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Kevin Perry

Protecting Women’s Rights in Afghanistan
Here at , we strongly condemn the situation of women’s rights in Afghanistan and call for immediate and impactful international intervention. Women and children in Afghanistan have undisputed and unalienable rights to safety, education, health, and every other right that their male counterparts enjoy. For years, they have played a pivotal role in every aspect of the country, from politics to the economy, to the home, and even beyond. We call on the Afghan government to ensure these basic human rights and to end the discrimination and repression of their citizenry. We urge them to uphold the long-fought and hard-won rights of women and girls and to protect the safety and dignity thereof. To third parties and international organizations, we urge their active participation for the benefit of the oppressed. It is unacceptable and deeply disturbing that women in Afghanistan continue to face widespread violations of their human rights in this day and age. These violations of women's rights are not only a grave injustice in and of themselves, but they also have far-reaching and destructive consequences for Afghan society as a whole. It is, therefore, imperative that the international community, as well as the current Afghan government and civil society, take decisive action to address these issues and work to ensure that women in Afghanistan can continue moving forward in their rights. We strongly believe that it is our moral obligation to stand in solidarity with women and girls in Afghanistan, as well as do everything in our power to bring an end to the suffering and oppression they endure.
Women Tackling Climate Change
2022 was a fruitful year for efforts to involve women at the forefront of the fight against climate change. In the months leading up to the International Women’s Day Celebration on March 6, the UN acknowledged various figures that epitomized women’s involvement in fighting the climate crisis. A good example was the 17,000-strong grassroots movement precipitated by Mexican violinist Martha Isabel Ruiz Corzo, which ultimately culminated in establishing a 385,000-hectare biosphere reserve in the state of Querétaro. Another was the recognition of Cameroonian activist Cécile Ndjebet as the recipient of the 2022 Wangari Maathai Forest Champions Award, given by the Collaborative Partnership on Forests or CPF. This was after her work to push for women’s rights to participate, contribute, and govern forest lands in her country. The involvement of women in tracking the climate crisis is an important effort, especially in areas where such initiatives are traditionally dominated by men.The Roe v. Wade Ruling in the US
In 1973, the Roe v. Wade ruling determined that abortion was a protected right under the constitution, which assured that the right to abort an unborn fetus is a fundamental right for every woman in the United States. However, that right fractured in June 2022, when the Supreme Court, the highest court of the land, ruled that Mississippi’s ban on post-15-week abortion ban is constitutional. While not directly overturning the Roe v. Wade judgment, the June 2022 ruling determined that abortion laws should be left to the state, dividing the US into States that allow abortion and those that do not. The move has received widespread international condemnation from women’s rights activists and organizations.Women in Afghanistan
August was a historic moment for world politics and women’s rights history alike, as it returned the Taliban to power after several decades. Unsurprisingly, the group was more than happy to enforce its own restrictive interpretation of the Quoran on the Afghan populace – the most affected of which are women and girls. Since August 2022, the Taliban has been implementing several damaging policies, setting back women's and girls’ rights in the country. Examples include limiting travel, imposing the use of full-body covering, and restricting women from going to school. Today, the situation in Afghanistan continues to be at the forefront of many international women’s rights initiatives.The Death of Mahsa Amini in Iran
In September 2022, a 22-year-old Iranian woman named Mahsa Amani was arrested by the Guidance Patrol, the religious police of the Iranian government, for not wearing a hijab. Initially, police claimed that the cause of death was a heart attack. However, eyewitnesses reported seeing officials beating Amani while inside the police van. At the detention center, she suddenly collapsed and had to be rushed to the hospital, where she died after a three-day coma. Her death sparked national protests that saw at least 500 dead and many thousands arrested – including women, journalists, and even children. The United Nations Human Rights Council has strongly condemned the response of the Iranian government to the protest and created a fact-finding mission to pierce through nationalistic propaganda and determine a factual assessment of the resulting demonstrations.Gender Equality in the EU Workplace
In June 2022, The European Union began enacting a law that made it a requirement for publicly traded companies to employ women in 40% of all non-executive positions and one-third of all director positions by 2026. Member states will implement penalties on companies that cannot comply with the directive. Penalties include monetary and influential sanctions, but each country may also impose its own. The law, dubbed the Women on Boards Directive, was passed on November 22, 2022, and is expected to boost gender equality in corporate directorship in the years to come.Pandemic-Fueled Widespread Increase of Gender Violence
A report published by the United Nations Women highlighted the many ways that women disproportionately suffered from the Covid-19 virus. The report was published as early as 2021 but set the trend for the coming years to follow. It showed that women saw more reduced paid hours in work than men, were more likely to suffer from the slower economic recovery, and had to take on more unpaid domestic work because of the pandemic, which resulted in hampering their access to healthcare. More worrying is the fact that gender violence has increased and has only continued to rise with time. Gender violence is affected by an increasingly complex network of causes and results. The disadvantages set by the pandemic, the widespread economic and political instability that many countries are facing, and climate change and its disproportionate impact on women and children are primary causes of these issues, but there are many more. In 2023, these trends are expected to continue and become even more complex as more factors like geopolitics come into play.A Year in Review
The struggle for women's rights is an ongoing and necessary one, as women around the world continue to face discrimination and inequality in various forms. We must stay vigilant in our efforts to fight for the rights of women everywhere. It is only through persistent and concerted action that we can hope to create a more just and equal society for all. We must therefore continue to speak out, raise awareness, and take action in support of women's rights this 2023 and in the many more years to come.




