highest court
• Pregnant women in northern Italy are to be offered 4,500 euros (£3,700; $5,500) not to have abortions
• It’s goodbye sexism, welcome feminism on Italian TV
• Five anchorwomen at Al-Jazeera have resigned
• First gay marriage celebrated in Portugal
• Two gay men jailed in Malawi but later pardoned by the country’s President Bingu wa Mutharika have been released from prison

May 2010

• Haitian Women Regroup and Rebuild
• Decriminalisation of sex industry positive move says New Zealand researcher
• Gita Sahgal Calls on Amnesty International: ‘Stop Covering Up or We Start Cleaning Up’
• Imprisoned activist Shiva Nazar Ahari to go on trial for ‘acts against national security’ in Iran
• First Woman Prime Minister Takes the Helm in Trinidad
• Italy ordains first woman priest
• UNIFEM Currents May 2010
• Police have arrested two employees of GALZ, the Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe
• Malawi gay couple sentenced to 14 years in prison for wedding
• Gender inequality endangers women’s health in Indonesia
• More women benefiting from antenatal health care in Yemen
• Brazil should reject ‘Fetal Rights’ Bill says Human Rights Watch
• Neither at home nor on the streets – ending violence against women in Latin America
• “Women in Focus” at Film Festival in Argentina
• A ground-breaking force in determining international legal attitudes toward sexual harassment and rape
• Sex obsessed culture, lack of social services blamed for rise in human trafficking forum in US is told
• UN launches campaign for universal ban on sale and prostitution of children
• Poverty, conflict and girls’ right to education
• Women UN peacekeepers – more needed
• Sexual violence projects could suffer post-UNMIL in Liberia
• Domestic violence, a learned behaviour that’s not OK, says police commander in Tonga
• Is it time for feminist resistance rather than arguing for women’s participation in peace processes?
• Why are US doctors allowing genital mutilation?
• Abortion Has Become More Concentrated Among Poor Women in the US – Rising Poverty, Economic Recession May Be Factors
• Families struggle as more women from Indonesia work overseas
• The worst places to be a mother – sub-Saharan Africa
• Alliance of NGOs on Women’s Rights in Liberia
• African Grandmothers’ Gathering – call for support as they struggle on the frontlines of the AIDS pandemic
• Outrage Erupts Over Failed Iranian Bid for UN Commission on Status of Women
• Human rights defender Ms Bety Cariño tragically killed in violent paramilitary attack in Oaxaca Mexico
• Woman Honored for Fighting Sex Trafficking in Nepal
• Three crisis centers for victims of rape and sexual assault will be opened in Istanbul
• Women’s rights activists called on tourists to boycott the Caribbean resort city of Cancun, saying authorities there failed to protect the rights of an 11-year-old rape victim who is carrying the baby to term
• Tory senator in Canada to women’s groups: ‘If you push it there’ll be more backlash’ on abortion issue
• Kenyan Women’s Rights and Constitution – Challenging ‘Men of Faith’
• Malawi reacts to intentions of banning polygamy

April 2010

• Child bride sparks outrage in Nigeria
• Investing in women farmers key to halving hunger
• UN Security Council: Act Now to Protect Women
• UNHCR criticizes lack of justice for rape survivors in Congo
• Broadcasting Women’s Voices in Haiti’s Reconstruction: Women’s Community Radio
• Spain adopts measures to provide protection for battered women in domestic violence
• Statement by Gita Sahgal on Leaving Amnesty International
• Nawal El Saadawi: Egypt’s radical feminist
• Custody Decision Violated Lesbian Judge’s Rights in Chile
• Utah’s Feticide Law Puts Women Who Miscarry Open to Murder Charges
• Nebraska abortion law opens new front in US debate
• Urgently ensure the protection of women in Hassi Messaoud and put a permanent end to the impunity of perpetrators of these assaults
• New Report Shows Shocking Pattern of Rape in Eastern Congo
• A letter of suffering by Bahareh Maghami, a squished corn-poppy of Iran, a victim of rape in prison
• Women demand role in reconstruction in Haiti
• Action Aid campaign against use of dangerous drug in Bangladeshi brothels
• UN Envoy Starts Assignment to Stop Sexual Violence Being Used as a Tactic in War
• Philippine Supreme Court allows gay party in polls
• Leading Women’s Center in China Faces Uncertain Future as Chokehold on Civil Society Intensifies
• Maternal deaths down in poor countries says study
• Reintegration challenges for Maoist female ex-combatants in Nepal
• Urge Good Vibrations to Drop their Support of Clitoraid Say Feminists Challenging Clitoraid
• Child abuse is a gay problem says Vatican Secretary of State
• In Africa, a step backward on human rights – Archbishop Tutu
• Discrimination and financial barriers stop victims of sexual violence accessing justice in Uganda says Amnesty
• SEWA to help improve lives of women in Namibia
• African countries agree measures to curb growth of human trafficking
• Domestic Violence Act in India not backed up
• Empower women against HIV from intimate partners says Indonesian Minister

