30 March 2011; Women's Rights Wednesday

Hey folks; I'm trying out something new and hope to do occasional Women's Rights Wednesday publications here -- let me know what you think and whether you have suggestions for other specific human rights topics I could cover in specialized weekly columns like this one. As always, thanks for your participation and feedback!

Geraldine Ferraro died this past week; she was the first female candidate for Vice President of the United States, running with Walter Mondale in 1984 on the Democratic ticket. That run paved the way for female politicians in local, state and national elections ever since. Her New York Times obituary is online here, the Economist's is here and the Guardian's is here.

AFRICA:

• Egypt = Women must be involved in the rebuilding of Egypt; they were excluded from the official constitutional amendment process on 19^th March, which included the passage of a provision which could be interpreted to mean that only men are eligible for the office of President. Women, who were active and equal participants in the protests and demonstrations, must be included in the parliamentary and presidential elections as both candidates and voters. Citizens – men and women – fought for a free democratic nation and a new Egypt, and all must be included in the nation building. Women demonstrators on International Women's Day were attacked and told to go home and feed their babies, told that they were not proper Egyptians, and “now” is not the time to pursue women's issues. (HRW)

• Egypt = Twice in one week, Egypt? Bummer. But that's what you get when you require female protestors to undergo virginity tests. As an Amnesty rep said, “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.” Having government security forces check your privates to determine whether or not you are sexually active reeks of torture, degradation and discrimination to me. (AI)

• Gambia = A gathering this week brought together leaders, advocates and security officers to discuss the implementation of women's rights in Gambia, on issues including gender-based violence and the Women's Act of 2010. The goal was to educate young people about their rights and the government's obligations toward them. (AA)

• Somalia = A class at the Burtinle Secondary School is involved in a pilot program called the Management of Maturation Project which gives teenagers life-skills classes and tries to prevent school drop-outs, especially of girls. The programming discusses questions such as why girls are most likely to drop out of school (the girls voted for early marriage as the most common reason, while boys thought it was menstruation) and encourages debate in general. (UNICEF)

AMERICAS:

• USA = Walmart is involved in a massive class action suit regarding the allegation that female employees have been subject to a discriminatory policy which determined pay increases and promotion potential. (BHR)

• Guatamala = Canadian company HudBay Minerals is accused in the deaths of eleven indigenous Mayan women who were allegedly gang-raped by mining company security officers, police and military personnel who helped expel the Mayan Q'eqchi community from their homes to make room for HudBay's Fenix mining project. (BHR)

• USA = In Texas, an eleven year old was sexually assaulted on multiple occasions by at least 19 men. Why do we live in world where 19 men think it is ok to have sex with a child? What can we do to address this? (NYT)

EUROPE:

• European Court of Justice = The Court recently decided that it was “inadmissible for car insurance providers to take into account sex-specific differences” in determining insurance rates; men's rates will remain the same and womens rates will increase to match the mens. (ADB)

• UK = The Whitehall government post dedicated to preventing female genital mutilation on girls in the UK is being abolished, to the chagrin of charities and campaigners. Over 20,000 girls in the UK are in danger of having FGM forced upon them. (GRD)

MIDDLE EAST:

• Libya = On 26^th March Attorney Eman al-Obeidi burst into Hotel Rixos in Tripoli where foreign journalists were staying and, appearing bruised and battered, told the journalists that she had been raped by 15 men in Qadaffi's security forces. She had time to show the media her bruised face, thigh, and rope-burn marks on her hands and feet. She was then forcibly removed by security forces and journalists who tried to come to her aid were beaten. She has not been seen since, and the government, which has changed its version of events several times, is investigating her for possible defamation of its forces, claiming she is a mentally ill prostitute (as though that would make the beatings tolerable). Her mother is supporting Eman's claims, saying she is not ashamed of her daughter, but is holding her head up high because her daughter has shown she is willing to break a barrier by talking publicly about being sexually assaulted. She is not the only woman imprisoned, or in danger, as many women who support the rebels have been raped or threatened with rape for their involvement in the protests. (AI, HRW, FIDH)

• If you are on facebook and feel so moved, you can support her cause there.

