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2/6/2012 - International Day of Zero Tolerance of FGM/C Day
For International Day of Zero Tolerance of FGM/C today, the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme for the Acceleration of the Abandonment of FGM/C released a new report, Key Results and Highlights 2011, which indicates that approximately 2,000 African communities have abandoned female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C).
UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, stated, "These encouraging findings show that social norms and cultural practices are changing, and communities are uniting to protect the rights of girls and women. We call on the global community to join us in this critical effort. Together, we can end FGM/C in one generation and help millions of girls and women to live healthier, fuller lives, and reach their potential."
In 2011, the UNFPA reports that 18,000 community education sessions were held to discourage FGM/C. As a result, almost 2,000 communities renounced FGM/C practices that year alone in Burkina Faso, Dijbouti, Ethiopia, Gambia, Senegal, Kenya, and Somalia.
Internationally, an estimated 100 million to 140 million women and girls have undergone an FGM procedure, with the practice widely being regarded as a human rights violation. The procedure, which involves the partial or total removal of external genitalia, is designed to decrease women's sexual desire and is seen in many cultures as essential for a women's suitability for marriage. The practice is also known to both increase the risk of HIV transmission and infant and maternal mortality rates.
1/30/2012 - UN Secretary General Promotes Women's Rights, Gay Rights
In a speech to the African Union Summit in Ethiopia, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called for the end to discrimination based on gender and sexual orientation. General Ban Ki-moon encouraged renewed efforts to ensure women's greater representation in parliaments in African countries and stated the importance of ensuring that women are part of the peace process in Africa.
He remarked, "We must ensure that women are fully represented in in decision-making bodies, including in Egypt and Tunisia where they played a role" in the protests of the Arab Spring. He also described women as "champions of peace."
The Secretary General denounced discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, which is criminalized in many African countries, saying, "This has prompted some governments to treat people as second-class citizens, or even criminals. Confronting discrimination is a challenge." Homosexuality is illegal in most African countries with the exception of South Africa, which recognizes gay marriage, but even there, anti-gay practices such as "corrective rapes" of lesbians, are commonplace.
1/24/2012 - Abortion Rate Stalls Worldwide
"Induced Abortion: Incidence and Trends Worldwide from 1995 to 2008," a study conducted by the Guttmacher Institute and the World Health Organization and published in the Lancet, indicates that since 2008, the decline in the worldwide rate of abortions has stalled. According to the study, "between 1995 and 2003, the overall number of abortions per 1,000 women of childbearing age (14-44) dropped from 35 to 29." However since 2008, the rate as remained at 28 per 1,000.
Gilda Sedgh, the lead author for the study, stated, "The declining abortion trend we had seen globally has stalled, and we are also seeing a growing proportion of abortions occurring in developing countries, where the procedure is often clandestine and unsafe. This is cause for concern. This plateau coincides with a slowdown in contraceptive uptake. Without greater investment in quality family planning services, we can expect this trend to persist."
The researchers also noted that approximately 50 percent of abortions performed in the world are unsafe, and 13 percent of all maternal deaths could be attributed to unsafe abortions in 2008. The findings also indicate that restrictive abortion laws do not necessarily result in lower rates of abortion.
1/23/2012 - Women Win One Percent of Seats in Egyptian Elections
Final results of the first post-revolutionary parliament elections in Egypt confirm that women have won one percent of the parliamentary seats. The Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party won 47% of the seats and the conservative Salafist Nour Party won 25% of the seats, according to the Washington Post. Individuals won one third of the seats and the other two thirds were won by parties or coalitions. No women won seats as individuals.
The newly elected parliament will appoint a body to write the new constitution. The Freedom and Justice Party has promised that all of the political factions will be given a voice in the parliament. The elected members expect full legislative power but the ruling generals in the country have also expressed that they intend to influence the drafting of the constitution.
The head of the ruling military council used his executive power to appoint ten of the 508 members of the new parliament. Of these ten, three were women and five were Coptic Christians.
Women played a key role in the Egyptian revolution last year. As recently as December 2011, thousands of women gathered in Cairo as part of the "Million Women March" to protest police brutality towards female protestors in Egypt.
1/13/2012 - UN Agencies Address Maternal Health in Haiti
Two years since the earthquake in Haiti, UN Women and UNFPA Haiti, in collaboration with the Ministry for Women Conditions and Women's Rights (MCFDF), have worked work to improve conditions for women, who still face rapes and gender-based violence at an alarming rate. To help address this problem for the over 500,000 people still residing in camps, UNFPA Haiti installed 200 street lamps in 40 of the camps near showers, latrines, and water distribution areas last year.
