September 2010
SKSW welcomes appointment of Michelle Bachelet at UN Women
The Global campaign to Stop Killing and Stoning Women (SKSW Campaign) welcomes the appointment of Michelle Bachelet as the first Under-Secretary-General for the new UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women).
Tackling sexual harassment in Egypt
, first lady of Egypt, is a woman who treats criticisms of her country with a generous dose of scepticism. Take sexual harassment, a phenomenon that has indisputably been on the rise in recent years. It's an issue in which Suzanne Mubarak, as head of the government's , might be assumed to take at least a passing interest.
Facing social pressures, families disguise girls as boys in Afghanistan
KABUL, Afghanistan — Six-year-old Mehran Rafaat is like many girls her age. She likes to be the center of attention. She is often frustrated when things do not go her way. Like her three older sisters, she is eager to discover the world outside the family’s apartment in their middle-class neighborhood of Kabul.
UN Special Rapporteur on Torture statement on Acid Attacks and Women
"From my position as Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Forms of Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, I have tried to ensure that the torture and ill-treatment protection framework is applied in a gender-sensitive manner to ensure that women are effectively protected from any form of violence that may constitute torture and/or ill-treatment... I have previously focused on several types of gender-specific violence among which domestic violence in the form of intimate parrtner violence might be of interest to this panel since often, women victims of acid throwing are attacked by husbands, ex-partners and/or partners......When viewed through the prism of the anti-torture framework, the fight to end violence against women can be strengthened and provided with a broader scope of prevention, protection, justice and reparation for women." - Manfred Nowak
Nigeria: Children accused of witchcraft
By Christian Purefoy, CNN
August 28, 2010
Akwa Ibom state, Nigeria (CNN) -- Just after midnight, the pastor seized a woman's forehead with his large hand and she fell screaming and writhing on the ground. "Fire! Fire! Fire!" shouted the worshippers, raising their hands in the air.
Shiva Nazar Ahari Iranian human rights defender released
Shiva Nazar Ahari, a 26 year old notable Iranian human rights defender, was released today after an ongoing international campaign on Islamic regime
On 9/11, Remembering the Other's Others: International Law and Muslim Fundamentalism
The ninth anniversary of , finds the international community still grappling with the consequences of that terrible day.
Armed conflicts which began in the wake of 9/11 continue in, spilling over now into Pakistan and Yemen with often devastating consequences for civilians. Human rights abuses in the “war on terror” remain largely unpunished, but will never be forgotten around the world. Xenophobia directed against Muslims serves as a useful tool for right-wing politicians in the West. And you may have heard that an idiot in Florida has been trying to decide whether or not he will burn hundreds of Qur’ans today.
Honour Crimes Shame the World - Robert Fisk
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.
SRI LANKA: An Appeal to the women’s movement against inhuman treatment of a young woman on religious grounds
A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission
SRI LANKA: An Appeal to the women’s movement against inhuman treatment of a young woman on religious grounds
This is a narrative of the husband of the victim, a 17 year old woman with a two month old child, who was subjected to the horrible experience of being beaten about 100 times with the hard centre stem from a coconut frond in the presence of the committee members of the mosque situated in Gokarella in the district of Kurunagalle. This woman had given a birth to a child as a result of an extra marital relationship. She has since married and has been living peacefully.
Afghan Women's Movements Deserve More From the West
Time magazine's is a tribute to their heroism and silent suffering. However, the poignant images and story fail to reflect the determined achievements of a women's movement that has battled cultural and Islamist misogyny. They deserve more from the West.
Ironically, women in Afghanistan had greater opportunities for education and employment under colonial rule, including that of the Soviets. Tribal traditions and a male-dominated reading of Islam have produced a deeply rooted ideology of women as temptresses, who must be kept under control to avoid "fitna" or social strife, thereby safeguarding the "peace of Islam." In this patriarchal society, a man's honor, bound by the behavior of his female relatives, may be defended with violence. Girls are traded to settle family disputes, and rural tribal courts dispense summary justice that can overrule central authority.