Changes And Transformations On Education
Although most schools chose to close once the virus first broke out, it was clear that doing so would be unsustainable. With the advice of the government’s department of education, administrators had to decide one of three things:- End the school year immediately;
- Automatically give passing marks to students;
- Or continue classes in any means possible, usually online.
Challenges Of Unequal Access To Education
Even before the pandemic occurred, there was already a structural inequality in the education systems of many countries. The global coronavirus outbreak, however, only further emphasized these issues. One of the things highlighted by the new online learning setup is the unequal access to education, especially in countries with lower socioeconomic status populations. Out-of-school children, refugee and migrant children, children with disabilities, and even girls have also traditionally been excluded in many education policies and practices. Additionally, while virtual education seems like the most obvious educational response during the pandemic, it has increasingly become apparent that this may not always be effective for all sectors in society. The gaps in access to technological resources, such as high-bandwidth internet connection and devices with wireless features, show that not everyone can keep up with online learning. Marginalized students who already live with less are now expected to adapt to online learning like their more privileged peers, something that is evidently not always possible. “The pandemic is casting a harsh light on issues of privilege and equity, and we’ll see many marginalized students disappear from the system without considerable effort to provide them with extra support,” Southern New Hampshire University President Paul LeBlanc said in his take of how universities should adapt to online learning. Since most workplaces have shifted to work-from-home setups and most schools are closed, work-based education such as internships and company studies have been suspended. Although these are externally insinuated circumstances and will likely not completely prevent students from getting accepted into jobs in the future, it’s not hard to imagine that employers may still prefer those who were able to complete theirs than those who did not.How Governments Encourage Learning Across The Globe
With schools in 192 countries closing due to government-implemented lockdowns by the start of April, the number of affected learners from pre-primary up to tertiary peaked at more than 1.71 billion. This makes up over 91.2% of the total enrolled learners worldwide. While some countries proceeded to conduct their classes online almost immediately, others have closed schools temporarily to determine longer-term education plans. Most governments provided administrators with three main options for continuing classes.On-Site Learning
Over six months after WHO’s announcement, some countries have managed to ease their local infection enough to resume on-site learning. One of these countries is Thailand. After more than 70 days of not recording even a single case of local infection, the Office of Basic Education Commission (OBEC) instructed schools across the country to resume in-person teaching starting on August 13. With social distancing guidelines, mask-wearing policies, and strict contact tracing, schools have now assumed a new normal in Thailand. Japan, on the other hand, had an earlier resumption of classes. When the government lifted the state of emergency in 39 of the country’s 47 prefectures, schools in these prefectures started reopening to resume normal classes on May 18. In Tokyo, almost a month after, classes started resuming, with health reports that students needed to submit to their teachers upon arrival. In China, where the coronavirus first broke out, the government utilized its authoritarian nature in strictly implementing the protocols to avoid outbreaks in schools. Although there are still a few cases here and there, roughly 195 million students in the country are now back to on-site learning. With medical personnel checking temperatures and administrative officials confirming the students’ travel reports and test results and making sure protocols are observed, the government, for the larger part, has been able to keep the virus in control. Similarly, many other governments are taking advantage of the academic breaks to determine policies that can mitigate, if not totally reduce, the spread of the virus so that schools can reopen safely. That’s why countries such as Italy, Hungary, Turkmenistan, and Ireland are able to open schools fully.Remote Learning
Sadly, many countries still have high reports of coronavirus infections, which makes it impossible to reopen schools. In these countries, different methods of remote learning have to be employed, such as remote learning. In Mexico, school lessons have resumed, but not in traditional schools. Classes are being broadcasted on TV, with schedules based on public school curriculums prior to the pandemic. This is because 93% of homes in Mexico has access to television, compared to only half of the population that have access to the internet. Meanwhile, in Nepal, an educational radio program was launched to teach learners remotely while schools are closed. Nepal’s “unique social environment, social structure, and geographical inconveniences” limit families’ access to mobile phones, televisions, and the internet, said secondary school science teacher, Mahesh Prasad Koirala. “In such circumstances as these, radio education programmes seem to be the most effective solution in a country like Nepal.” UNESCO, Nepal’s Education Development Directorate, and Prime FM Radio joined forces and launched the pilot episode of Radio Pathsala in the Bagmati Province last May. Teachers provide educational content while students can call-in live to ask questions. Thanks to a collaboration between the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and Nepal’s Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (ACORAB), the radio lesson initiative now covers 77 districts in seven provinces throughout the country. Like Mexico and Nepal, other countries that still cannot assure the health and safety of their students have adapted different ways of remote learning. This includes radio and television broadcasting, online learning like official YouTube channels and e-learning platforms, or providing students with e-textbooks.Continuous Schooling
As mentioned above, most countries opted to impose national lockdowns and close schools to drastically limit the number of people going out and possibly getting infected. These countries only reopened once they determined that the spread was more controlled and traceable. That said, there are still some countries that never closed schools entirely and chose instead to continue with enhanced preparedness and mitigation measures. In Germany, for example, classes are kept running, and only close contacts of an infected person are recommended to get quarantined. Students are only expected to wear masks in hallways and bathrooms but can take them off inside the classroom since the desks are distantly spaced. Belarus, on the other hand, extended their spring break to two weeks instead of one, but otherwise kept their schools open. Parents were, however, given the option not to send their children to school physically if they think their safety and health are at risk. This is understandable, as a freeze on education could be damaging to any country’s confidence and economy in the longer term. But countries are taking the necessary steps to adapt and eventually recover. Governments have adjusted their education systems to cope first with the pandemic, slowly easing the system back to recovery and normality.Education Amidst The Pandemic
COVID-19 has certainly dealt a huge blow to the world. But like with all other sectors of the society affected by the pandemic, education systems are coping with the current circumstances or already adapting to the new normal. Under these new circumstances, the gaps in education systems around the globe have been highlighted and emphasized. More than ever, we now need to work towards a more inclusive, more equitable, and more resilient education system.