March 2010

• After the earthquake, protecting Haitian women and girls from violence
• International Herald Tribune launches viral campaign to promote Female Factor series
• Fury as new Ukraine PM appoints all-male cabinet because ‘conducting reform is not women’s business’
• Iceland has just banned all strip clubs. Is it now the most female-friendly country?
• Prostitute Diversion Initiative in Texas is helping prostitutes off the streets
• French sex workers protest legal brothels
• Would legalising sex work help fight Aids?
• Kenya’s Abortion Ban Fires Constitutional Debate
• Obama has angered women’s groups by reaffirming no federal funds for abortion
• Kayan – advancing the status of women in Israeli-Palestinian society
• Coalition of Women for Peace Update: Global BDS Day of Action and New Activity Center
• JAG turns 25 years – A Women’s Status Report – The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (Malaysia)
• Global Campaign to Stop Killing and Stoning Women (SKSW)vFirst Policy Briefing Series
• Anti-domestic violence bill introduced in Kashmir assembly
• UNICEF Regional Director highlights challenges for girls in visit to Afghanistan
• Fear and cultural factors prevented Palestinian women escaping violence from seeking help from women’s organizations
• Domestic violence in Japan hits record high in 2009
• Sexual assault to replace ‘rape’ in Indian Penal Code (IPC)
• Protect migrant maids, nannies and carers from exploitation
• Pledge to cut EU gender pay gap after 15 years without progress
• IPS Genderwire to 1st March 2010
• “Rulings anywhere that women must wear the burqa should be condemned – but banning such dresses here would be wrong” says Commissioner Hammarberg
• Women at risk in the camps in Haiti
• Egypt Supreme Court backs women judges
• Iranian women rally against a law to permit polygamy
• Vulnerable women should be protected, not deported, says group after downtown shelter searched by Canada Border Service Agency
• Historic step for women in India as parliament gives them third of seats
• Every fourth woman in Bulgaria is a victim of domestic violence says report
• Groups protest South Korea crackdown on abortion
• International Women’s Day: 177 women endure violence and abuse in Burmese prisons
• Iran prevents renowned poet from attending Women’s Day in France
• Statement by UNICEF Executive Director Ann M Veneman on International Women’s Day
• Impunity for domestic violence, ‘honour killings’ cannot continue – UN comment ahead of IWD
• WLUML reflections on International Women’s Day 2010
• Statement by Iranian Women for International Women’s Day
• UNHCR chief stresses need for equality on International Women’s Day
• Asia-Pacific women lack economic and political power says UN IWD report
• International Women’s Day: giving a say to displaced women
• On International Women’s Rights Day Iranian Activists to Open Campaign for Equality
• Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and First Lady Michelle Obama awarded 10 honorees with the International Women of Courage Award
• 8th March is International Women’s Day
• This year, Gender Across Borders [GAB] is calling all bloggers to participate in the first year of Blog for International’s Women’s Day [IWD].
• Transformative policies and initiatives: promoting gender equality in all spheres of life
• Abandoned Bedouin women mistreated
• Spain Reforms Abortion Laws
• Some women can now own property in Swaziland
• Role of women in March polls a barometer of future direction of Iraq
• Swat women fear Taliban return in Pakistan
• Support line launches for domestic violence victims in Syria
• UN report warns of alarming rise of ‘date-rape drugs’ worldwide
• Canadian women’s rights in decline says report
• Greetings from Japan and call for petition on decriminalizing abortion in Japan!
• New report demonstrates how the role of Palestinian women is changing in the face of violence and long-term economic hardship
• Slander Conviction a Dangerous Assault on Artists in Uzbekistan
• Women’s rights groups slam caning of Malaysian Muslim women
• Women in India awaiting next big step in gender budgeting

February 2010

• Global Petition to Amnesty International: Restoring the Integrity of Human Rights
• WLUML calls for action up to 7th February 2010
• Divorce bill meant to protect rights of aboriginal women in Canada delayed by Olympics
• New Crime Decree in Fiji makes both Prostitutes and Clients Liable
• Nearly 48% of women sold for sexual exploitation in India were ensnared as children
• Empowering genocide widows in Rwanda
• Is silence protecting the perpetrators of violence against women in Turkey?
• French feminist warns green movement forcing women to stay at home
• Women’s liberation today – Socialist ideas (Australia)
• Harper runs roughshod over women’s rights in Canada
• Male-female equality: tackle violence and guarantee paternity leave say MEPs
• Jerusalem’s Beit Lynn child abuse center fails to help Arabic-speakers
• Israeli judges query gender segregation on buses
• UN urged to condemn Nicaragua’s abortion ban
• Alliance of South Korean Women’s groups blast abortion crackdown
• National Commission for Women in India and Unifem to fight trafficking in women
• IPS Genderwire up to 9th February 2010
• Haitian Women’s Groups Send Out Plea for Sanitary and Other Supplies for Women and Girls
• Feminist International Solidarity Camp “Myriam Merlet” To Open On Haitian-Dominican Republic Border
• UN chief appoints envoy to curb rape in wars
• Iranian Women Fight Polygamy Proposal
• Ghana to Establish Database on Human Trafficking
• Call for action as post-poll violence victims in Kenya speak out
• Fatwa alone will not stop FGM/C in Mauritania
• Unprecedented Gender Parity in Bolivian Cabinet
• MACHISMO IN FRENCH PUBLIC BROADCASTING
• Gender Issues Must Move to Heart of Davos Agenda
• Amnesty says Burkina maternal care can be “lethal”
• Peace Is Impossible When Half The Population Is Excluded From Negotiations Say Afghanistan’s Women Activists
• National action plan launched to battle domestic violence in Cyprus
• Women’s groups in the US call for CBS to pull Tim Tebow Super Bowl ad
• Why Ask ‘Why Men Buy Prostitutes?’ : Advocates Who Want to Stop Sex Trafficking Seek to Find Out Why Men Pay For Sex
• Respect Women in Zimbabwe’s Right to Health
• New Israel Fund encourages haredi feminist uprising against gender segregation
• Why are so many women in Nepal killing themselves?
• IPS Genderwire up to 26th January 2010