UNFPA is also working to address maternal health and the growing pregnancy rate in the wake of the earthquake by building maternity clinics. The fourth clinic is currently being built, although Haiti still needs 84 more clinics to adequately address the health needs of pregnant women.
According to UNFPA, "In Haiti, only 25 percent of all deliveries occur in health institutions, and the maternal death rate is 630 mortalities per 100,000 live births, the highest in the Americas."
1/9/2012 - Condom Use Low Among Indian Youth
According to "Condom Use Before Marriage and Its Correlates: Evidence from India," a study published in International Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, the majority of people in India having premarital sex between the ages of 15 and 24 did not use condoms. "Only 7% of young women and 27% of young men who had had premarital sex had ever used condoms." Moreover, of the 2,408 people surveyed, only 3 percent of women and 13 percent of men reported that they used a condom every time they had sex.
K.G. Santhya, Rajib Acharya and Shireen J. Jejeebhoy, who conducted the study, found that both men and women cited their discomfort with approaching a pharmacist or medical provider as their primary reason for not obtaining and using a condom. In addition, many of those surveyed did not believe they were at risk for becoming pregnant or contracting a sexually transmitted infection: "Only 40% of the 106 women who discussed the risk of pregnancy reported having worried about becoming pregnant. Similarly, only eight of the 51 men who discussed pregnancy reported they had been worried about their partner becoming pregnant."
The authors of the study recommend that educational programs be established to encourage condom use among young people. They also advocated for the greater accessibility of condoms.
1/4/2012 - Indian Parliament Defeats Women's Reservation Bill
India's lower house of Parliament voted against the Women's Reservation Bill, which would have allocated one-third of Parliamentary seats for women. The bill would thus require that male members cede approximately 180 seats to women. The bill passed the upper house of India's Parliament in March 2010 with a nearly unanimous vote of 191 to one; however, it must be ratified by the lower house before it can become law.
When the bill passed the upper house, women's rights advocate Brinda Karat of the Communist Party of India, stated, "The bill will change the culture of the country because women today are still caught in a cultural prison. We have to fight stereotypes every day." Moreover, Esther Duflo and Raghabendra Chattopadhyay conclude in their 2003 study that women parliamentarians are more likely than men to prioritize public health and education, the New York Times reports.
Currently, women make up only 10 percent of both the upper and lower houses of Parliament. According to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the world average for female representation in national parliaments is 19.3 percent.
1/3/2012 - Virginity Tests Banned in Egypt
Last week, an administrative court in Egypt banned virginity tests for women who had been arrested. In May, a senior Egyptian general confirmed findings in an Amnesty International report that during the uprisings in Egypt, military officials conducted virginity checks on women who were arrested during the uprisings. The general stated that the virginity checks were conducted so that the women could not claim that they had been raped while in military custody.
Amnesty International indicated that over 18 women were tortured, beaten, and subjected to electric shocks while being held in military detention. Amnesty International strongly denounced the treatment of the women in its statement: "Women and girls must be able to express their views on the future of Egypt and protest against the government without being detained, tortured, or subjected to profoundly degrading and discriminatory treatment."
12/22/2011 - Women March Against Police Brutality in Egypt
On Tuesday, thousands of women gathered in Cairo as part of the "Million Women March" to protest police brutality towards female protestors. The march follows a widely broadcasted incident last weekend in which security forces brutally beat, kicked, and dragged a woman protestor. According to the New York Times, "Historians called the event the biggest women's demonstration in modern Egyptian history, the most significant since a 1919 march against British colonialism inaugurated women's activism here, and a rarity in the Arab world."
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke out against the violent treatment of protestors in a speech at Georgetown University: "women are being beaten and humiliated in the same streets where they risked their lives for the revolution only a few short months ago. Women protesters have been rounded up and subjected to horrific abuse. Journalists have been sexually assaulted. And now, women are being attacked, stripped, and beaten in the streets. This systematic degradation of Egyptian women dishonors the revolution, disgraces the state and its uniform and is not worthy of a great people."
According to the Huffington Post, more than 14 people have died and over 300 people have been wounded during the clash between protestors and police forces and Tahrir Square which began Friday.