ALSO OF INTEREST:

• Forbes recently posted this article, on The Power of Investing in Women.

• This event at John Jay College looks interesting: Mona Eltahawy is giving a free lecture on Islam, Women and the American Experience tomorrow, Thursday March 31^st at 6:30pm.

• Sarah Degnan Kambou writes about why she is committed to ending child marriage here.

27 March 2011

AFRICA:

• Egypt = The new law announced this past Thursday which bans “strikes and demonstrations that impede the work of public institutions” is one more blatant example of why the current state of emergency should be immediately revoked; human rights are being subjugated by security concerns (sound familiar?). The current state of emergency is scheduled to be in effect until May 2012. (HRW)

• Ivory Coast = Civil war? Increased fighting has led to more than a million people currently displaced in the capital, Abidjan, and the Western part of the country, with 100,000 refugees in Liberia. The pro-Gbagbo (ousted former president) forces are accused of burning people alive and the pro-Outtara (president-elect) forces are committing extrajudicial executions in the territories under their control. The UN Human Rights Council on Friday decided to send a commission to investigate this post-election violence. (HRW, JURIST)

• Uganda = Human Rights Watch has published a report about the numerous extrajudicial punishments carried out by the Ugandan police Rapid Response Unit, available online at HRW.

AMERICAS:

• Cuba = Yay! Activists Jose Ferrer and Felix Navarro were released from prison on Wednesday after 8 years as part of a deal struck between Raul Castro and the Roman Catholic Church regarding prisoners of conscience. (AI)

• United States = Oh, Bradley Manning. Traitor he may (or may not) be as he has not yet stood trial, but isn't this another chance for us, America, to demonstrate the benefits of our democracy and justice system where all are presumed innocent until proven guilty and the ideals of prisoner care are—no, who am I kidding? Of course, we are keeping him in unreasonable detention conditions. Apparently that's just how we roll … human rights concerns go out the door when our national security is at stake (see Egypt post above). Shame on us. Again. (AI)

ASIA:

• China = Activist and writer Liu Xianbin was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment “for writing articles critical of the government,” the 3^rd time Mr. Liu has been imprisoned for writing about democracy and human rights. Additionally, this week saw the website of the Aizhixing Research Foundation (ARF) shut down by the local government's Municipal Information Office. ARF promotes the human rights of people living with HIV and AIDS. (AI, FIDH)

• Indonesia = Journalist Banjir Ambarita was recently brutally attacked after accusing police officers of sexual abuses, suffering stab wounds to the chest and stomach. The police allegedly participated in the gang-rape of a 15 year old and the repeated sexual assault of a detainee. (FIDH)

• To take action helping to guarantee Mr. Ambarita's safety and carry out a thorough investigation into his stabbing, you may contact Mr. Patrialis Akbar, Minister for Justice and Human Rights, at rohumas@depkehham.go.id

EUROPE:

• Hungary = This week begins the trial of four people accused of killing people of Roma descent in racially-motivated murders. Six people were killed in a series of nine attacks across Hungary, all upon Romani people, in a violent spree of hate-crimes. As recently as 6^th March, the extremist Jobbik Party held an anti-Roma march in the village of Gyongyospata and vigilante groups are continuing to harass local Romani people. (AI)

MIDDLE EAST:

• Syria = Security forces are using live ammunition on activists and detaining peaceful protestors; four days ago, protestors were hit with tear gas and live ammunition, killing at least 34 people. Security forces have also attacked a mosque and possibly at least one ambulance, murdering a doctor. Journalists and bloggers are being detained, and locals fear for their care. Locals are responding peacefully: more than 20,000 people gathered for the funerals of the people killed in the mosque in a show of solidarity. (AJ, HRW, DN)

ALSO OF INTEREST:

• Los Angeles teachers rap about the layoffs; you can listen here, courtesy of anonymous duo Two Teachers & a Microphone. They advocate for community action – if you like what they say and live in Cali, by all means contact your local rep on their behalf.