January 2010

• UNIFEM Mourns the Deaths of 4 Women’s Rights Activists in Haiti
• Haitian children at risk of trafficking says UNICEF
• ActionAid concerned about safety of women following earthquake in Haiti
• IRC Family Links website: For people seeking to restore contact with family members after the earthquake in Haiti
• UNIFEM Seeks Funding to Provide Shelter and Services for Women in Haiti
• Senate and House Health Reform Bills Change Abortion Status Quo
• 1 in 10 Children in Juvenile Facilities in the US Report Sexual Abuse by Staff
• Australian women’s groups demand inquiry into to lack of holiday childcare
• Council in Sweden urges action to hinder wife importers
• Canada report highlights Afghan rape and immolation
• Pakistan Should Expedite Domestic Violence Legislation says Human Rights Watch
• Indian women’s groups seek tougher laws against sexual assault
• France mulls ‘psychological violence’ ban
• WLUML calls for action January 2010
• Nepal’s Widows Reject Government’s Remarriage Proposal
• Mexican girl held captive by human traffickers saw babies and children “sold to order” to Americans
• Rabbis in Israel say abortion will delay the redemption
• Premier Bligh rejects bid for Queensland abortion reform
• Forcibly Sterilized Woman Files Case Against Chile
• IPS Gender Wire up to 15th, 22nd and 30th December 2009

December 2009

• European Feminist Forum publishes ’A Herstory’
• Three publications from AWID’s Resisting and Challenging Religious Fundamentalisms – updated llinks
• Spanish lawmakers vote to ease abortion law
• Sensation that Il Corpo delle donne (Women’s Bodies) has become in Italy
• Abortion pill gets final approval in Italy
• India’s Supreme Court has asked the government to consider whether it might legalise prostitution if it is unable to curb it effectively
• UAE Police act to dispel fears in rape cases
• Sexually harassed Israel Defense Force officer to be recognized as disabled
• Uganda parliament outlaws female genital mutilation
• Zimbabwe’s 2008 Elections Featured Systematic Rape
• Major gatherings assess women’s progress in Africa
• Billion Tree Campaign Patron Wangari Maathai Appointed Un Messenger Of Peace
• IPS Gender Wire up to 8th December 2009
• Unifem Currents – December 2009
• Domestic violence victim granted asylum in US
• The Obama administration and the US Senate should step up their efforts to secure US ratification of the global women’s rights treaty – Human Rights Watch
• US Senate Should Act on Rape Investigations says Human Rights Watch
• Trafficking Of Native American Women is widespread
• Report lifts veil on trafficking and prostitution of Palestinian women
• Development of Arab world stalled by sexist laws and domestic violence
• Activists in Lebanon celebrate draft law on domestic violence – Legislation to be included in Parliament’s next session
• Violence in rabbinical courts
• Political standstill and absence of women from decision-making positions in the Israeli Palestinian conflict main causes of distrust in peace
• IPS Gender Wire up to 1st December 2009
• 10th December 2009 is Human Rights Day
• Keep Promises to Afghan Women
• Transsexual a ‘great shame’? What about our hypocrisy?
• Thailand to limit gender reassignment surgery
• Berlusconi Government blocks Vatican-opposed RU486 abortion pill
• Prominent woman journalist killed in suspicious fall from building in Kaliningrad
• Lesbian Who Fled Army Opens Legal Ground in Canada
• Not So Pretty in Pink: The Uproar Over New Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines (US)
• Universities in US try to cover up rapes says report
• Domestic Violence and Rape on the Rise in Malaysia says Report
• Threats won’t stop Women’s Solidarity in Morocco aiding unwed mothers
• Women’s groups in Sudan advocate for rape law reform
• Sudanese girl flogged for wearing ‘indecent’ skirt
• Give them shelter – girls selling sex to survive in Cote d’Ivoire
• Children rescued from sex trade struggle to find care in U.S.
• Kiwi Party Calls For Prime Minister To Repeal New Zealand Prostitution Law
• Legalizing sex trade in Taiwan not the answer says coalition of women’s groups
• IPS Gender Wire up to 25th November 2009
• Public space “shrinking” for women in Afghanistan say UN official
• Rape in Afghanistan is under-reported, concealed and a human rights problem of “profound proportions” says the United Nations
• Women Protest Killings in Mexican Border City
• IPS Gender Wire up to 17 November 2009
• France considers gender equality plan
• France to ban domestic violence via law
• Former Ecole polytechnique student says Canadiangovernment can’t let registry die
• 6th December is:
• Uganda considers death sentence for gay sex in bill before parliament
• Leaders Respond To World AIDS Day – round up by kff.org
• Women’s Rights Are at the Core of Addressing the AIDS Pandemic says Inés Alberdi, UNIFEM Executive Director
• Gender discrimination, sexual violence and poverty are undermining global progress in tackling HIV/Aids, Amnesty International said on World Aids Day.
• 1st December 2009 was:

