‘The timely, thought-provoking essays of this book provide valuable evidence of the impact of different gender and faith perspectives on practical development issues while also highlighting the complexities and ambiguities of religious influences. Development workers, researchers and social activists will gain from these studies a greater awareness and more critical understanding of how different religious beliefs and practices, whether of Christianity, Buddhism or Islam in the Middle East, Asia, Africa or Latin America, can either be a potential barrier or alternatively a strong incentive for social change.’
Participants at a forum on women’s rights at Keta have slammed the Department of Social Welfare and the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) for doing too little in protecting women’s rights and interests.
How can we empower women to participate in existing economic structures but transform them? We need a model of economic power and citizenship that is not simply about sustaining capital or growth, but sustaining and celebrating life itself. Jenny Allsopp reports directly from the AWID Forum 2012. Here are parts two and three of her report.
Source: The New Times
SITTING under the shade of a mango tree, Agnes Uyisabye is reviewing the lists of beneficiaries of the country's health insurance scheme alongside a dozen or so grassroots community health workers.
Source: The Star
Police have been accused of not doing enough to protect women from violence.
Source: Rhrealitycheck
The 12th Annual AWID Forum is taking place April 18-22 in Istanbul, Turkey, drawing more than 2,000 feminist and development thinkers from around the world. The theme is Transforming Economic Power to Advance Women’s Rights and Justice. Editor-in-Chief Jodi Jacobson and Global Contributor Jessica Mack are in Turkey for the event and will bring you up-to-date news and insights throughout. Follow #AWIDForum and #AWID2012 on Twitter for more updates.
Source: GhanaWeb
The International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) on Wednesday said, it viewed with dismay the gradual plunging of Ghana into mayhem as a result of the political violence which had characterized the biometric voter registration. A statement issued by Ms Jane Quaye, Executive Director of FIDA and copied to the GNA in Accra said the battering of Ms Ursula Owusu called for great concern because the incident was creating a test case for women who might wish to venture into politics.
Source: The Citizen
Ngorongoro. Boers opted for an extreme form of racism to claim a lion’s share of South Africa’s resources and human rights at the expense of the majority black Africans. Using all resources at its disposal to embark on a vigorous fight against the apartheid regime, Tanzania confirmed that it loathes racism and all other forms of discrimination. Surprisingly, however, discrimination abounds in Tanzania with male chauvinism taking its toll on women in the name of maintenance of culture in the 21st century.
Source: ThisDayLive
Few years ago, 53 Heads of States gathered in Libya and agreed to ratify and accede to all OAU and AU treaties by July of the year 2010.
Relying on Article 4.1(b) of the Rules of Procedures of the Assembly of Heads of States, these African leaders further called on the different organs of the African Union to assist with advocacy and sensitisation of African Governments “to monitor the implementation of policies and decisions of the Union as well as ensure compliance by all Member States”.
PORT MORESBY, 18 April 2012 (PlusNews) - High levels of sexual violence and a cultural belief in witchcraft are putting an increasing number of women at risk of HIV in Papua New Guinea (PNG), health experts say.
A new partnership between the EU and UN Women set up to strengthen cooperation between the two organizations on their work on empowering women and gender equality, was today signed by High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/ Vice President of the Commission Catherine Ashton and Commissioner for Development Andris Piebalgs, with Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women Michelle Bachelet.
A United Nations independent human rights expert today urged the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) authorities – at Federal and Emirate level – to further concentrate on the plight of the victims of trafficking, while keeping up their fight against human trafficking.`
If women activists are excited, it is because this represents progress in Southern Africa as we ebb closer to 2015, in which 50% of women should be in decision-making positions according to the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development.
The involvement of women in anti-war actions and in support of peace activism worldwide is a critical part of modern history, yet the vulnerability of women in conflict situations to violence of all forms is perhaps the most brutal manifestation of patriarchy in modern times. We must probe the areas of ambivalence in women’s activism for peace and human rights, argues Sunila Abeysekera.
Through the Gender Innovation Project, WFP Guinea-Bissau is supporting women’s farming associations in the regions of Bafata and Oio. In exchange for part of their fresh produce, which goes towards WFP school meals in 16 schools, WFP gives farming equipment to the women.
On 13 April a landmark System-wide Action Plan (SWAP) on gender equality and women’s empowerment was adopted at a meeting of the United Nations Chief Executives Board for Coordination, to be applied throughout the UN system. For the first time, the UN will have a set of common measures with which to measure progress in its gender-related work, including the mainstreaming of the gender perspective across all its operations.
Source: Swazi Media Company
Workers went on strike at a major Taiwanese-owned textile factory in Swaziland to protest that the company had claimed its workers are well paid, when they are not.
Source: Bua News
Women, Children and People with Disabilities Minister Lulu Xingwana has condemned in the strongest possible terms the gang rape of a 17-year-old Soweto girl.The rape incident was captured on video by one of the perpetrators.
Source: Open Democracy
The involvement of women in anti-war actions and in support of peace activism worldwide is a critical part of modern history, yet the vulnerability of women in conflict situations to violence of all forms is perhaps the most brutal manifestation of patriarchy in modern times. We must probe the areas of ambivalence in women’s activism for peace and human rights, argues Sunila Abeysekera.
Source: UN Women
On 13 April a landmark System-wide Action Plan (SWAP) on gender equality and women’s empowerment was adopted at a meeting of the United Nations Chief Executives Board for Coordination, to be applied throughout the UN system. For the first time, the UN will have a set of common measures with which to measure progress in its gender-related work, including the mainstreaming of the gender perspective across all its operations.