On August 18, 1920, the United States of America celebrated the 100th years of the 19th Amendment, the words where "the right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged … on account of sex" were added to the US Constitution.
The day marked a century of a historical victory that led to women being able to vote in the US. The day, however, signified much more than just being able to make a political decision actively. The day was a symbol of long-awaited, much-needed institutional commitment to equality based on sex. The day was momentous in providing women the power to change and determine their future.
Although not perfect in its delivery, the 19th Amendment was a stepping stone towards equality, and although there is a long way to go, the day is worth paying tribute to thousands of women suffragists, coming from different walks of life, who made the Amendment possible through massive country-wide movements.
Journey to women suffrage
For those of us women, unaware of how the seemingly simple act of voting required years-long campaigning and activism, it is essential to sketch a picture.
Suffragists of all kind- white women, women of color, Latin women, and even men, came together to fight for one of the history's most remarkable achievements for women and the world, their right to vote. The movement for women's right to vote started from somewhere in 1840 from Seneca Falls, when a set of women put forward demands for women's rights, including the right to vote. However, the movement soon expanded all over the country. Organizations like the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) and the National Woman's Party (NWP) were formed, and women like Susan B. Anthony and the NAWSA president Carrie Chapman Catt led the activism with nation-wide traveling and giving speeches. Inspired by the British suffrage movements but unlike them, the US suffragists, however, used a more grassroots approach to activism. The suffragists took to streets and picketing outside the White House, and used innovative ideas such as 'Suffrage day Baseball game,' publishing and fundraising through a cookbook, designing valentine's day card with messages of equality, mountaineering with Votes for Women banner, and as such to demand their rights and to make women across country feel the necessity of the right.
Many women opposed suffrage movements too, arguing that voting would make women masculine, disrupt their traditional roles as wives and mothers, and destroy American society.
Moreover, although the movement collectively brought together women from diverse backgrounds, the movement itself was not free from ongoing segregation rules. Black women, in particular, were excluded from many suffrage groups, which led them to form their own groups fighting not only for voting rights but for greater equality and justice for their communities. Along with Black communities, Latinas, Asian-Americans, Indigenous Women, and Immigrants were all part of the multigenerational struggle for the vote; however, they were excluded when the 19th Amendment happened. Black communities were excluded through other policies such and Jim Crows law, which extended their fights for decades to come. Many Native Americans could not vote until 1924 when the Snyder Act made them US citizens. Chinese immigrants were similarly barred until the repeal of the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1943. The Voting Rights Act that came in 1965 only ensured racial equality in voting, making it another milestone in suffrage history.
The suffrage movement was never a single-issue movement, as suffragists understood that getting the right to vote was crucial to bringing all the necessary social and political changes. As such, the suffrage movement and antislavery movement went on like sibling movements. The organizations formed during these movements fought for a range of issues, including better health care, child care, education, anti-alcoholism, and rampant sexism and violence against women. Access to birth control, which was legalized only in 1972, was another major issue that women fought. Likewise, these women's groups also pushed for more robust workplace safety measures and legal protections for women working in factories and mills, among which immigrants were the majority. As a positive result, acts like The Equal Rights Amendment, Title IX, and the Lilly Ledbetter, Fair Pay Act, were formulated as descendants of the suffrage movement. Moreover, the movement's success led to more investment in local public health, declination of Child Mortality rate between 8 to 15 percent, increased education budget, social programs, and charities.
So, 100 years after, how is the impact of the movement?
After a century of movement that involved generations of women, the present-age women are still grappling with the issues they fought back then- political inequality, racism, sexism.
Although women have come a long way in terms of their political and social position, there still lies a huge pay gap and lack of women's representations in all political, social, and corporate levels. Women, especially women of color, are disproportionately involved in unpaid labor and underpaid, low-wage jobs.
An entirely male congress passed the 19th Amendment after Jeannette Rankin voted out for opposing World War II. Fifty years later, there still was only one female senator and ten representatives. In 2020, there are 127 voting women in Congress, still only a quarter of the legislature.
A survey conducted by the Pew Research Center on what Americans think has changed and what has not after the 19th Amendment. The results were mixed, with 57 percent thinking a lot needs to be done toward gender equality, where 32 percent thought we had achieved it, and 10 percent though we had gone too far. Moreover, 40 percent Republican and 20 percent Democrats’ men believed that women's advancement had come at their own expense.
The suffrage movement won women's right to vote and representation, but without being represented. Even today, men dominate the political sphere where decisions on maternity leave, abortions, and birth control are made.
If the coronavirus pandemic has taught the world anything, it has shown that we can make dramatic changes when it is necessary.