November 2009

• 16 Days of Activism for the Elimination of Violence Against women – 25 November to 10 December
• Commit • Act • Demand: We CAN End Violence Against Women!
• 10th Anniversary Statement on the UN International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women
• UN expert calls for strengthened cooperation to intensify efforts to eliminate violence against women
• Denial of justice to rape survivors doomed to continue
• Knesset calls to get tough on domestic violence on eve of White Ribbon Day
• Women in Malawi: Holding up half the sky
• Obama honors WOZA (Women of Zimbabwe Arise) for defying a ‘dictator’
• IPS Gender Wire up to 10 November 2009
• Anti-child pornography law signed into law by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in the Philippines
• Women Central to Efforts to Deal With Climate Change says New UNFPA Report
• Zambia Judge Clears Editor in Morals Case Over Photos
• Deadly Month for Domestic Workers in Lebanon
• Female ministers ‘crack’ male political world in Lebanon
• Letter to the UN asking for investigative reports on UN rape
• Out of date? Out with it! – law of enticement in Malaysia
• Help Sex Workers says Senator in Swaziland
• Taiwan court to scrap ‘unfair’ law on prostitutes
• in Israel Aharonovich announces bill to curb trafficking
• US officials begin push against human trafficking
• Expulsions hit Darfur rape victims say Aid groups
• IPS Gender Wire up to 28 Oct 2009
• Race, Feminism, Our Future – The Issues Magazine
• Trafficking Victims at UN Highlight Need for Recognition
• END FGM European Campaign launches web site
• Rid the world of female genital mutilation
• Lifting Silence on Menstruation to Keep Girls in School in Uganda
• Obama’s attack on abortion rights
• Differences between men’s and women’s health
• WHO calls for action beyond the health sector to improve the health of girls and women
• Malaysian Women’s Groups say Abolish Section 498
• Politics can be a Risky Business for Women in Bolivia
• Somali rebels close women’s organisations
• UNIFEM Currents – November 2009
• Rape in America: Justice Denied
• Tens of thousands of children have been sexually abused in Zimbabwe in a growing epidemic that has shocked human rights activists
• Sexual violence prevention and re-integration funding “falls through cracks” in DRC
• A countrywide survey of the incidence of rape in Cameroon has returned disturbing statistics
• An online support group for adolescents who have been sexually abused will be trialled in NSW as an Australian first
• Shadi Sadr wins 2009 Human Rights Defenders Tulip Award
• IPS Gender Wire up to 20 Oct 2009

October 2009

• “Women Will Benefit From Secularism” – Nawal El-Saadawi
• ‘Polygamy club’ draws criticism in Indonesia
• Prostitution laws protect dignity and equality says lawyer in Ontario
• Rhode Island to close loophole which allows indoor prostitution
• 52 children rescued in nationwide sex-trafficking raids in the US
• Malawi health workers grapple with rising incidence of rape
• Israel’s first multi-disciplinary rape crisis center opens at Hadassah
• Libya should drop charges against journalist who reported allegations of sexual harassment
• Women’s and gay rights violated under guise of counter-terrorism says UN envoy
• Iceland leads Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index 2009
• Feminist fightback against Silvio Berlusconi-style sexism.
• IPS Gender Wire up to 13 Oct 2009
• Why are 20 million women worldwide still needlessly blind?
• Put women at core of climate change debate say activists
• Empower women to stem global hunger say experts
• Women and the crisis of civilisation
• Islam and Muslim Feminism
• Somali Islamists publicly whip women for wearing bras
• UN decries vicious Congo rapes and night attacks
• “It’s an injustice, pure and simple – Aboriginal women continue to experience higher than average rates of sexualized violence in Canada”
• New Zealand rape counsellors excluded from fast-tracks claims for clients
• US Senate passes measure prompted by case of woman prevented from suing over alleged rape by Halliburton/KBR colleagues
• Strict Oklahoma abortion laws spark court battles
• Queensland locked in abortion stalemate
• Amnesty International has called on the Peruvian authorities to step up recent efforts to decriminalise abortion in the country
• More than a million people are said to have taken part in a march in Madrid to oppose government plans to liberalise Spain’s abortion law
• Abortion And Unintended Pregnancy Decline Worldwide As Contraceptive Use Increases
• Mandatory for pregnant women in India to undergo HIV test proposed
• New scheme to prevent trafficking of women in India
• IPS Gender Wire up to 20th October 2009
• In the aftermath of mass rape in Guinea
• Art Does Not Excuse Rape: Polanski Must Face Justice – sign the petition
• Number of reported rapes in US drops to lowest level in two decades
• Suu Kyi’s detention appeal rejected
• Arab feminists map out the status of women’s rights in the region
• Hamas bans women on motorcycles in Gaza Strip
• The Failure of Anti-Trafficking Efforts
• Fear of spread of HIV infection among football fans sparks demand for registration of South African prostitutes
• Women’s group in British Columbia vows to fight attempts to legalize prostitution
• Human Rights Watch Honors Four Activists
• One third of world’s child brides from India says UNICEF
• 2 million babies and mothers die at birth study finds
• India: Too Many Women Dying in Childbirth
• UN demands end of sexual violence as tactic of war
• UN resolution calls for more women peacemakers
• Maoists protest “undignified” Miss Nepal pageant
• Study shows 50 percent of female murder victims slain by intimate partner in New York State
• IPS Gender Wire up to 29th September 2009
• Chad: Women and girls fleeing Darfur conflict still subjected to rape around camps despite UN presence
• Bosnia and Herzegovina: Fourteen years on women raped in war continue to be denied their rights
• Women’s groups concerned over Canadian immigration’s caregivers bill
• Poland okays forcible castration for paedophiles
• Spanish government approves controversial abortion reforms
• Stop the whipping of Kartika
• Palestinian women denied rights even in Lebanon refugee camp
• How Afghanistan’s rape law got passed – Canadian report
• Media Uses Women to Deviate Attention from Kurdish Question
• Shiva Nazar Ahari remains in prison although bail reduced is still too high claims father
• What Kind of Liberation? Women and the Occupation of Iraq
• Through Women’s Eyes: A PCHR Report on the Gender-Specific Impact and Consequences of Operation Cast Lead
• IPS Gender Wire up to 22nd September 2009

