Source: IWPR
Magistrates in Bukama territory, in the south-east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC, who prosecuted two men implicated in the marriage of underage girls have been attacked by angry mobs, highlighting the tensions between traditional practices and the rule of law.
Source: IRIN
An increasingly belligerent and deeply partisan political rhetoric has come to dominate Côte d’Ivoire since the country’s post-electoral crisis, leaving little room for voices of moderation.
Source: Afrique en ligne
Liberia has won the African Gender Award 2011 for its efforts in the enhancement of women's rights with strong emphasis on girls' education, economic empowerment and legislation to curb violence against women, the award nomination committee has announced here. Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf will be presented the symbolic honour award on the sidelines of the 16thAfrican Union (AU) Assembly of Heads of State and Government being held in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, next week, officials of Gender is My Agenda Campaign (GIMAC) said.
Source: Walta info
A regional body working on gender issues on Monday honoured the Liberian president with 2011 award for her work on gender issues.According to APA, the announcement was made during the 17th ’Gender is My Agenda Campaign (GIMAC)’ pre-summit in Addis Ababa, a shadow event to the forthcoming African Union summit.
Source: Magharebi
Algeria's National Consultative Committee on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (CNCPPDH) held a conference in Algiers on Thursday (December 9th) on ways to implement civil rights legislation and enhance the role of women in politics.
A number of Tunisian women feel forced to adopt religious practices in attire and behaviour. Experts, however, question the legality and Islamic authenticity of the phenomena.
Twenty years after independence, representation of women in senior government structures and in Parliament is declining in Namibia. According to the latest demographic survey results of August 2010, out of a population of around 2 million, women outnumber men 10:9. In 2001, the ratio was 94 males per 100 females.
Source: WOMENS Enews
A new radio station in Liberia airs national broadcasts about women's interests and needs. It also grooms female journalists, a tall order in a country where 14 years of civil war have left women's literacy levels lagging far behind.
Author: Nikki Whaites
Source:Pambazuka
The exact number of women and girls who have experienced sexual abuse in the DRC is not known, writes Nikki Whaites for the Gender Links Opinion and Commentary Service. In 2008, the United Nations Population Fund reported 15,996 registered cases of sexual violence across the country. And 65 per cent of those were children, the majority girls – 10 per cent were under the age of 10. But few are paying attention.
Source: WeInformers
Political parties came up with manifestos and charters that fairly promised to handle women and gender issues, including promoting involvement of women in their decision making, as well as advancing women’s issues and concerns.
Source: Ogaden Online
The incidents took place in the town of Sagag where Ina (The daughter of) Sheikh Mahamud Sheikh Abdillahi and Halima Badal Sam-Sam Abiib were subjected to extreme forms of torture while under the custody of the Ethiopian Armed Forces.
In a presidential statement, the 15-member body called for “a more effective and coherent” national and international response so that countries emerging from conflict can deliver core government functions such as ensuring security, managing political disputes peacefully, protecting their populations, revitalizing the economy and providing basic services.
Source: Sudan Tribune
(KHARTOUM) – The UN on Thursday claimed that the security situation in Sudan’s troubled western region of Darfur is improving, but daily reports from its peacekeepers on the ground paint a different picture.
(KHARTOUM) – The UN on Thursday claimed that the security situation in Sudan’s troubled western region of Darfur is improving, but daily reports from its peacekeepers on the ground paint a different picture.
Mogadishu — When the punishment, 100 whip lashes, was postponed because she was pregnant Ms Anab Mussa thought she was the luckiest woman in the world. She had misread the Al-Shabaab-backed court.
The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment UN WOMEN (formerly UNIFEM) is helping build the capacity of Liberian civil society by training local non-profit organizations to advocate for the integration
Source: Liberian Observer
A Liberian lady, fully armed with Masters and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees, has arrived in the country from the United States of America (USA) to contest the Liberian presidency.
UN Women, the UN organisation dedicated to gender equality and women empowerment, today said its creation would not curtail the responsibility of any other UN organisation working for gender equality.
Source: ReliefWeb
Ugandan rebels of the LRA (Lord's Resistance Army) headed by Joseph Kony attacked two villages in the south of the Central African Republic (CAR), abducting 12 civilians, for the most part women, and causing significant damages. According to the local media, the villages are Agoumar, near Rafai, and Madabazouma, around 100km from Bangassou.
Maria, 20, whispers as she recounts being raped by soldiers two days before Christmas.“They entered our house in the night. One after the other they went over me, in front of my son and husband. I thought the pain would kill me,” she says. “The second time I died was when my husband refused to touch my body or the food I had prepared for him.”