12/21/2011 - International Family Planning Aid Escapes Massive Cuts
President Obama is expected to sign the FY 2012 omnibus spending bill, which includes $610 million in bilateral and multilateral funding for international family planning and reproductive health (FP/RH), cutting off international family planning by a mere $5 million from 2011. The Republican House had initially voted to cut international FP/RH by some 25%. Both the US House and Senate approved the spending bill last week. This represents a compromise; the President had requested $769 million and the Republican-controlled House had passed only $461 million.
The bill also allocates $35 million for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) with the exception that the money not be spent in China or used for abortion services. The House bill had excluded all funding for UNFPA.
According to Population Action International, "US funding for FP/RH remains woefully inadequate in the face of the tremendous need that exists. 215 million women in developing countries want to avoid pregnancy but lack access to or information about modern contraception...The President should continue to request robust funding increases for these vital health programs when he presents his fiscal year 2013 budget to Congress in early February and continue to strongly oppose attempts to cut funding or impose harmful policy restrictions."
12/14/2011 - Concerns Arise over Maternal Mortality in Afghanistan
Politicians, economists and activists gathered at the Bonn Conference in early December expressed concerns regarding the impact of the withdrawal of th US on maternal mortality. Sarah Pickworth, a public health specialist in Afghanistan stated, "The greatest risk at present is through aid levels dropping off precipitously. Without sufficient funding, there is likely to be a significantly slower pace of change. This risks losing the momentum of the tremendous gains made." By 2014, Afghanistan will face a $7 billion deficit, which could negatively impact the availability of services for pregnant women and infants.
According to Reuters, Herat's Institute of Health Sciences (HIS) has trained over 250 midwives since 2005. Moreover, over the past five years, maternal and infant mortality has declined dramatically in Afghanistan. According to the research, there are "500 deaths per 100,000 live births," as compared to 2005 when 1,800 women died per every 100,000 births, according to a UN study.
The Afghanistan Mortality Survey (AMS) 2010, sponsored by UNICEF, the World Health Organization, the US Government, and the British Department for International Development, notes that "Afghanistan remains one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a pregnant woman or a young child," with one out of every ten children dying before reaching their fifth birthday. Moreover, Afghan women are 200 times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than from bombings or bullets.
12/13/2011 - Hotline in Sierra Leon for Fistula Treatment
A new program in Sierra Leon, established by the Gloag Foundation, the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and Airtel, enables women to call a toll-free number and speak with nurses to determine whether they are eligible to receive treatment for fistulas. Since the hotline was launched in October, 119 women have undergone treatment, with an 85 percent rate of success.
Ann Gloag of the Gloag Foundation stated, "This approach might be very effective to recruit fistula patients-always a challenge considering the stigma associated with the condition-and, perhaps, a useful approach in other countries as well."
Sia Koroma, first lady of Sierra Leon remarked, "Most of the women living with fistula are uneducated. They live in the countryside with little or no access to health facilities, ante-natal or post-natal care. The situation is particularly difficult for girls, who are not physically mature and are especially vulnerable to complications in childbirth." Obstetric fistula primarily affects girls ages 15-19. Approximately one in eight pregnant in Sierra Leon develop a fistula.
The UNFPA describes obstetric fistula as an injury to the pelvic organs that most often occurs when a young woman undergoes long and obstructed labor, sometimes for as long as 5 days. Often, the woman cannot reach or afford the necessary medical care, which then causes her to suffer extensive tissue damage that eventually leads to the death of the baby. Another problem associated with obstetric fistula is that the injury also causes women to lose control of their bowels and bladder unless treated appropriately.
12/12/2011 - Three Women Awarded Nobel Prize
On Saturday, three women were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Norway. The three women - Liberian peace activist Leymah Gbowee, who led a women's movement to protest the use of rape during Liberia's civil war, Tawakkol Karman, a pro-democracy campaigner from Yemen, and President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf of Liberi, the first woman to be elected president of an African country - have championed efforts to end war and oppression in their respective countries and on the global scale.
Gbowee said in her remarks, "We must continue to unite in sisterhood to turn our tears into triumph, our despair into determination and our fear into fortitude. There is no time to rest until our world achieves wholeness and balance, where all men and women are considered equal and free."
Karman added, "I have always believed that resistance against repression and violence is possible without relying on similar repression and violence. I have always believed that human civilization is the fruit of the effort of both women and men. So, when women are treated unjustly and are deprived of their natural right in this process, all social deficiencies and cultural illnesses will be unfolded, and in the end the whole community, men and women, will suffer."
This is the first time that a woman has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 7 years, making the women award winners amongst only a handful of women who have received the award in its 110-year history.