The Opposite Side
Turkey and Their “Wrong” Decision
As Morning Star so crudely put it, Turkey is clearly on the road to becoming “a slaughterhouse of women”. This is due to the fact that the country has been dealing with an alarming rise in domestic violence and femicide in recent months and years. In 2019 alone, 474 women were murdered in Turkey, mostly by their former or current partners or male relatives and acquaintances in their own homes. Despite this report, however, conservative officials declared on a televised interview that the decision to sign the Convention was “really wrong”, citing “gender and sexual orientation issues” as the reason. As if this wasn’t enough proof that Turkey is in dire need of a legal framework against women violence, increasing numbers of femicides in the country were reported by Kadın Cinayetlerini Durduracağız Platformu (We Will Stop Femicides Platform, KCDP). The numbers rose from 21 femicides on May, 26 in June, to a heart-breaking 36 in July. However, women’s groups from all around the country protested against Turkey’s decision to pull out of the Istanbul Convention. One of them is a group of women from Edirne, who reportedly said, “Don’t touch the Istanbul Convention,” in a July 20 press conference.Poland and the “Harmful” Convention
Turkey isn’t the only one who is planning on withdrawing its signature. Poland also mentioned it is planning to withdraw from the convention. The country’s Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro argued that the Istanbul Convention violated the rights of parents. Ziobro also added that reforms introduced in the country in recent years already provided sufficient protection for women, even without the Convention.The Safer Side
Spain’s Only Yes Means Yes
The Spanish government is working on changing its controversial rape laws to focus on the importance of sexual consent. The initial rape laws of Spain has a distinction between sexual abuse and the more serious offense of sexual assault. This distinction has prompted nationwide outrage and protests when a group of five men who called themselves “La Manada,” which means wolf pack, was initially cleared of gang-raping a teenage woman, only to be convicted of sexual abuse, which is a lesser offense. As intimidation was then the main key to establishing the crime of rape, the court in Navarre in northern Spain decided that the woman did not face violence or intimidation and the group was only sentenced to nine (9) years in prison. However, thanks to the Istanbul Convention’s definition that "consent must be given voluntarily as the result of the person's free will assessed in the context of the surrounding circumstances", the Supreme Court has overruled the previous sentence introducing the principle of “only yes means yes” in June 2019 and raised the men’s jail terms to 15 years. Without the Istanbul Convention, those men would have gotten away serving for a lesser crime than they actually committed.Scotland’s UK Urging
Although the UK has already signed the Istanbul Convention on June 8, 2012, it has yet to validate its support for the treaty until now. In fact, just recently, one of its constituent countries, Scotland, called on the UK government to ratify the convention. Scotland’s Communities Secretary Angela Constance wrote to Home Secretary Amber Rudd asking for a clear timetable in which they could proceed with the ratification. Additionally, SNP MP Eilidh Whiteford has put forward a private members’ bill at Westminster also calling on the UK government to ratify the convention. However, the convention about “extraterritoriality”, the issue of local legal jurisdictions, has been holding the UK government back. According to former Home Office minister MP Karen Bradley when she was still in office back in February, when the issue is clarified and the relevant legislation is passed, the government would ratify the convention. In the meantime though, Theresa May, who was the UK Home Secretary when the country signed the convention back in 2012, said that the UK will be continuing with their “good record” of dealing with violence against women and girls as they have done before. For example, putting into operation domestic violence protection orders and the new coercive control offense.How the Instanbul Convention Helps Protect Women
Despite the dire need and great significance of the Istanbul Convention for the hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of women it protects and could still protect, some countries keep getting veered into unrelated issues. Some even seem to overlook the reasons why the convention was drafted in the first place. To say that concerns about the Convention aren’t valid wouldn’t be proper since, like most things, there is always room for improvement. But if proper implementation of the treaty was only observed, more women, in fact, could benefit from it. To say it simply, there is proof that the Istanbul Convention can help protect women – one only has to look at Spain’s La Manada rape case to see it.
The Istanbul Convention
In Turkey, one of the most alarming concerns is the unprecedented spike in reports of violence against women. Measures taken against COVID-19, such as lockdowns, have left women and girls trapped at home, or in very small social circles, with their abusers. This incredibly toxic situation stemming from the pandemic and the resulting economic instability further aggravates the risks and triggers for domestic violence. In addition to this, current social distancing measures employed by the country make it more difficult for women and children to reach out to family and friends for support and protection. The discouragement of social contact in order to prevent the spread of the disease limits how victims can get ahold of health workers, and consequently, the accessibility to safety and support services provided by the government. This is truly disconcerting given that the Istanbul Convention, short for the “Council Of Europe Convention On Preventing And Combating Violence Against Women And Domestic Violence”, was named after the country’s most iconic city, where it was opened for signatures on May 11, 2011. In other words, it turns out that the first European treaty aimed to combat domestic violence and violence against women was named after a city that is now suffering from increasing reports of domestic violence.The Need for the Convention
Gender-based violence happens not only in Turkey but everywhere – at home, in school, at work, in every EU and non-EU country. It is one of the many forms of discrimination–a brutal one at that–and a grave violation of human rights rooted in and resulting from the systemic inequality of women and men in society. Because of gender-based violence, women end up living in fear, even of their own loved ones. According to a study published by the World Health Organization (WHO), around 30% of all women have been physically or sexually assaulted by an intimate partner in their lifetime. What’s worse is that 38% of all femicides, the killing of women and girls, around the world were actually committed by their own intimate partners. More so, the majority of women survivors, ranging from 55% to 95%, of intimate partner violence or sexual violence do not disclose their experience or seek any kind of help. The rest of the study includes even more alarming results. 55% or more than half of all women have experienced sexual harassment at least once in their lives. 33% have been physically or sexually assaulted by an adult when they were only children, 33% have experienced their partner’s psychologically abusive behavior, and 5% have experienced rape. Indeed, in a world that’s becoming increasingly modern, it seems like women are still left behind in a terrifying era of violence. Even with the increasing awareness of gender equality in these modern times, it’s still difficult to be a woman. Rather than get publicly shamed, blamed, ostracized, retaliated, or mistreated for something that they never wanted to happen, victims would instead choose to keep silent about their circumstances and would much rather not have anyone know. There is a serious case of underreporting of violence against women, with only around 30% of victims filing reports to the police. Among these, only the most serious incidents are reported. Without the assurance of satisfactory assistance, timely response, or even the most basic but adequate provision of safety and support services, victims would rather tolerate and accept the violence inflicted on them than risk their lives outing their perpetrator.The Provisions of the Convention
In general, the Convention addresses all forms of violence against women, especially but not only domestic violence, through measures aimed at preventing violence, protecting victims, and prosecuting the perpetrators. First is the protection of the victims. It is of utmost importance that the victims are provided with the right safety and support services. This includes clear and concise information in a language that they understand so that they know what services are available to them, and accessible shelters sufficiently distributed across the country so that they have somewhere to escape to. According to the Convention, there should also be statewide 24/7 telephone helplines free of charge that can offer immediate and expert advice to guide victims to safety. Specialized help centers such as rape crisis help desks or sexual violence referral centers where they can be provided specialized care like medical counseling and forensic services are also supposed to be mandatory. Next, the Convention states that the police must have the power to remove the perpetrator from their home to face investigation and trial. Law enforcement should carry out an effective and timely investigation to avoid prolonging the victim’s trauma. Prosecution of the perpetrator is a must to ensure that justice can be served. Authorities must also protect and support child witnesses as they are more exposed to the severe impact of violence and abuse, whether physical, sexual, or psychological. In addition to this, they must also protect female migrants and asylum seekers who are particularly vulnerable to gender-based violence due to their immediate need to have the right to belong to the community. They must also grant migrant women their own resident permits if their residence status is dependent on their abuser so that they do not have to keep enduring violence to keep their right to reside in the host country. Last but definitely not the least, to prevent further violation and discrimination, the Convention states that campaigns are to be conducted to promote awareness and to fully inform the general public of what forms and manifestations of violence women experience on a regular basis. Likewise, education at all levels should include the equality of men and women, non-violent resolution of conflicts in a relationship, and the right to personal integrity. Specialists and professionals who could prevent or detect acts of violence or prevent secondary victimization must also be trained and suitably assigned to government care centers and partner organizations to deal with the victims of violence as is appropriate to them.Protecting Women with the Istanbul Convention
Now more than ever before, women wake up every morning afraid simply because they are women. The world is turning to be more and more a cruel place, crueler even inside what should be the comforts of their own home. This is why we need the Istanbul Convention – a legally binding set of guidelines designed to safeguard women against violence. And yet, this is only the beginning of the need to foster a safer place where women can freely and confidently wander in.