• The United Nations has released new Guiding Principles on Human Rights for businesses. The Principles create distinct benchmarks rather than legal obligations; the hope is that these Principles will shape operational contexts in the business world. (BHR)

• The Brookings Institution is hosting an event entitled, “Foreign Policies of Emerging-Market Democracies: What Role for Democracy and Human Rights?” on April 14^th and 15^th; info available here.

• Did you celebrate Earth Hour this year? YouTube went silent this Saturday from 8:30 to 9:30pm in each time zone. Did that move have any effect on you? Did you “celebrate” Earth Hour? What does it mean to you? (FC)

13 February 2011

AFRICA:

• Botswana = The Court of Appeal decided what was the 1^st test case of the UN Right to Water Resolution this week. The Kalahari Bushmen will retain legal access to the waters on their ancestral lands. The ruling quoted a UN Report categorizing water as a “fundamental human right.” (PMBZ, COC)

• Egypt = On Thursday, the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights filed a complaint with the Public Prosecutor on behalf of missing detainees and victims of the alleged massacre at Al Qata prison. This filing follows the protestors’ successful movement to force President Mubarak out of office this week in an 18-day-short revolution. (EIPR, FIDH, CHNG)

• You can view an 18-day photo recap of the Egyptian uprising here.

• Tunisia = Yay! Tunisia is abolishing the death penalty and ratifying the 2^nd Additional Protocol to the ICCPR. (HRD)

AMERICAS:

• USA = Civil Unions are now legal in the state of Hawaii after the state’s House of Representatives voted 31-19 in favor of legalization. (ADV)

• USA = Supreme Court Justices Scalia and Thomas may have had conflicts of interest in the Citizens United case (increasing corporations’ allowable election spending), which they failed to disclose. Allegedly, both justices engaged in strategy sessions with key corporate interests in the case and justice Thomas’ wife benefitted financially from the decision. (CHNG)

• You can sign this petition asking the Department of Justice to investigate these claims.

• Venezuela = A group of students is on a hunger strike protesting in front of the Caracas office of the Organization of American States. The students want justice for people who are currently detained, “deprived of their freedom” including Judge Maria Lourdes Afiuni and three members of Parliament. (OAS)

ASIA:

• Afghanistan = The Council of Ministers, which meets every Monday, is debating passing a draft regulation on Women’s Protection Centers. This would give the government control over domestic violence shelters for women and girls in Afghanistan. As the Afghan government is “increasingly dominated by hard-line conservatives who are hostile to the very idea of shelters,” local women and activists fear that passage of this regulation will result in the closure of many shelters and resources for women seeking freedom from their abusive family members. (HRW)

• To take action and contact the council of ministers, click here.

• Thailand = 91 Rohingya people were found on a boat in the Indian-administered Nicobar Islands this week, claiming that the Thai Navy had set them adrift in the boat, without an engine or adequate food and water. People who are Rohingya are a Muslim minority in Burma and have been fleeing to Bangladesh, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia for decades to escape persecution. Three boatloads of refugees have entered Thailand this month; the first boat arrived on January 22^nd and the people aboard are missing and were allegedly “returned to Myanmar by Thai authorities.” (IRIN)

EUROPE:

• Holland = This week, prosecutors and defense attorneys made their closing arguments in the case against Charles Taylor of Liberia in the Special Court for Sierra Leone. The trial has been under way for 3 years and revolves around allegations of murder, rape, and dismemberment committed by Taylor’s rebel groups in Sierra Leone. (OSF, HRD)

MIDDLE EAST:

• Yemen = On Friday morning, protestors gathered in Sana’a, calling for the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh. These protests follow those in Egypt (see above) and also raise concerns about demonstrators’ safety. Yemeni security forces have allegedly been working together with “armed thugs” using tasers against activists, along with clubs, axes, traditional daggers, and sticks, contravening the freedom of assembly. (HRW)

ALSO OF INTEREST:
• The Alliance to End Slavery and Trafficking (ATEST) is launching 2 short public service announcements, “Slavery Lives”, in Times Square. These PSAs come prior to the US governmental debate on whether or not to renew the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA). You can watch the PSAs online here.