September 2009

• Pray the Devil Back to Hell – how sisterhood bought peace to Liberia
• Ugandan Rioters Strip Women Wearing Trousers
• Stoning penalty in Indonesian province of Aceh
• Saudi Arabia court ratifies guilty verdict on 75 year old women
• Wrongly Imprisoned Native Woman in Mexico Released
• Women’s rights a priority for Obama panel in US
• One in eight women in Sierra Leone risks dying during pregnancy or childbirth – a ‘human rights emergency’ says new amnesty report
• Almost two-thirds of Queenslanders support the decriminalisation of abortion according to opinion poll
• Queensland pro-choice supporters declare they will intensify campaign against Cairns abortion charges
• Polish magazine fined over anti-abortion piece
• ‘Media women struggle to get to the top’ in South Africa
• A new generation of Italian women are finding a voice after a ’summer of sleaze’ in Italian politics
• IPS Gender Wire up to 15th September 2009
• A man was jailed for life for the murder and gang rape of a lesbian South African international footballer
• The Fight Against Rape a Brutal Wait in Liberia
• Move to take domestic violence cases out of religious courts in Lebanon
• Afghanistan should differentiate rape from adultery says rights groups
• Changes to Dominican Republic Constitution will put women’s lives in danger
• India reserves 50% seats for women in local self government
• Japan again faces international criticism for its lack of progress in eliminating discrimination against women
• UN to establish single new agency to deal with rights of women
• Child porn on Internet increases says UN expert
• Pornography at root of more and more domestic violence incidents says Utah coalition
• Native American women warriors take on domestic violence and sexual assault
• Police boost promised on domestic violence in South Australia
• Nepali government to set up service centers to control domestic violence
• Safeguarding women and children in Swaziland stops AIDS
• Caribbean women groups meet to address violence against women and HIV/AIDS issues
• Allies Against AIDS: A podcast on transforming gender inequality
• IPS Gender Wire up to 8th September 2009
• WLUML website summary of news items for August 2009
• The image of a British grandmother on death row in America has taken its place on Trafalgar Square’s fourth plinth in a plea to stop her execution
• UN May Shelve Creation of New Women’s Body
• Nawal el Saadawi returns to Egypt
• WLUML and AI submit report on case of Lubna Hussein to CSW
• Mali’s Toure pressured by Islamic body into reviewing family code
• Tribunals No Substitute for Reforms on ‘Honor Killings’ in Jordan
• Rescind Religious Dress Code for Girls in Gaza
• Judgment Day for Bride Price in Uganda
• UNHCR alarmed by detention of unaccompanied children in Lesvos, Greece
• End Child Sex Trafficking: Kids are NOT for Sale in D.C. USA
• Penan girls and women were sexually violated
• Law Failing South African Lesbians on “Corrective Rape”
• Former Israeli president goes on trial on rape charges
• Women in camps for internally displaced persons in Kenya turn to prostitution
• in the USA ‘John schools’ try to change attitudes about paid sex
• Women and Radicalisation in Kyrgyzstan
• When I think of my trial, I pray my fight won’t be in vain – Lubna Hussein
• Iranian women activists not fooled by president
• Photos of childbirth have been branded pornography in Zambia
• South Africa’s health system fails women and children says Lancet
• Penans still waiting for task force report on allegations of sexual abuse
• Twenty-five years on, Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre stands as beacon of hope for women
• IPS Gender Wire – 25th August 2009
• Laws must be linked to cultural practices say women lawyers in Ghana
• Child Trafficking The 3rd Biggest Global Consumer Market
• Women protest gender-segregated buses in Israel

August 2009

• Aung San Suu Kyi, alone but unbowed
• Indigenous Mexican woman accused of kidnapping six agents named Amnesty prisoner of conscience
• Violence and conservatism threaten Afghan women’s vote
• UNIFEM Currents – August 2009
• Women in the News – The New IPS Gender Wire – 11th August 2009
• New High Court ruling will help domestic violence victims in India
• Women at risk of HIV infection from partners UN warns
• Trafficked women face high HIV infection risk according to study
• Kenyan mothers too poor to pay for treatment locked up in hospital
• Delhi female births rise hailed
• Midwives defy tradition and save lives in Afghanistan
• Safe Shortcut to Sidestep Illegal Abortion in Argentina
• Abortion pill rules loosened at clinics in Australia
• 229,000 Nepali women receive abortion services
• National Women’s Day South Africa – 9th August
• Senegal opens up on growing problem of child rape
• Bahamas bid to outlaw marital rape stokes debate
• Afghanistan passes ‘barbaric’ law diminishing women’s rights
• Hillary Clinton demands arrests over Congo sexual violence
• UN envoy urges African states to stiffen laws on preventing rape
• UNIFEM Currents – August 2009
• Women in the News – The New IPS Gender Wire – 4th August 2009
• Magna Carta of Women finally a law in the Philippines
• Threats of violence greet new family code in Mali
• Indian Muslim clerics oppose Law Commission’s report on bigamy
• First South East Asia Court of Women on HIV and Human Trafficking held in Bali
• Pakistan moves to outlaw domestic violence
• Women’s groups in India demand action against virginity tests
• Third Wave Feminism – Drowning in the Shallow End (Comment from USA)
• Debunking women’s movement of Nepal – comment
• Ukraine Bans Porn, Unless It’s Used Medicinally
• Hundreds of Israelis have joined a rally organised by the gay community after shootings at a gay youth centre
• Gays and Lesbians Face Increasing Persecution in Burundi
• Chinese lesbians protest blood donation ban
• Report says 13 million abortions a year in China
• Too many teenage girls are getting married in Bangladeshsay health specialists
• Women’s groups in India suggest dual-member constituencies
• Taiwan women’s groups angry over new registration requiring women to give complete birth history
• Women in the News – The New IPS Gender Wire – 28th July 2009
• Sexual violence still rampant despite new law in Sierra Leone
• GAA Calls on Secretary Clinton to Speak Out Against Gender-Based Violence During Her Africa Trip
• UN Chief Hails Recognition of Rape as a Form of Genocide