12/9/2011 - Indian NGOs Release First Statement Supporting Midwives
At a regional midwifery workshop in New Delhi, hosted by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), multilateral, bilateral, and international NGOs released the first-ever joint statement indicating their commitment to scaling up efforts for "adapting, disseminating, and implementing the confederation's global standards of education, regulation, and professional association," for midwifery. According to the statement, "The second indicator of MDG 5, 'proportion of births attended by skilled health providers' highlights the crucial role of midwives and others with midwifery skills in providing skilled birth attendance to achieve optimal maternal health outcomes."
Geeta Lal, the midwifery coordinator at UNFPA, stated, "The workshop was a landmark for the Asia region, since for the first time, key UN agencies engaged in health, together with major multilateral and bilateral development partners and NGOs, came forward with a strong statement of commitment to support strengthening standards of midwifery education, ensuring skilled human resources for maternal health and jointly working towards the establishment of a professional cadre of midwives."
Midwife advisors, national program officers, donors, and partner organizations were in attendance and discussed the importance of creating a "regional resource center for midwifery; standardize midwifery curriculum and tools based on International Confederation of Midwives competencies and standards of education; and encourage strong advocacy."
12/7/2011 - Obama and Clinton Act to Protect LGBT Rights Abroad
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton delivered an address to the United Nations in Geneva last night urging nations to respect the civil rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals. Clinton noted that over 80 nations maintain laws criminalizing LGBT individuals and indicated that the US would pledge $3 million in aid to protect LGBT rights.
Secretary of State Clinton stated, "I want to talk about the work we have left to do to protect one group of people whose human rights are still denied in too many parts of the world today. In many ways, they are an invisible minority. They are arrested, beaten, terrorized, even executed... I am talking about gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people, human beings born free and given bestowed equality and dignity, who have a right to claim that, which is now one of the remaining human rights challenges of our time...Being LGBT does not make you less human. And that is why gay rights are human rights, and human rights are gay rights."
Clinton's speech follows President Obama's executive order yesterday detailing the responsibilities of federal agencies working abroad to protect LGBT rights. The Presidential order stated the need to "combat the criminalization of LGBT status or conduct abroad; protect vulnerable LGBT refugees and asylum seekers; leverage foreign assistance to protect human rights and advance nondiscrimination; ensure swift and meaningful US responses to human rights of LGBT persons; and engage international organizations in the fight against LGBT discrimination."
12/5/2011 - Record Number of Afghan Women at Bonn Conference
Women are nearly a third of the Afghan delegation at today's Afghanistan conference in Bonn, Germany holding 13 of the 40 delegate positions. One hundred nations are meeting in Bonn to discuss future support for Afghanistan as the US has begun withdrawing troops.
"The people of Afghanistan are looking to this conference for clear affirmation of commitment to make security transition and economic progress irreversible," said Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who also warned that despite significant gains, international support will be needed for "at least another decade."
Although the US plans to withdraw all troops by 2014, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who led the US delegation, indicated that the US "intends to stay the course with our friends in Afghanistan."
12/5/2011 - Maternal Mortality Decreases in Afghanistan
The Afghanistan Mortality Survey (AMS) 2010, sponsored by UNICEF, the World Health Organization, the US Government, and the British Department for International Development, revealed that over the past five years, maternal and infant mortality has declined dramatically in Afghanistan. According to the research, there are "500 deaths per 100,000 live births," as compared to 2005 when 1,800 women died per every 100,000 births, according to a UN study.
Suraya Dalil, acting Minister of Health, stated, the survey "shows that our strategies on educating midwives on emergency obstetric care, on family planning have worked. However, it also tells us that there is a long way ahead of us, and we have many challenges ahead."
Despite these improvements, the survey notes that "Afghanistan remains one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a pregnant woman or a young child," with one out of every ten children dying before reaching their fifth birthday. Moreover, Afghan women are 200 times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than from bombings or bullets.
12/2/2011 - Senator Reid Introduces Legislation to Strengthen Ban on FGM
On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) introduced legislation that would criminalize the transportation of young girls out of the United States to receive female genital mutilation (FGM) procedures. The Girls Protection Act would serve as a follow up to legislation passed in 1996 that outlawed the practice of FGM in the United States. The bill proposes fines and up to five years in prison for those who violate the law.
Senator Reid stated, "While it is difficult to know precisely how many girls in the United States are at risk of being subject to FGM, estimates from various sources suggest that approximately 200,000 women living in the United States have been, or are at risk, of being subject to FGM."