Bridging the gap: A call to the G7 for inclusive progress
Inspired by women’s leadership, the Women’s Forum for the Economy & Society continues to bring a distinctly female perspective to addressing the issues affecting all of humanity and engaging for impact towards resolutions. Women’s Forum Canada was a unique opportunity to generate concrete ideas to inform and influence the agenda of the G7 Summit. It addressed a range of global issues, including gender equality, by unlocking the transformative potential of women’s leadership. It focused on topics such as the role of the private sector in fostering inclusive growth, scaling investment in women-led businesses, urban planning as a accelerator of climate action, the social implications of technological change and many more. The following selected speakers among others were featured: Maria Cantillon, Global Head of Alternative Asset Management, State Street Corporation, Kristalina Georgieva, CEO, World Bank, Gioia Ghezzi, President & Chairwoman, Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane SPA, Jean-Paul Gladu, President and CEO, Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business, Arancha Gonzalez, Executive Director, International Trade Centre, Gloria Guevara Manzo, President and CEO, World Travel and Tourism Council, Dayle Haddon, CEO, WomenOne, Judith Hartmann, CFO, Engie, Roxanne Joyal, CEO, Me to WE, Jodi Kovitz, Founder, MOVETHEDIAL.ORG, Karla Martinez, Editor in Chief, Vogue Mexico, Estelle Metayer, Member of Advisory Board Canada, 30% Club, Farah Mohamed, CEO, Malala Fund, Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary General, United Nations, Gabriela Ramos, Chief of Staff and Sherpa to the G20 – OECD, Janelle Reiko Sasaki, Executive Director, People Advisory Services, EY Japan, Kareen Rispal, Ambassador to Canada, Government of France, Helene von Reis, President & CEO, IKEA Japan, John Rossant, Founder and Chairman, New Cities Foundation, Carolyn Wilkins, Senior Deputy Governor, Bank of Canada









Accolades for the fiery activist, whose name was virtually synonymous with human rights in Pakistan, poured in from political and legal figures.
Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi lauded her “immense contributions towards upholding rule of law, democracy and safeguarding human rights”.
Jahangir was a U.N. special rapporteur for freedom of religion from 2004 to 2010, and later was a rapporteur for human rights in Iran.
In Pakistan, she campaigned tirelessly for democracy and free speech, frequently receiving death threats for taking up causes such as criticizing the strict blasphemy laws of the conservative Muslim-majority country.
A lawyer by background, she was a founding member of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and former president of the Supreme Court Bar Association.
Fearless in the face of authority, she was imprisoned in 1983 for her work with the Movement to Restore Democracy during of General Zia ul-Haq’s military rule.
She was also placed under house arrest in 2007 for her part in a lawyers’ protest movement that helped lead to military leader Pervez Musharraf stepping down from power.
She also represented several civil society organizations that were threatened with shutdown as well as families of several “disappeared” activists over the past few years.
Jahangir’s daughter Munizae said her mother died after suffering a heart attack on Sunday.
Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-pakistan-jahangir/pakistani-human-rights-champion-asma-jahangir-dies-idUSKBN1FV0MF



Violence against women
Violence against women is one of the most common violations of women’s human rights. According to the World Health Organization at least one in three women worldwide experience one or more serious physical and/or sexual violent incidents during their lifetime, often from an intimate partner or ex-partner. Gender inequality and social norms legitimating violence against women are underlying forces that feed into gender based violence. At the same time social protests are growing, with campaigns such as #MeToo and...Violation of human rights
In the Council of Europe’s Istanbul Convention, violence against women has been recognized under international human rights law as a violation of human rights. According to the convention, it is the duty of governments to protect women as citizens against this violence and, above all, to prevent it. A historic milestone. Countries will have to report to what extent it is meeting those obligations. It is timely to reflect on the meaning of the convention.