• A December 2010 interview with the Islamic Human Rights Commission is now online here at the Institute for Policy Studies’ website.

• The movie, Mrs. Goundo’s Daughter about a Malian immigrant in the US who is seeking asylum so that her daughter will not be subjected to Female Genital Mutilation will be airing on PBS this month.

6 February 2011

AFRICA:

• Egypt = Protests against police brutality and President Mubarak continued this week, despite Egypt’s prior attempts to quash the demonstrations by using live fire against civilian marchers and instituting a nation-wide internet blackout. Egyptian security forces, including the police and the Special Police, have been detaining and abusing Egyptian citizens, activists and journalists, as well as international activists and journalists in an apparent attempt to cover up or at least minimize the reporting of the protests. On Friday, security forces raided a Law Center in Cairo, detaining 30 people including two Amnesty International staff and local human rights activists. (AI, ICTJ)

• Gambia = YAY!! 24 communities in Gambia’s Upper River Region have officially abandoned the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). (AA, GRD)

• Uganda = After last week’s murder of David Kato, a Ugandan gay rights activist, his local colleagues are calling on both the Ugandan government and American evangelicals to take responsibility for the role they played in spreading the homophobia and hate which led to Kato’s death. (CHNG)

· You can sign a petition to “Tell Evangelicals to Condemn the Murder of a Gay Activist in Uganda” here.

AMERICAS:
• USA = Closing arguments are expected this week in the Arizona murder trial of 9 year old Brisenia Flores and her father, Raul in their Arizona home by anti-immigration extremists. The accused vigilante group leader, Shawna Forde, is a former member of the Minuteman Project and was known to espouse her extremist views to such a degree that she was expelled from some civilian border patrol groups. (IPS, WP)

ASIA:
• Bangladesh = Sometimes “village justice” just isn’t – according to the local human rights advocates. 14 year old Hena Akhter died this week after being whipped by her village elders for having “an illicit relationship with a married man.” (GRD)

· The married man in question is her cousin, who found her outside her home in the early evening one night, gagged her with a cloth and beat her senseless. This attack led her cousin Mahbub’s wife Shilpi to accuse Hena of engaging in a relationship Mahbub. This man Mahbub, Hena’s cousin and attacker, had been found guilty of rape before, but the village elders had him marry that woman—Shilpi—to invalidate any shame on Shilpi’s family.

· Justice did not serve Shilpi, forcing her to marry her rapist, and Shilpi used that same justice system, the shalish—a village meeting led by the elders (elder men only?)—to get her revenge on her husband Mahbub.

· How absurd that Hena got caught up in the middle of this; that village elders, village ANYONE, would think it reasonable to give 101 lashes to a 14 year old girl who could barely stand from the beating her cousin Mahbub had given her.

· The only way to turn this into a positive is to put pressure on the Bangladeshi government to enforce its own laws, which make these village-level punishments illegal. You can contact the Supreme Court of Bangladesh here, and the Prime Minister here.

EUROPE:
• European Court of Human Rights = The Court is introducing fees on applications, which many rights groups fear will deter individuals from filing legitimate human rights claims. (PAMB)

ALSO OF INTEREST:
• Cell Phones = Blood Diamonds? Six African Heads of State are backing a certification plan to track and eliminate conflict minerals from being used in electronic devices, much like the processes that were adopted to prevent the trade in conflict diamonds. The four “dirty” minerals are tantalum, tin, tungsten, and gold – regularly used in our cell phones and laptops. This initiative aims to prevent armed groups from reaping the profits of these minerals. (CHNG)

· You can get in on the action, by signing a petition to “Tell the SEC: Keep Conflict Minerals Out of Our Electronics” here.