Internationally, an estimated 100 million to 140 million women and girls have undergone an FGM procedure, with the practice widely being regarded as a human rights violation. The procedure, which involves the partial or total removal of external genitalia, is designed to decrease women's sexual desire and is seen in many cultures as essential for a women's suitability for marriage. The practice is also known to both increase the risk of HIV transmission and infant and maternal mortality rates.
12/1/2011 - World AIDS Day
UNAIDS released a report in honor of World AIDS Day today documenting the advances in the political, scientific, and medical responses to AIDS made in 2011 and calling for a renewed effort to stop the spread of the disease. The UNAIDS report indicates that "Nearly 50% of people who are eligible for antiretroviral therapy now have access to lifesaving treatment," and "new HIV infections were reduced by 21% since 1997, and deaths from AIDS-related illnesses decreased by 21% since 2005." According the UN Women, of the 34 million people living with HIV, 50 percent are women. Moreover, "In sub-Saharan Africa, 60% of the people living with HIV are female," and "in southern Africa prevalence among young women aged 15-24 years is on average about three times higher than among men of the same age."
UN Women Executive Director Michelle Bachelet, "Today on World AIDS Day, I encourage all partners in the response to AIDS to zero in on women and girls. Greater progress can be made by empowering women as agents of change, promoting their leadership in the AIDS response, and tackling the stigma, discrimination and violence they face. Today less than half of reporting countries have a specific budget for HIV activities related to women."
Jan Beagle, UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director, noted both the progress made in AIDS treatment efforts and the need for continued work to curb the spread of the epidemic. She stated that in 2011, "700,000 lives were saved- Now some 6.6 million people in low- and middle-income countries, are on antiretroviral drugs - this is nearly half those who need treatment. A significant achievement considering that 5 years ago, only 1.2 million people were able to access treatment - but still a clear reminder that further scale up is needed if we want to capitalize on the possibility to end the epidemic."
Since 1981, over 25 million people have died of AIDS worldwide, and about 33 million are living with the infection. In the United States every year, approximately 56,000 people are infected with HIV and 16,000 die of AIDS. As of 2001, 1.4 million people have started taking protease inhibitors. Less than half of the 15 million people who should be taking the drugs actually have access to them.
11/30/2011 - Nigerian Senate Passes Bill Criminalizing Gay Marriage
Yesterday the Nigerian Senate passed a bill to prohibit same-sex marriage, as well as gay advocacy groups and public displays of same-sex affection. The bill imposes a 14 year sentence for those who are convicted of homosexuality and 10 year sentences for anyone who assists same-sex couples in marrying. The Nigerian House of Representatives will now vote on the bill and if passed, it will go to President Goodluck Jonathan to sign.
Erwin van der Borght, director of Amnesty International's Africa program, stated, "The bill will expand Nigeria's already draconian punishments for consensual same-sex conduct and set a precedent that would threaten all Nigerians' rights to privacy, equality, free expression, association, and to be free from discrimination."
Approximately a month before the bill passed the Senate, British Prime Minister David Cameron issued a threat to prevent aid from going to nations that violate the rights of homosexuals. Cameron remarked in a statement, "British aid should have more strings attached in terms of 'do you persecute people for their faith or their Christianity or do you persecute people for their sexuality.' We don't think that's acceptable...we're prepared to put some money behind what we believe."
Homosexuality is illegal in most African countries with the exception of South Africa, which recognizes gay marriage, but even there, anti-gay practices such as "corrective rapes" of lesbians, are commonplace.
11/21/2011 - Rapes on the Rise in Somali Camps
In the past two months, the number of rape cases has increased dramatically in camps in the Somali town of Galkayo as a result of decreased security, a "culture of impunity," and a rise in the number of attacks on internally displaced people (IDPs). Silje Heitmann, a gender-based violence specialist for Somalia at the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), stated, "Attacks on women have gone up dramatically in the last two months and the severity of the attacks has become worse."
Hawo Yusef Ahmed, who works at the Galkayo Education Centre for Peace and Development (GECPD) also noted the growing rate of rape: "In my estimation rape cases have gone up twice what they were in 2010. Last year, you would hear of a rape case maybe once every two weeks. Now you hear of rape cases every three to four days."
A women's rights activist told IRIN that many of those who have experienced rape are living in inadequate shelters in the camps and armed gangs are threatening women in the town. Women's groups, in coordination with town elders, religious officials, and security personnel, have started a campaign to address the growing rate of rape in the town.