- Economic participation and opportunity – salaries, participation and leadership
- Education – access to basic and higher levels of education
- Political empowerment – representation in decision-making structures
- Health and survival – life expectancy and sex ratio
Regional Report:
Western Europe remains the highest-performing region in the Index with an average remaining gender gap of 25%. The region is home to four of the global top five countries in the Index – Iceland (1), Norway (2), Finland (3) and Sweden (5) – highlighting the continued progress of the Nordic countries in closing their overall gender gaps. At the bottom ranks of the region are Greece (78), Italy (82), Cyprus (92) and Malta (93). Out of the 20 countries in the region covered by the Index this year, nine have improved their overall score since last year, while 11 have seen it decrease. North America has a remaining gender gap of 28%, the smallest after Western Europe. Both Canada (16) and the United States (49) have closed more than 70% of their overall gender gap. Eastern Europe and Central Asia has closed on average 71% of its gender gap. Three countries from the region rank in the global top 20: Slovenia (7), Bulgaria (18) and Latvia (20). The bottom ranks are made up of Armenia (97), Azerbaijan (98) and Hungary (103). Out of the 26 countries from the region covered by the Index this year, 18 countries have increased their overall score compared to last year, while eight have decreased their overall scores. The Latin America and Caribbean region has an average remaining gender gap of 30%. The region is home to two of the top 10 fastest-improving countries in the world since 2006: Nicaragua (6) and Bolivia (17). Brazil is one of five countries to have fully closed their educational attainment gender gap, despite ranking 90 overall. The lowest-performing countries in the region are Paraguay (96) and Guatemala (110). Of the 24 countries covered by the Index in the region this year, 18 have improved their overall score compared to last year, while six have regressed. The East Asia and Pacific region has closed on average 68% of its gender gap. With New Zealand (9) and the Philippines (10), the region is home to two of the global top 10 performers. However the region’s larger economies perform less well: with China ranking 100 and Japan and the Republic of Korea ranking 114 and 118, respectively, it is clear that their remains much economic upside from making a more pronounced effort towards gender parity. Sub-Saharan Africa displays a wider range of gender gap outcomes than any other region, with three countries; Rwanda (4), Namibia (13) and South Africa (19) in the global top 20, as well as many of the lowest-ranked countries in the Index, such as Mali (139) and Chad (141). Of the 30 countries from the region covered by the Index this year, 13 countries have increased their overall score compared to last year, while 17 have seen it decrease. South Asia has an average remaining gender gap of 34%. Bangladesh (47) is the only country in the region to feature in the top 100, with India ranking 108 and Pakistan 143. Of the seven countries from the region included in the Index this year, three countries have increased their overall score compared to last year, while four have seen it decrease. The Middle East and North Africa is the lowest-ranked region in the Index with an average remaining gender gap of 40%. In addition to Israel (44), the region’s best-performing countries are Tunisia (117), the United Arab Emirates (120) and Bahrain (126). The region is home to four of the world’s five lowest-ranking countries on Political Empowerment – Kuwait (129), Lebanon (137), Qatar (130) and Yemen (144). However out of the 17 countries covered by the Index in the region this year, 11 countries have improved their overall score compared to last year. Read full report: http://reports.weforum.org/global-gender-gap-report-2017/?utm_content=bufferfa7ef&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer














Guests meet Hon. President of Nepal Ms. Bidya Devi Bhandari

Welcome dinner prepared by the widows of Chhahari - a safe space for widows

"Together We Can" meeting - Inauguration session July 17, 2017
"Together We Can" meeting - Inauguration session July 17, 2017

Women at work worldwide - #BeBoldForChange
International Women's Day celebrates women’s achievements while calling for gender equality. See how women perform in jobs that are often still considered "men's jobs" and what they have to say.
"Inequality starts in our minds"
In Istanbul, Turkey, Serpil Cigdem works as a train driver. She reports: "When I applied for a job 23 years ago as a driver, I was told that it is a profession for men. I knew that during the written examination even if I got the same results as a male candidate, he would have got the job. That's why I worked hard to pass the exam with a better result than the male candidates."
Women at work worldwide - #BeBoldForChange
International Women's Day celebrates women’s achievements while calling for gender equality. See how women perform in jobs that are often still considered "men's jobs" and what they have to say.
"Gender inequality happens"
Deng Qiyan is a decorator at contraction sites in Beijing, China. She has a very down-to-earth approach: "Sometimes gender inequality happens. But we cannot do anything about that. After all, you have to digest all those unhappy things and carry on," the mother of three says. http://www.dw.com/en/women-at-work-worldwide-beboldforchange/g-37795980


Racial segregation challenge
Her court case was the first known legal challenge against racial segregation brought forward by a black woman in Canada, according to a Bank of Canada news release. "Viola Desmond was a woman who broke down barriers, who provided inspiration to Canadians around social justice issues and showed that each and every one of us, individually, can make a difference," Morneau said. She was granted a free pardon posthumously in 2010 by former Nova Scotia lieutenant-governor Mayann Francis, the first black person to serve as the Queen's representative in the province. The provincial government also issued a formal apology. She died in 1965 at age 50. Another iconic Canadian, who will be chosen at a later date, will be featured on a future $5 bill. Macdonald and Canada's first francophone prime minister, Sir Wilfrid Laurier, will be featured on higher-value banknotes. Those changes mean former prime ministers William Lyon Mackenzie King and Sir Robert Borden will no longer be featured on banknotes.






- Negotiators for securing local-level ceasefires and release of prisoners
- Distributors and monitors of humanitarian aid
- Organizers of safe spaces for women and children
- Documenters of human rights abuses


- Over 250,000 people have been killed (Source: UNOCHA)
- Nearly 25% of Syrian civilians killed were women and children (Source: British Medical Journal)
- Over one million have been injured (Source: UNOCHA)
- Four out of five Syrians now live in poverty (Source: UNOCHA)
- 47 million Syrians are in hard-to-reach areas, including nearly 600,000 people in 18 besieged areas (Source: UNOCHA)
- 5 million Syrians need health care; 13.5 million require protection support; 12.1 million need water and sanitation; 5.7 million children need education support (Source: UNOCHA)
- 6 million have been internally displaced (Source: UNOCHA)
- 8 million have become refugees in neighboring countries (Source: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees-UNHCR)
- 1 million Syrian refugees are in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon; 2.7 million are in Turkey; and more than 29,000 are in North Africa (Source: UNHCR)
- Out of the 4.8 million Syrian refugees, 52.8% are children and 49.7% are women (Source: UNHCR)
- “Sexual violence against women, girls, men and boys has been a characteristic of the Syrian conflict from its inception,” the United Nations Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict (UNSRSG-SVC) reported.