July 2009

• When rape isn’t actually rape – outrage at Australian judge’s sex assault excuses
• In America 8 year old rape victim to remain in state hands after rejection by family
• Supreme Court in India denies abortion for teenage inmate raped in care home
• Women on Waves has decided to cancel all upcoming trips of floating abortion clinic
• Spain debates abortion rights for 16 year olds
• Italy approves abortion pill despite church opposition
• States give embryo rights in backlash against Mexico City decriminalising abortion
• Nicaragua’s ban on abortion ‘compels rape and incest victims to give birth’
• Journalist and 12 other women were arrested in Khartoum for wearing trousers face caning
• Malaysian Muslim woman accepts flogging penalty after being caught for drinking beer
• 180 people, mainly women, face flogging for extramarital sex in the Maldives
• Hamas courts tell women lawyers to cover their hair
• Half measures against honour killings in Syria not enough – HRW
• Knesset to sponsor discussion on divorce laws in Israel
• Women in Cambodia are trapped in violent marriages says new report
• Citizens in Angola join march against domestic violence
• Guyana must now be one of the most dangerous places for a woman to live
• In Jamaica women’s groups react to Senate passing Sexual Offences Bill
• Herzog demands funds for treating rape victims in Israel
• Women’s groups in India urge centre to address grievances of rape victims
• 10 percent of young women in US say their first intercourse was involuntary
• Increasing Number of Girls and Teenagers Caught in a Vicious Cycle in Las Vegas
• Taiwan’s women split over prostitution issue
• Guyana must now be one of the most dangerous places for a woman to live
• In Jamaica women’s groups react to Senate passing Sexual Offences Bill
• Herzog demands funds for treating rape victims in Israel
• Women’s groups in India urge centre to address grievances of rape victims
• 10 percent of young women in US say their first intercourse was involuntary
• Increasing Number of Girls and Teenagers Caught in a Vicious Cycle in Las Vegas
• Taiwan’s women split over prostitution issue
• Women in the Honduran Crisis
• Electoral Reform “Just a Sop” to Women in Brazil
• Nepalese proposal to pay men to marry widows sparks fury
• Displaced Iraqi women are reluctant to return home
• Democratic Republic of the Congo: conflict becomes more brutal with rise in sexual violence
• Rape Crisis believes greater protection in court would give victims of sex attacks more courage to speak out
• IN Australia NSW Rape Crisis Centre calls double in three years
• Women bring rapists to justice in South Africa
• Haiti Women “More Protected” to Report Sexual Violence
• Three shelters providing safe havens for women in Malaysia
• Asylum in US for survivors of domestic violence
• In India the Protection of Women against Domestic Violence (DV) Act, 2005, will apply retrospectively
• Domestic violence claims more silent victims in Jakarta
• Murder of human rights activist Natalia Estemirova condemned
• Three publications from AWID’s Resisting and Challenging Religious Fundamentalisms
• Rabbanit? Rabbah? Maybe just plain Rabbi? What should be the title of an Orthodox woman who happens to also be a rabbi?
• Inquiry urged after Sudan women flogged for wearing trousers
• Accountability To Women Could Upset Business As Usual
• Fight Sexism to Help Young Mothers – South Africa
• Soldiers Who Rape, Commanders Who Condone: Sexual Violence and Military Reform in the Democratic Republic of Congo
• Worrying increase in gang rape say police in Angola
• Repatriation of Rwandan Women Refugees in Uganda could increase hardships
• HRW condemns Rwanda’s draft law on HIV tests and sterilisation
• Restricting Funding for Abortion Forces 1 in 4 Poor Women to Carry Unwanted Pregnancies to Term in US
• Falling family planning funding threatens global poverty fight
• AIDS number one cause of maternal deaths in Zimbabwe
• Advances in tackling HIV at risk from economic downturn warns UN agency
• Uganda to Ban Female Genital Mutilation
• Syria Increases Minimum Sentence for Honor Killing
• Afghanistan Amends Controversial Shia Law
• Call for tougher laws on rape in Afghanistan
• Should unwanted sex as part of a good sexual relationship be considered a criminal offence in New Zealand?
• Rape victims reporting more sex assault attacks in NSW Australia
• Sharp rise in sexual harassment complaints at workplaces in Isael
• Call For Women Worldwide to Support Women’s Rights in Iran
• In India men in uniform may face stiffer rap for rape
• Indian court decriminalizes consensual gay sex
• Third Gender Assert Rights in Nepal
• Viet Nam sets the pace for Asia with new law to prevent statelessness of women who married abroad
• Stabbing of local officials triggers massive outpouring over women’s rights in China — Deng Yujiao’s case highlights official corruption and violence against women
• Online pedophiles blackmail children into meetings
• Dutch abortion medics protest violence against clinics and women
• Barriers Go Up For Abortion in Slovakia
• To Help Women, Leaders Should Dig Deeper than Religious Clothing
• Women’s groups in Israel protest Ramon post in Kadima
• More Women judges and magistrates to be recruited under AJP in Pakistan
• Women’s groups in India upset with delay in passing quota Bill
• Afghan Shi’ites demand ratification of women’s law
• Harper Conservatives not meeting commitments to women’s groups in Canada
• Nevada now has the most stringent punishments nationwide for child prostitution, pandering
• US Policy Harms Women and Families
• Governments Need to Ensure Women Do Not Bear the Brunt of the Economic Crisis
• UN Appoints New Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, Its Causes and Consequences
• Women’s centres re-open in Darfur with help from AU-UN mission
• African women with HIV ‘coerced into sterilisation’
• African Union launches initiative against human trafficking in Ethiopia
• President launches bid to reduce FGM/C in Burkina Faso
• A Role For Men in Gender Equality in Kenya
• Mozambique Assembly Passes Bill Against Domestic Violence
• Domestic relations bill tabled in Uganda
• When Partner Abuse Isn’t a Bruise But a Pregnant Belly

