On November 6, 1990, forty women publicly drove their cars into the capital of Saudi Arabia. Each citizen was detained, stripped of their passport, and fired from their job because in Saudi Arabia, women do not have the right to drive.

In commemoration of these brave women, political activist Wajeha al Huwaider launched the “Black Ribbons Campaign” in peaceful protest of the rights denied to women. Activists in the campaign demand that women are given the same legal capacity to drive, travel, marry, inherit, and represent themselves in official matters.

Activists invite proponents of equal rights to wear a black ribbon around their wrist on November 6th.

Saudi Women’s Activists launch the “Black Ribbons Campaign” on November 6th- Middle East Transparent

As Vice Chairperson of the Ugandan parliamentary Committee on Social Services, Chris Baryomunsi acts as an advocate for women’s rights and empowerment, trying to involve his fellow male citizens in a movement for gender equality. In a recent interview with IPS News, Baryomunsi said that “a paradigm shift is needed” to tip the balance and achieve gender equality in Uganda. A momentum is presently building in the state, with three substantial gender-related bills set to appear before congress for deliberation in November. Baryomunsi, a doctor and lawmaker, introduced and championed one of legislative measures, a bill to criminalize Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).

Baryomunsi explains that this is a critical time for male involvement, insisting that development will not occur without the support of men, who comprise a majority of seats within parliament. He goes on to add, “a law in itself is not the final solution,” but rather that the evolution of social and cultural attitudes will have to accompany any legal progress in order to affect lasting change. Convincing men that the empowerment of women does not detract from their own power is central to the challenge of engaging men, Baryomunsi says:

“With increased exposure and mobilization, the men will appreciate that their being powerful as a man should not be to the disadvantage of a woman.”

Discussing further efforts, the lawmaker described a need for a public awareness raising campaign to educate citizens on pending legislation and involve them in a movement for gender equality.

Q&A Women’s Empowerment: ‘Men Are Interested’ - IPS News

This November the Ugandan parliament will consider three critical measures to enhance women’s rights: the Marriage and Divorce Bill, the Domestic Violence Bill and the Female Genital Mutilation Bill.

Chris Baryomunsi, a Member of Parliament and champion of women’s rights, told IPS that one the biggest challenges is in messaging. Traditional thinking follows that any gains in women’s rights will result in a loss of power for men.

One key strategy, therefore, is the involvement of men. Baryomunsi said, “Once male legislators are on board, it becomes easy for them to communicate to the rest of the men in the country. When we present this law (as one that is) good for us the leaders, then men in the community will definitely accept and know that it is good for them.”

In order to facilitate the passage of these measures, the Uganda Women’s Parliamentary Association (UWOPA) recently partnered with Uganda’s Ministry of Gender and the United Nations Development Fund to host a two-day workshop. Proponents of these initiatives hope to empower women’s rights advocates in their pursuit to win the support of male lawmakers.

Q&A: Women’s Empowerment: ‘Men Are Interested’- IPS

The creators of the One Million Signatures campaign were awarded with the Anna Politkovskaya award for courage Tuesday, October 6.

The signature campaign promotes greater rights for women in Iran by supporting the reformation of national laws regarding child custody, divorce, inheritance, and other matters.

Some women have been jailed or threatened over their participation in the campaign.

Mariana Katzarova, founder of Reach All Women in War, presented the award to the activists, describing them as “an extremely brave and courageous group of women… really changing the society in Iran, which is extremely difficult.”

Iranian women’s rights activists win courage award- Reuters

October 1 – Presiding Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Senator John Kerry (D-MA) joined Senators Ted Kaufman (D-DE) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA) in holding a hearing entitled ‘Violence Against Women: Global Costs and Consequences’, marking “the first time that violence against women, on a global scale, has been the subject of a hearing of the full Senate Foreign Relations Committee,” Senator Kerry said. On this “ground-breaking occasion,” as described by the Chairman, Senator Kerry announced that he plans to introduce the ‘International Violence Against Women Act’ (IVAWA). This bill intends to extend the principles of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), a bill with domestic focus passed in 1994, to the global sphere. Kerry explained:

“[IVAWA is] designed to put the machinery of our government to work on reducing global violence against women.”

Testimonies were heard from two panels, the first of which included Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues Melanne Verveer and Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues Stephen Rapp. In her comments, Ambassador Verveer insisted, “the momentum is building for us to be able to make a clear and concrete difference in the lives of women and girls who are affected by gender-based violence.” Ambassador Rapp spoke on violence perpetrated against women and girls in conflict zones, suggesting that “internationalized mechanisms” are needed for prevention efforts and stating adamantly, “rape itself can be an act of genocide.”

The second panel consisted of various experts including Major General Patrick Cammaert, Deputy President of the International Crisis Group Donald Steinberg, President of the International Center for Research on Women Dr. Geeta Gupta, and President and Founder of the Family Violence Prevention Fund Esta Soler. Major General Cammaert, who has firsthand witnessed the brutality in conflict regions such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, said that sexual violence is “cheaper than bullets, more silent than bombs,” and thus increasingly a choice tactic for warring rebels. Mr. Steinberg shared his experience of peace negotiations in Angola, expressly stating that peace agreements have and will continue to fail if women are not included in peacebuilding processes. Dr. Gupta and Ms. Soler both noted the critical importance of engaging men and boys in a global effort to eradicate violence against women and girls. Domestic initiatives such as Coaching Boys into Men, which has proved very effective, must be scaled-up as part of a global commitment, said the experts. Ms. Soler urged that it is essential that a comprehensive, cohesive plan be implemented to address violence against women:

“It is time for a bold and transformative initiative…violence against women is an emergency every day.”