• The 2^nd Annual Women in the World Summit is happening in New York City this coming March 10^th-12^th. (DB)

• The Draft UN Declaration on Human Rights Education and Training is available online here.

30 January 2011

AFRICA:

• Egypt = This week’s demonstrations and riots against police brutality and against President Mubarak have resulted in at least 33 civilian casualties in Alexandria, with estimates of over 50 people dead in a Cairo morgue -- due to excessive force and live fire on civilian protestors. Additionally, the Egyptian government imposed a nation-wide blackout, shutting down the internet and most phone networks. (HRW, FC, FIDH, AI, HRW)

• Ethiopia = YAY! Two districts in Ethiopia’s Afar Region have outlawed Female Genital Mutilation and Cutting, citing the many health problems it causes women and girls. (IRIN)

• Uganda = David Kato, a prominent activist for LGBT rights in Uganda was killed in his home this past Wednesday. He was the Advocacy Officer for Sexual Minorities Uganda and was an active opponent to the Anti-Homosexuality Bill before Parliament. This Bill would officially criminalize all homosexuality, making offenses punishable by life imprisonment or the death penalty. (HRW)

AMERICAS:
• USA = The state of Pennsylvania’s Superior Court met this Tuesday to hear an appeal regarding whether or not to try Jordan Brown, a 13 year-old boy, as an adult. Jordan allegedly shot and killed his father’s pregnant fiancée when he was 11 years old. Currently, the international human rights community is in almost consistent agreement that putting a minor child on trial for a crime which could result in life imprisonment without a chance for parole, violates international law. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child prohibits this action, but the USA (along with Somalia) has not yet ratified that Convention. (AI, CBS)

ASIA:
• Phillippines = Peace talks are scheduled to resume next month between the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the Phillippine government. Previous negotiations broke down in August 2008 and led to over half a million people being internally displaced. The most contentious topic will likely be Ancestral Domain in disputed territories. (AST)

EUROPE:
• UK = The UK high court—perhaps in response to the killing of David Kato (see above)—granted 29 year-old Ugandan Brenda Namiggade a temporary stay, rather than being deported home on Friday, as was originally intended. Ms. Namiggade is a Ugandan national and a lesbian who has been petitioning for asylum in the UK since 2002. (ADV)

ALSO OF INTEREST:
• The Danish Institute for Human Rights, with the UN, has published The Arc of Human Rights Priorities, a guide developed for businesses looking to integrate human rights practices into their internal management.

· “The Arc builds upon the Sphere of Influence concept, and is designed to allow companies to focus their resources on the most urgent human rights issues in their operations.” (BHR)

• TED Talks go old-school, sort of … you can now read several of their talks on your Kindle. TED Talks are publishing short (10,000 to 20,000 word) electronic books by authors who have given Talks. The launch is 3 TED favorites, including The Happiness Manifesto, for $2.99 each. (FC)

23 February 2009

AFRICA:

• Opportunity to TAKE ACTION:
• Sign the “Africa for Women’s Rights” Declaration here! This campaign's aim is to call on African states to ratify international and regional women's human rights protection instruments and to respect them in law and practice. (AWID)
• Democratic Republic of the Congo = Activists call for the UN to take action to stop rebel massacres in Eastern DRC by deploying more troops there. (AT, HRW)
• Egypt = Opposition leader Nour has been released from jail (after being held for 3 years) and plans to continue his political career. (AT, AJ, DN)
• Egypt = Dia' el Din Gad, a 23 year old student blogger critical of Egypt’s policy towards Gaza is at risk of torture since his February 6^th arrest. (AI)
• Ethiopia = introduces a law against marriage under the age of 18, as part of new family planning laws. Yay! (BBC)
• World Vision Ethiopia’s Amhara province office advocated for this law and explains the need for it thus: girls = economic burden = married off early = not ready for childbirth physically = fistula = pain, shame, death. You can listen to the BBC-World Vision interview here. (BBC, WVR)
• Swaziland = Yay! Attorney Mary-Joyce Doo Aphane has filed a lawsuit to compel the government to overturn a discriminatory law which prohibits women from registering property under their own name. This case will challenge whether the courts will uphold the Constitutional provisions guaranteeing equality for women. (AWID)