June 2009

• Give the women of Europe the right to free abortion!
• NOW elects Maryland woman its next president
• Japan debates whether abusing a virtual teenage girl should be outlawed
• Quarter of men in South Africa admit rape
• Decriminalizing sex work in South Africa only half the battle
• Zimbabwe girls trade sex for food
• Countries at war get little aid for mothers and children
• End Rape in War
• Burmese women’s groups pressured to cancel protest in support of Aung San Suu Kyi
• Sisters in Islam faces ban in Malaysia – please sign the petition to support them
• Saudi Arabia Pledges End of Men’s Control Over Women (UN)
• Gay couples to be protected by Hong Kong domestic violence law
• Cheers from Indian MPs after parliament elects first female speaker
• Egypt Approves Quota for Women in Parliament
• New Family Law for Sunni Women in Bahrain Not for Shiites
• Women Battle for Citizenship Rights in Lebanon
• Treat foreign wives in Malaysia equally says Minister
• The Socialist Feminist Project
• America, Empire of Liberty – 69. Women’s Liberation – BBCi player available until 18th June 2009
• Future of feminism an issue in NOW leadership vote (USA)
• Dozens of rape kits not submitted for testing by Chicago suburban police departments
• Sex Power & Taboo: Gender and HIV in the Caribbean and Beyond
• Men and masculinity under spotlight in Fiji
• Women’s groups in Turkey urge mobilization on gender equality
• A (paid) break for fathers in Spain
• Honour Pledges on Reproductive Health
• Unplanned Pregnancies on the Rise in Uganda
• Pregnant women at serious risk among Pakistan’s displaced population
• Teenage pregnancy on the rise in Philippines
• Lack of midwives increases maternal deaths in Zimbabwe
• Uncovering Black Feminist Writers 1963–90: An Evaluation of Their Coverage in Research Tools
• Obama Addresses Global Women’s Rights in Cairo Speech
• Terror in the name of Jesus
• Total Ban on Abortion in Nicaragua Violates Human Rights Says UN
• Abortion Hotline Launched in Chile
• Spaniards against free abortion for 16 year olds – poll
• Liberals launch EU pro-choice abortion initiative
• UN says 3 year old rape victim dies in Congo
• Bringing rape out of the shadows in Cameroon
• Women and children fleeing abuse flood shelter in Anchorage
• Gaps found in research on domestic violence in Switzerland
• Say no to domestic violence – Saudi Arabia
• Measures being put in place to handle reports of domestic violence in Guyana
• Domestic violence and residence permit problems drive Thai women underground in Finland
• The Body Of Women: Female Image In Italian Television
• Playboy’s Misogyny More Overt Than Ever
• Women’s groups fought a losing battle against pornography
• ‘Sexy’ billboard guidelines tossed to women’s groups in the Philippines
• Thai Women’s groups condemn media for intimate pics of woman politician
• The Women’s Information Network-Fiji (WINET-Fiji) believes in informing and mobilising the women population of Fiji
• First Woman Speaker in India
• UN Women Peacekeepers in Short Supply
• Afghan women are killed for demanding their rights: MADRE responds
• Women Breaking Out of Political Corset in Uruguay
• IANSA Making gun control accessible to women
• The United States led War in Afghanistan and the Implications of the Polarization of the Burqa as a Symbol of the Oppression of Afghani Women
• Thanks to Facebook Young Women Take to Political Activism in Egypt

May 2009

• Free Aung San Suu Kyi
• Iryna Khalip of Belarus, Agnes Taile of Cameroon and Jila Baniyaghoob of Iran win Courage in Journalism Awards from the International Women’s Media Foundation
• More to Trafficking Than Prostitution – debate at IOM
• Spain moves to ease abortion law
• Avalanche of Anti Abortion Laws in Mexico
• More Americans “Pro-Life” Than “Pro-Choice” for First Time
• Los Angeles City Council Approves Funds to Process Rape Kits
• Japan Under Pressure to Clamp Down on Child Pornography
• Women’s groups in Israel blast bill giving rabbinical courts more powers
• Attempt to tackle rise in Europe’s ’honor crimes’
• Women Sidelined By Military Regime in Fiji
• No Modern European Democracy Without Gender Equality
• Lithuania Elects First Woman President
• First woman deputy speaker in Namibia
• More women needed as Judges in Palestinins Authority
• Women Call for Truth, Justice and Reconciliation in Zimbabwe
• ANC has a gender issue
• Women Suffer ‘Hidden Genocide’ in Latin America
• Fraud fears as Afghan men get women’s vote cards
• Kuwaiti women politicians ignore headscarf debate
• Women’s groups to submit memos for law reform in Malaysia
• Recession Layoffs Highlight Gender Inequality in South Korea
• Millions to receive birth certificates in Burkina Faso
• Spotlight on Gender Equality at last month’s IPU Meeting in Addis Ababa
• Top UN Officials Announce First Ever Guidance on Safe Cooking Fuel for Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons
• Women are agents of change in food and climate battle ActionAid tells G8 environment ministers
• Women in the news – FIRE
• Marilyn French author of “The Women’s Room” had died
• Iceland Retains First Woman, Gay Prime Minister
• Singapore women’s group overturns takeover by Evangelical Christians
• Women to reclaim public spaces: a programme of defiance and resistance
• 3rd girls school hit by poisoning in Afghanistan
• Using Religion to Strengthen Gender Equality in Indonesia
• Muslim Women May Defy Fathers’ Wishes and Go to University, Legal Authority Rules
• Against Sexual Violence: Solidarity Among African Women
• In Iraq, a story of rape, shame and ‘honor killing’
• Rape victims who seek justice find jail in Mauritania
• Swedish rapists ‘enjoy impunity’: Amnesty International
• More rapes are being committed by more than one offender says an Auckland rape crisis service
• Spain to dispense morning-after pill in pharmacies
• Women’s Group Sues Government Over Abortion Rights in Malawi
• Dominican Republic Approves Constitutional Amendment to Outlaw Abortion
• Stigma, Gender Violence Placing Women in Caribbean at Increased Risk of HIV
• A culture that encourages HIV/AIDS in Swaziland
• Call to release Penan task force report
• Fair deal for domestic workers in Lebanon?
• Kenyan women call for sex boycott over political deadlock
• Domestic violence helpline launched in Australia
• Liberal policy on domestic violence ‘devastating’ for women in Canada
• Iraqi women suffer regular domestic violence – UN
• Developing Stronger Protection Against Gender-Based Violence in Uganda
• Laws enacted to check domestic violence in Nepal
• Shelter for women and children fleeing violence and socio economic conditions in Zimbabwe
• Fighting violence against women in Chad – but how?
• Mothers Matter: Merlin launches report on maternal health
• Forced abortions shake up China surrogacy industry
• Poverty makes surrogates of Indian women in Gujarat
• Maternal health in Nepal goal way off, say experts
• In Liberia, more children surviving, more women dying in childbirth
• High risk pregnancies on the rise in Mali
• Fistulas : two-hour operation corrects decades-long affliction in Cote D’Ivoire
• Can subsidised caesareans cut maternal deaths in Benin?
• Pregnant women at greater risk in conflict in Sri Lanka