11/4/2011 - Senate Hearing on Women and Arab Spring Includes Discussion of CEDAW
The US Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a joint subcommittee hearing on Wednesday on Women and the Arab Spring. The issue of the U.S. failure to ratify CEDAW, the Convention to Eliminate All Forms of Discrimination Against Women was raised several times. Senator Barbara Boxer (CA), who co-chaired the hearing, and Melanne Verveer, U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues, both referred to the importance of US ratification of CEDAW while promoting women's rights around the world.
In discussing the importance of women to successful transitions in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya, Ambassador Verveer said in her testimony "I believe that many women woke up with the Arab Spring, and they will not go back to sleep." Manalu Omar, Director of Iraq, Iran, and North Africa Programs for the US Institute of Peace, told the Senators that women were a critical motivating factor in Libya, but expressed concern about what the liberation will mean for women who have had the right to vote in Libya since 1964.
Looking to the future and what role the US can play in protecting and advancing women at this crucial time of transition, Senator Boxer emphasized that the US needs to use whatever leverage it has, including foreign aid, to ensure women's rights.
Feminist Majority President Eleanor Smeal attended the hearing along with other women's rights and human rights leaders and stated following the hearing, "It is unconscionable that the US is in the company of Iran, Somalia and Sudan, who are among the handful of nations that have not ratified CEDAW and yet we are telling others the critical importance of advancing women's rights."
10/31/2011 - Reform in Royal Succession Allows for Gender Equality
In a step toward gender equality, leaders of the 16 Commonwealth countries of the United Kingdom who gathered at a Commonwealth of Nations summit approved changes made to the royal succession laws of the United Kingdom that give first-born daughters precedence over younger brothers when crowning a future monarch. The constitutional amendments are designed to reflect a more progressive attitude from the Commonwealth and would apply to any children of Prince William and Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge. The amendments also state that a British monarch would now be allowed to marry a Catholic.
British Prime Minister David Cameron expressed his satisfaction with the amendments, stating that "The idea that a younger son should become monarch instead of an elder daughter simply because he's a man or that a future monarch can marry someone of any faith except a Catholic - this way of thinking is at odds with the modern countries that we've all become."
A poll taken in Britain last March indicated that 75 percent of the respondents supported the end of male- dominated royal succession.
10/27/2011 - Population Expected to Reach 7 Billion by Monday
With the world's population predicted to reach 7 billion by the end of the month, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) released the State of World Population 2011 report yesterday. UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin stated, "our work is far from done. Consider that there are 215 million women of childbearing age in developing countries who lack access to voluntary family planning. There are millions of adolescent girls and boys in the developing world who have too little access to sexuality education and information about how to prevent pregnancies or protect themselves from HIV. In pockets of the world where women's status is low, infant and child survival are also low. And we must tear down economic, legal and social barriers, to put women and men and boys and girls on an equal footing in all spheres of life."
Since 1950, the world's population has grown from 2.5 billion people to 7 billion, and since 1987, when the first World Population Day took place, the world's population has grown by approximately 40 percent. According to Susan Cohen, director of government affairs at the Guttmacher Institute, the population will increase to over 9 billion by the middle of the century if the current rate of growth continues. Cohen writes, "To a large extent, however, these macro-level dilemmas reflect a micro-level problem about which there is a universal consensus and where the solution is relatively straightforward. Millions of women and couples, especially in the developing world, are still unable to control for themselves the timing, spacing and total number of their children."
The UNFPA indicates that "all of this population growth - 97 of every 100 people - is occurring in less developed countries" and approximately 215 million women who want access to birth control lack access to family planning in developing nations.
10/27/2011 - Yemeni Women Burn Veils in Protest of the Government
On Wednesday, hundreds of Yemeni women gathered in the country's capital of Sanaa to burn their veils in protest of the government's on-going crackdown against anti-government demonstrations. The women held banners to criticize President Ali Abdullah Saleh's authoritative regime, with the banners reading: "Saleh the butcher is killing women and is proud of it" and "Women have no value in the eyes in Ali Saleh." The act itself, which holds great symbolic meaning in the conservative Islamic nation where women are required to cover themselves with veils, is another example of Yemeni women taking part in the country's uprising.
Government forces attacked more than 60 women in October alone, according to CNN. Protestor Ruqaiah Nasser stated "We will not stay quiet...Tribes must understand they will not be respected by Yemeni women if they stay quiet while their women are being attacked by the Saleh regime. Tribes who ignore our calls are cowards and have no dignity."
Although the Yemeni government announced a "cease-fire" earlier this week, more than ten demonstrators were killed on Tuesday.