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On September 28, the Supreme Court of Zimbabwe ruled that human rights activist Jestina Mukoko could not be prosecuted for crimes of terrorism since she herself “had been terrorized when state security agents abducted and tortured her,” The New York Times reports. The decision comes as a “rare triumph” in a nation with a poor record of human rights. Mukoko was abducted last December and held for three weeks, later testifying that she had been “held in secret locations, where her abductors forced her into a false confession, making her kneel on skin-piercing gravel and relentlessly beating the soles of her feet.”

The head of a civic group that had been monitoring and documenting human rights abuses prior to the contested March 2008 presidential election, which ultimately led to a power-sharing deal between Morgan Tsvangirai and Robert Mugabe, Mukoko had been jailed along with dozens of other activists, prompting Western diplomats to claim that Mr. Mugabe was unwilling to respect human rights and restore the rule of law in Zimbabwe. The New York Times further reports that the decision is all the more a victory when considering that “the Zimbabwean judiciary has been deeply compromised in recent years, with many judges accepting luxury cars and farmland from the Mugabe government.”

Irene Petras, executive director of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, commented on the ruling:

“Today’s decision can be read as a movement toward the restoration of an independent justice delivery system.”

Zimbabwe Court Frees Rights Activist - The New York Times

A new Gender and Human Rights Report released on September 7, 2009 indicates that only 20% of the judges serving on Argentina’s high courts are women. This figures illustrates a discrepancy in the Argentine judicial system, especially given that the majority of lawyers in the country are women.

The study suggests that instead of focusing solely on gaining equal gender representation, the issue would be better resolved by providing judges with gender-awareness education.

Several groups are ensuring that this education makes an impact. Besides the efforts of NGOs, the Gender Commission of the National Ombusdman’s Office is requiring all judges, public defenders, and other judicial employees to complete a gender-awareness course, which are held monthly.

Julieta Di Corleto, an employee of the Gender Commission, told IPS, “Having a woman on the bench does not guarantee a gender perspective. We have to train men and women to incorporate this perspective and apply it.”

ARGENTINA: Women Judges Not Enough; Gender Awareness Training Needed - IPS

A Burmese court recently heard arguments from the lawyers of pro-democracy activist and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi in an appeal of her criminal conviction, handed down in early August. Sentenced to three years in prison, Suu Kyi received a commuted sentence of 18 months shortly after the verdict in her case was read. For 14 of the past 20 years, the opposition leader has been in some form of detention. A decision is expected from the court at a later date.

In related news, the government of Myanmar granted amnesty to 7,114 prisoners on September 17, either on humanitarian grounds or for good behavior, VOA news reports. The news agency further adds that human rights groups believe an additional 2,200 political prisoners continue to be held in detention by the government.

Aung San Suu Kyi Appeals Conviction-VOA News

Related:

International Agencies and Governments Condemn Verdict in Aung San Suu Kyi Case

Burmese Democracy Leader Aung San Suu Kyi Convicted

Three American men were recently expelled from Cambodia and arrested, now facing charges in the United States for alleged crimes of sexual abuse of children in the Asian nation, as CBS News reports. Charged under the Protect Act of 2003, the men will be prosecuted domestically for crimes committed overseas. Since its passage into law, the Protect Act has led to 70 arrests of nationals abroad by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.

The offenders are the first to be charged under a new initiative, ‘Operation Twisted Traveler’, which specifically focuses on crimes committed in Cambodia as part of a larger, coordinated effort to crackdown on international sex tourism. ICE Head John Morton described the arrests as a signal to potential offenders:

“Let their arrests serve as notice to any other person who might be tempted to evade justice by victimizing children outside of this country. Boarding a plane to a foreign land is no protection.”

The three men in question are previously convicted sex offenders, a fact that has “reinvigorated support for H.R. 1623, the ‘International Megan’s Law’,” which was first introduced by Representative Chris Smith in March 2009, as TIME reports. The proposed legislation would extend the principles of Megan’s Law into the international arena, mandating that the U.S. alert officials abroad of the travel plans of convicted American sex offenders. The measure is meant to encourage other countries to develop and maintain their own lists of sex offenders, and to share similar travel alerts with American officials.

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Amidst dozens of protesters shouting “There is no justice in Sudan!” the trial of Lubna al-Hussein, the trouser-donning journalist, came to a close yesterday, September 7.

Facing the potential sentence of 40-lashes for indecent clothing, Hussein announced that if convicted, she would request a public flogging in order to demonstrate the inequity of the law.

Wearing the same pants as the day of her arrest, Hussein was found guilty and ordered to pay a fine of $200 or serve a one-month prison term.

Hussein refused to pay to fine, announcing after the hearing that it would mean losing the battle to secure women’s rights in Sudan. “I would rather serve my time in jail,” she said.

Hussein told the Guardian, “I also pray that the next generation will see we had the courage to fight for their future before it was too late.”

Source:
Sudanese woman sent to jail for wearing pant- Guardian
Related:
Trial of Sudanese Trouser-Wearing Journalist Adjourned