MIDDLE EAST:

• Afghanistan = Detainees at Bagram will not have the Constitutional right to challenge their imprisonment in any US court. Boo! (MSNBC)
• Iran = The government is targeting Iranian activists … perhaps with the goal of forestalling a larger human and/or civil rights movement in Iran.
• Shirin Ebadi, a human rights activist and 2003 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, has been harassed, and two Iranian doctors focusing on HIV have been imprisoned and sentenced to prison terms of 3 and 6 years (see previous posts for more info on them). This is extending beyond these well-known advocates, however, and it is unclear how far-reaching this oppression will broaden or how long it will continue. It’s clearly a situation to keep our eyes on. (NPR)

CULTURAL:

• American author Greg Mortensen, author of Three Cups of Tea is now volunteering for the US military to do cultural sensitivity training in Afghanistan. You can listen to his interview with PRI here. (PRI)
• Iraq = Nadje al-Ali has written a book entitled, What Kind of Liberation? Women and the Occupation of Iraq. She examines how Iraqi women have managed since the US invasion of March 2003. It’s not a pretty picture. (GUA)
• Sudan = Jerry Fowler of Save Darfur, an alliance of 180 orgs, gave a comprehensive 15 minute interview—including the background of the current conflict in Darfur, as well as the current nature of the conflict. You may want to check this out because the ICC is deliberating issuing an arrest warrant for Sudan’s president, al Bashir. Fowler discusses the politics behind the fighting and looks forward to what activists can and will achieve in Darfur. "Need a peace surge." - JP (USHMM)
• You can listen here.

Human Rights Round Up Jan 20, 2009

Middle East:
- Of biggest concern in the Middle East currently is Israel's current and continuing attacks on Palestine. Human Rights Watch and Democracy Now are both reporting on Israel's alleged use of white phosphorous and DIME weapons -- both terrible weapons, causing unnecessary civilian deaths. At this point, one of every three Palestinians killed in under 18 years old.
The United Nations Security Council voted 14-0 (with the United States' abstension) to pass a resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire, which Israel has not yet obeyed.
Avi Schleim, a prominent Israel-Palestine expert is calling for an end to Israel's campaigns, citing human rights abuses. He alleges that Israel failed to fulfill its obligations during the ceasefire (Israel failed to lift the blockade on goods including medical supplies and food). Additionally, the Israel Defense Force (IDF) broke the cease fire first, on November 4th, 2008, killing four men in Gaza.
According to Richard Falk, esteemed international human rights scholar, the International Court of Justice is considering taking a case against Israel both for its attacks on Gaza, and because the IDF has allegedly been blocking aid ships and the media from Gaza. World Vision is confirming that journalists are being excluded from the Gaza Strip.
The Guardian is reporting that Shifa Hospital, in Gaza, is filled mainly with wounded civilians, not Hamas militants. There is a shortage of medical supplies and drugs. The ambulances are getting so many calls that they often cannot stop for the wounded.
As peace talks are scheduled in Egypt, it is important to note that Egypt, after Israel, is the second highest donor country in terms of United States aid. Will Hamas get a fair deal from these talks, considering that the United States recognizes Hamas as a terrorist organization?

Africa:
- Charles Taylor's son, Chuckie Taylor, has been convicted for torture in a Florida court.

Americas:
- Lori Berenson, imprisoned in Peru, has been moved to a prsion in Lima during her difficult pregnancy.
- Leonard Peltier, imprisoned since 1975 for an incident involving two white officers at Wounded Knee, has also been moved to a different prison.