April 2009

• Is Pornography the New Tobacco?
• Stop Porn Culture Training – 5th to 7th June in Boston
• Sign the petition to build a UN that really works for all women!
• Occupation and Siege Sideline Rampant Domestic Violence in Gaza
• UN survey highlights psychological trauma in Gaza
• As Obama Escalates War Afgahan Women Face Growing Oppression
• Hilary Clinton stands up to pro life bullies
• Chinese Bias for Baby Boys Creates a Gap of 32 Million
• Sierra Leone Chiefs ban genital cutting for girls under 18
• France campaigns against forced marriages and genital mutilation
• Media Spotlight on Domestic Violence in Romania
• New Zealand police deny that they are not tackling the issue of domestic violence adequately
• Australian Family Court removes two children from their mother in favour of father and new partner
• Canada’s Leadership in Pay Equity Eroding
• Economic Crisis: Women Will Suffer Most – a comment from Australia
• New laws in Los Angeles treat teen prostitutes as abuse victims
• Taiwan sex workers demand decriminalisation of prostitution
• Iceland to ban sex purchases, strip clubs
• Italian Senate approves anti-rape law
• Women’s groups in India protest newspaper reporting of rape case
• Rwanda’s rape victims – 15 years on
• Are drugs driving child rape in South Africa?
• Teenager in Australia charged with aborting fetus herself
• Abortion Law to Become Tougher in Korea
• Chileans Clearly Divided on Abortion
• Abortion row shakes Brazil opinion
• Belgium condemns Pope over condom issue
• Religion and Poverty Force Girls into Early Marriages in Zimbabwe
• Turkish Government wants religious education to help solve women’s problems
• The guns are quiet in Basra now, but behind the veil fear lingers
• Taliban shoot dead Afghan politician who championed women’s rights
• Afghan women protest against law that ‘legalises rape’
• Q&A: How does the Afghan Shi’ite law affect women?
• Index to postings – March 2009
• Index to postings – February 2009
• Index to postings – January 2009
• March Round Up – Feminism Feminists
• March Round Up – Sexual Abuse and Rape
• March Round Up – Women and Power / Politics
• March Round Up – Women in Conflict Zones
• March Round Up – Abortion
• March Round Up – IWD
• Apologies – March Round Up
• LA’s Untested Rape Kits Represent Lost Justice
• ‘Worse than the Taliban’ – new law rolls back rights for Afghan women
• Serious concern over arrest of 12 Women’s Rights Activists in Iran
• Call for Action: Imprisonment and Whipping of 75 year-old Woman in Saudi Arabia
• Recession ‘hits Third World women’

For index to postings in 2009, by month, go to these postings on womensphere:

* March 2009 Index to postings – March 2009

* Feburary 2009 Index to postings – February 2009

* January 2009 Index to postings – January 2009

For index to postings in 2008, by month, go to these pages on Women in London:

* December 2008 http://www.womeninlondon.org.uk/public/ws-0812.htm

* November 2008 http://www.womeninlondon.org.uk/public/ws-0811.htm

* October 2008 http://www.womeninlondon.org.uk/public/ws-0810.htm

* September 2008 http://www.womeninlondon.org.uk/public/ws-0809.htm

* August 2008 http://www.womeninlondon.org.uk/public/ws-0808.htm

* July 2008 http://www.womeninlondon.org.uk/public/ws-0807.htm

* June 2008 http://www.womeninlondon.org.uk/public/ws-0806.htm

* May 2008 http://www.womeninlondon.org.uk/public/ws-0805.htm

* April 2008 http://www.womeninlondon.org.uk/public/ws-0804.htm

* March 2008 http://www.womeninlondon.org.uk/public/ws-0803.htm

* February 2008 http://www.womeninlondon.org.uk/public/ws-0802.htm

* January 2008 http://www.womeninlondon.org.uk/public/ws-0801.htm