- From 2000 to 2014, the share of women parliamentarians almost doubled to reach 24%.
- In terms of women's representation in parliament, 17 of 30 African countries sit above the global average, which is 21%.
- Rwanda has the highest share of women parliamentarians in the world. Sixty-four percent of the parliamentarians in Rwanda are women.
- The number of women in cabinet in Africa has grown five times to 27% in 30 years, up by 4% compared to the global average of 23%.
- African women hold 23% of positions at executive committee level, compared with a global average of 20%.
- They hold 5% of positions at CEO level, compared with 4% globally.
- African women hold 14% of seats at board level, compared with a global average of 13%.
- In Africa, companies in the top quartile with women on executive committees outperformed industry earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) margins by 14% on average; while companies with at least a quarter share of women on their boards was on average have 20% higher EBIT than the industry average.
- More than 50% of African women cabinet ministers are in charge of social welfare portfolios, while only 30% are in charge of departments with more political influence like treasury, defense, infrastructure, and foreign affairs.
- Fifty-six percent of female senior managers surveyed in Africa hold staff roles, while only 44% hold line roles. Staff roles refer to support functions such as legal and human relations; while line roles refer to core operations such as finance, strategy and risk.
- Substantial pay gap persists between men and women holding senior positions in private sector companies in Africa. Women board members in South Africa, for example, earn 17% less than their male counterparts.






- Only 5.7% of International Federation presidents, 12.2% of the vice presidents and 13.1% of executive committee members are women.
- In the International Olympic Committee (IOC) itself, 24.4% of the members are women.
- Three International Federations (International Handball Federation, International Judo Federation and World Rugby) have no women in leadership roles.
- Of the total 113 presidents of regional zone confederations, only 12 for 10.6% are women.
- The following are the scores received by international sports organizations for the representation of women in leadership roles, A, being the highest score:




Marriage can wait: Syrian teen in Jordan sets sights on starry career
Hind Bakri, a teenage Syrian refugee, dreams of becoming an astrophysicist despite economic and social pressures on her to marry. ZARQA, Jordan - As a teenager obsessed with science, Hind Bakri grew up scouring NASA’swebsite, reading about everything from exoplanets to black holes. It was there Bakri found an online questionnaire for astrophysicists interested in NASA scholarships. Seeing nothing to deter her, Bakri filled it out and clicked the send button. Months later, in February 2014, an international phone number popped up on the caller ID of the phone in Bakri’s family home. The caller identified himself as David, from NASA, and said he needed information regarding Bakri’s visa status and university degree. “I was like ‘come on, do you know how old I am? I’m only 14,’” says Bakri. Discovering that he was speaking to an adolescent Syrian refugee and not an astrophysicist with a PhD, David gently told Bakri to reapply when she had a university degree. The call only lasted five minutes, says Bakri, but the hope it inspired endures. Originally from Hama, Syria, Bakri no longer surfs NASA’s website. Instead, the 17-year-old, who arrived in Jordan in 2012, devotes herself to excelling in school in order to qualify for scholarships that will enable her to afford college tuition. She wants to study physics and eventually work as an astrophysicist for NASA. Outwardly, Bakri’s otherworldly ambitions seem to make her unique compared to her peers in Jordan’s Syrian refugee community. But it is not her ambitions that mark her out, it is that she has been allowed to have them at all. The most recent school year for which statistics werepublicly available in Jordan, 2013-2014, show that only 3,670 secondary school-aged Syrians, out of 81,842 registered, were enrolled. That is 4.5 percent. Attending university, let alone a career as an astrophysicist, is unimaginable for most Syrians in Jordan. In Zarqa, a bustling city of 400,000 inhabitants, only 24 kilometres northeast of Amman, Bakri is witnessing a disturbing trend among her peers. Poverty and scant economic opportunities are suffocating the ambitions of a populace already reeling from the Syrian conflict, now in its fifth year. Consequently, many Syrian youth living in Jordan have abandoned their education, seeing no future in it. An increasingly common alternative, mostly for girls, is early marriage - but not for Bakri. Bakri’s mother, Aysha Alothman, married at age 12 in Syria, and this experience convinced her that her daughter should be allowed to wait. “Being married at age 12 prevented me from continuing my education in regular schools,” says Alothman, 37. “It is great to be a mother and housewife, but this is not everything I aspired for.” By sheltering her daughter from the prospect of early marriage, Alothman has enabled Bakri’s ambitions to flourish. Now Bakri’s family, consisting of her parents, older brother Fayez, and younger sister Nuha, are determined to help her finish her education, despite the economic and social pressures facing them as refugees. Read full article: http://www.middleeasteye.net/in-depth/features/early-marriage-not-equation-syrian-refugee-1433750451


(CNN) The leader of a Pakistani Islamic council has proposed a bill that allows husbands to "lightly beat" their wives as a form of discipline.











Fatma Aliye Topuz, credited as the first female Turkish novelist, appears on the 50 lira bill, where she was installed in 2009.
2- Sweden
Sweden has a handful of woman on their currency. The Swedish opera singer Jenny Lind was placed on the 50 krona note in 1996. The first female writer to win the Nobel Peace Prize for literature, Selma Lagerlöf, took her place on the 20 krona note in 1997. In October of last year, Pippi Longstocking creator Astrid Lindgren took her place on the 20 krona note. Greta Garbo and opera singer Birgit Nilsson will be appearing later this year.
3- Australia
Socialist poet Mary Gilmore was put on the $10 note in 1993. Convict-turned-businesswoman Mary Reibey was put on the $20 note in 1994. Since 1996, the first woman elected to the Australian parliament, Edith Cowan, has had a slot ($50), as has Nellie Melba ($100).
4- New Zealand
Suffragette Kate Sheppard was placed on the $10 bill in 1999.
5- United KingdomIn 2013, Jane Austen kicked Charles Darwin off the £10 note.
6- Syria
Queen Zenobia, a third-century ruler who led a rebellion against the Roman Empire, appears on the 500 pound note.
7- Mexico
Mexican artist Frida Kahlo was put on the 500 peso note in 2010, while Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz—a self-taught poet and scholar—was put on the 200 peso note in 1992.
8- The Philippines
The first female president of the Philippines, Corazon Aquino, has graced the 500 peso note since 2009. World War II leader (and founder of the Girl Scouts of the Philippines!) Josefa Llanes Escoda has been on the 1000 peso note since 1991.
9- Argentina
Argentina's most famous first lady, Eva Perón, has graced the 100 peso note since 2012.




