International human rights experts say the armed groups occupying northern Mali have committed war crimes, including rape and using children as combatants. And there is evidence of crimes by Malian soldiers too.Human Rights Watch says separatist Tuareg rebels and other armed groups who have taken over northern Mali have abducted and raped women and girls, used children as combatants, and - in rampant looting - robbed communities of their very means of survival.
Mogadishu, 26 April 2012 – A group of ten journalists, members of the Network for Peace and Security in Africa (NetPeace) arrived in Mogadishu on 26 of April 2012 for a four-day field visit to the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). This field trip is aimed at further acquainting the media with the mandate and role of AMISOM on the ground, as well as the daily life of the troops in their endeavor to stabilize the country and set the basis for a deep-rooted peace.
Minky Worden of Human Rights Watch says it’s not clear that political transitions in Arab nations will advance rights of women and girls.
Source: United States Department of State
Despite the challenges of promoting human rights and democracy around the world and overcoming cultural differences that can present obstacles to that effort, the importance of democratic values and universal human rights is "absolutely paramount" to U.S. foreign policy, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told students at Syracuse University in New York.
Malawian President Bingu wa Mutharika died of a heart attack suddenly this month, enabling Vice President Joyce Banda to succeed the helm. This will almost certainly change – and perhaps save – the lives of millions of Malawian women.
Source: Al-Arabiya
Egypt’s National Council for Women (NCW) has appealed to the Islamist-dominated parliament not to approve two controversial laws on the minimum age of marriage and allowing a husband to have sex with his dead wife within six hours of her death according to a report in an Egyptian newspaper.
Source: IRIN
lack of awareness of the importance of skilled hospital deliveries in Ethiopia, cultural beliefs, and transport challenges in rural areas are causing a high number of deaths during childbirth, say officials.
Source: The Zimbabwean
Zimbabwe’s new constitution will provide for a Gender and Equality Commission aimed at dealing with women’s rights, a deputy minister has said. In an interview with The Zimbabwean, Women’s Affairs deputy Minister Jessie Majome said this would protect vulnerable groups.
A critical analysis of different ‘solutions’ to improve the situation for rural women in Africa within the context of an iniquitous global food system.
Mr Haruna Iddrisu, Minister of Communication, on Thursday called on l stakeholders to develop policies and strategies to ensure that women are integrated into employment sector at all levels of responsibility.
UNITED NATIONS - Threats to international peace and security from illicit cross-border trafficking in drugs, weapons, terrorists and people have increased as the world has become more interconnected, the United Nations Security Council said on Wednesday.
Joyce Banda’s swearing in as president of Malawi this month made her the second female head of state in Africa - following Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s election victory in Liberia in 2005. Many see this as a key advance for women on a continent that has been dominated by male political figures.
ONE of the six wives of Goodwill Zwelithini, the present king of the Zulus, dispensed some expert advice for President Jacob Zuma’s sixth wife and fourth concurrent spouse. “What you did to get married, you’ll need to redo from scratch,” she warned Gloria Bongi Ngema at her traditional wedding to South Africa’s 70-year-old head of state on April 21st. “When you get to Zuma’s homestead, feed him and don’t talk too much. When he gets home he needs to rest.” She was advised also to pray for her husband’s finances, health, wives and libido.
Source: AllAfrica
Human rights are natural, intrinsic and are not given by governments, spouses, parents or institutions, says Nduta Kweheria, a senior programmes officer with the Kenya Human Rights Commission. Speaking to the press in Nakuru ton yesterday, Kweheria said it is the responsibility of governments, spouses, parents and institutions to help citizens access and enjoy human rights. "Every right goes hand in hand with responsibilities. Rights must be enjoyed in a manner that does not violate the rights of others," said Kweheria. "But the government bears the greatest responsibility of facilitating access to rights by all," she said. She said the recognition of vulnerable groups like women, the elderly, children, youth, minority or marginalised communities, ethnic, religious or cultural communities in the new constitution is a milestone that would safeguard their rights.
Source: CNN
Editor's note: Brima Sheriff lived in Sierra Leone throughout the duration of the armed conflict and was in Freetown when the Revolutionary United Front invaded. He has seen many of the atrocities of the war first hand and led a national campaign to have Liberian President Charles Taylor arrested. Sheriff started as a volunteer with Amnesty International Sierra Leone in 1994 and is now the Sierra Leone office's director.
Freetown, Sierra Leone (CNN) -- Millions of people will breathe a sigh of relief that Charles Taylor has finally been held to account for the years of violence, misery and suffering that he brought to the people of West Africa.
Source: AllAfrica
Participants to the 2012 Gender Justice and Local Government Summit have urged SADC Heads of State to sign an Addendum to the Protocol on Gender and Development on Climate Change this August when they meet in Maputo, Mozambique.
The Ministry of Women and Children's Affairs (MOWAC) has awarded 25 African women entrepreneurs and leaders at a special ceremony in Accra for their role in the fight against domestic violence.
The Ministry of Women and Children's Affairs (MOWAC) has awarded 25 African women entrepreneurs and leaders at a special ceremony in Accra for their role in the fight against domestic violence.
Seven of the eight suspects who are accused of taking part in a brutal videotaped gang-rape of a teenager will appear in a South African court Wednesday to ask for bail.
Supreme Court of Kenya judge Njoki Ndung'u yesterday decried the slow pace of the implementation of the African Union protocol on women rights. The judge said although the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, better known as the Maputo Protocol, has already been ratified, proper laws are yet to be enacted to ensure it is fully operational.