Women's Empowerment and Sustainable Development
14-24 March 2016

Ban Ki-moon
UN Secretary General

Themes
The purpose of the conference is to reflect on the 100 years of women’s political rights in the Nordic countries, but also to analyse gender equality in international context. The first day of the conference, October 22, will focus on the history of women’s suffrage in the Nordic countries and the present-day status of women’s political participation in the area. The second day, October 23, will centre on the current threats to women’s civil rights: women’s share in the public space; women’s control over their own bodies; and the gendered side of the economy.Day 1: Democracy in the Nordic countries
100 years of political participation
In 1906 Finland became the first European country to grant women both the right to vote and the right to stand as a candidate in elections. The other Nordic countries followed in Finland’s footsteps: Norway in 1913, Iceland, Denmark and the Faroe Islands in 1915, and Sweden in 1921. On the other hand, women in Greenland did not get the right to vote until 1948. Parallel, lower class men (the poor, debtors etc.) also gained the right to vote and stand for election. This part of the conference will be devoted to the history of equal suffrage in the Nordic countries. How have these civil rights changed in the past 100 years? Were the changes a product of continuous development throughout the 20th century or a breakthrough only in the past decades? Why are the Nordic countries now at the forefront in terms of gender equality? The seminar will also ask how women have benefitted from equal political rights and which women have been able to enforce these rights. Have the civil rights benefitted all women or only the few? What is the relationship between gender on the one hand and class and other discriminatory variables on the other hand? Why have women never made up to half of parliamentarians in the Nordic countries?Democracy challenged: Gender, class, race and religion
At the Centenary of women’s suffrage in the Nordic countries, it remains obvious that equal political rights do not automatically lead to equal political representation. The democracy is face by new challenges: voter turnout is increasingly in decline and so is public trust in political parties and institutions. Meanwhile, like widely in Europe, populist and xenophobic parties gain support. This seminar will focus on the current democratic challenges in the Nordic countries. It will discuss multiculturalism within a Nordic context and how new demographics have influenced the democracy. How are different groups represented within decision-making bodies, e.g. in relation to class, race, ethnicity and religion? How does increased right wing extremism in Europe affect women’s rights and political participation? What is the impact of history and popular interpretation of history?Celebratory seminar in honour of Ms. Vigdís Finnbogadóttir
The 1980’s marked a significant change in women’s political representation in the Nordic countries. Iceland’s first female president, Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, was also the first female democratically elected head of state in the world. A year after her election, or in 1981, Gro Harlem Brundtland, took office as Norway’s first female prime minister. What was their experience of marking this turning point in Nordic history? Was the debate on women’s political participation similar in Iceland and Norway? Did President Finnbogadóttir and PM Brundtland communicate on a personal level at the time? This celebratory seminar, in the honour of Ms. Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, will offer a platform for Finnbogadóttir and Brundtland to share personal and political memories from their time in office in Iceland and Norway in the 1980’s and 1990’s. Laura Ann Liswood, General Secretary of the Cofuncil of Women World Leaders and co-founder of the organisation with Finnbogadóttir, will participate in the debate. Former president of Finland, Tarja Halonen, has also been invited to participate.Day 2: Current Threats to Women’s Civil Rights
The second day of the conference will deal with women’s current civil rights in Iceland, the Nordic countries and beyond. It will analyse the main threats to women’s civil rights, by focusing on the following themes:The Public Space
Despite the remarkable success in promoting and producing gender equality in Iceland and the other Nordic countries, women still remain underrepresented in public debate. This is true for both politics and media representation. According to the Global Media Monitoring Project (2010), women were subjects in only 23% of media coverage in Iceland, based on the analysis of the media during one day. Furthermore, online news sources present more gender bias than the traditional news media. This seminar will analyse women’s position in the current public debate. What are the realities that women face when they get involved in politics or public debate? What about women who are also members of minority groups? What influence has the new media had on women’s representation in media? How does the Internet as a medium serve women? How has the possibility of anonymity on the Internet affected women? How do we ensure that women and men equally occupy the “public space”? What is the impact of anti-system political parties on gender equality? How has the European far right influenced women’s rights?The Body
Women’s right to control their bodies has been the central theme of the women’s movement for decades. No country in the world has managed to eradicate gender-based violence. This theme will deal with the relevance of body politics to the current status of women’s civil rights. It opens up for discussion on the status of reproductive rights of women in Iceland, the Nordic countries and elsewhere, and the issue of violence against women. To what extent do women in the most “egalitarian” countries of the world control their own bodies? What are the main threats to the female body, in the Nordic countries and elsewhere? How “free” are women sexually? What does sex between equals look like?The Economy
A 2014 OECD report shows rising inequality in the wake of the global economic and political crisis. The income of the poorest of the population has declined, or increased less, than that of the richest. In this part of the conference the discussion will focus on how the global economic and political crisis has influenced women, taking into account other variables such as race, ethnicity, ability and class. What is the gendered impact of austerity measures? What is the status of women in the current political economy? Who performs unpaid or low paid work?Towards full Human Rights of Women
While women’s liberation and full gender equality might still be a utopian dream, women have seen revolutionary changes in the past decades. The last part of the conference will analyse the tools that have improved – or could improve – women’s civil rights. Which measures have been successful in moving women’s civil and human rights forward (law, activism, policies, academic research etc.)? How is it possible to bridge the gap between law and reality? What is the influence of international treaties? And most importantly, what are the next steps in moving women’s civil and human rights forward and which measures can be used? http://hugras.is/2015/11/akademisk-flugeldasyning/














