WOMEN, PEACE AND SECURITY NEWS archive: NIGERIA
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2006

First female governor in Nigeria
November 03, 2006 – (BBC) Virginia Etiaba has been sworn in as Nigeria's first female governor after Anambra state legislature impeached Peter Obi for gross misconduct. She had been deputy governor in the south-eastern state and initially refused to take the position. Mr Obi said he would not leave office and civil rights groups have criticised the whole process as unconstitutional. A BBC correspondent says the battle could get more volatile if supporters of the two sides take to the streets.

No true democracy without women participation— OBASANJO
October 28, 2006 - (Vanguard) For democracy to strive and make meaningful impact in the country, there must be an appreciable number of women in all spheres of life including the top decision making positions in Nigeria, President Olusegun Obasanjo said at the weekend.

Nigeria: Curbing Armed Violence Against Women
August 08, 2006 – (This Day) Reports have revealed that there are an estimated 650 million small arms in the world today. Nearly 60 percent of them are in the hands of private individuals, most of them men. The vast majority of those who make, sell, buy, own, use or misuse small arms are men, which does not portray good for the world's teeming female population. In Africa, small arms, which include rifles, pistolsand light machine guns, are filling African graves in ever-increasing numbers, from the killing fields of Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo to the streets of Lagos and Johannesburg.

Nigeria: Odili Stresses Need for Peace
August 03, 2006 – (Daily Champion) Governor Peter Odili of Rivers State has said "no meaningful development and sustainable development can take place in Nigeria without the enthronement of peace and justice." Dr Odili stated this in a keynote address at the opening of two-day conference on "Democracy, Security and Development: Implications for the Oil and Gas Industry in the Niger Delta"organized by the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA) and the Centre for Advanced Social Science (CASS) at the Hotel Presidential, Port Harcourt, the state capital.

Nigerian leaders have been unfair to Ndi Igbo, says Mrs. Oyibo Odinamadu
July 24, 2006 – (Vanguard) Mrs. Oyibo Odinamadu, an icon of politics, civil rights and women’s movement, made a name for herself as a leader of various women’s organizations and as a public servant in Nigeria. She was especially active in the founding of the National Council for Women Societies (NCWS) and was president of the Eastern Nigeria Council from 1958 until she joined active partisan politics in 1978.
Nigeria: Women Groups Meet On Arms Proliferation
June 13, 2006 – (AllAfrica) Women groups under the aegis of Women in Peace-building program (WIPNET) of the West Africa Network for Peace-building (WANEP) have called on the Federal Governmentto enact a law making un-approved arms importation into Nigeria a criminal offence; and to enact a bill to monitor accountability in arms transaction in government security agencies.

2005

Courageous Mothers of Nigeria
December 29, 2005 - (This Day - Lagos) The Concerned Mothers of Nigeria and the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo in Argentina live many miles apart in different worlds. Yet they have something in common. From their separate continents in Africa and South America they took a stance that is making the history books: to change to the way issues of life and death are being handled in their different countries.

NIGHTMARE FOR AFRICA WOMEN: BIRTHING INJURY AND LITTLE HELP
September 28, 2005- (New York Times) Dr. Kees Waaldijk began surgery shortly before 10 a.m. one recent Saturday in a cement-walled operating room in this city near Nigeria's northern border. More than five hours later, orderlies carried the last of four girls to the recovery ward. In the near-90 degree heat, Dr. Waaldijk's light blue surgical garb had turned dark with sweat.
"We are finished for the day," he barked.

Annan canvasses women empowerment against environmental degradation
June 17, 2005 - (Vanguard) United Nations Secretary-General, Mr Kofi Annan, has called on member-states to pledge the empowerment of women and engage them as full partners in global efforts to address the vital challenge of desertification.

Nigeria: Level of violence against women in the home shockingly high
31 May 2005 - (AI) Up to two-thirds of women in certain communities in Lagos State, Nigeria are believed to have experienced physical, sexual or psychological violence in the family, with neither the Lagos government nor the Federal government doing anything to stem the tide of violence – and in some cases even condoning it, said Amnesty International at a press conference today launching a new report, Nigeria: Unheard voices – violence against women in the family.

Women Urged to Embrace Anti-Arms Proliferation Campaign
May 24, 2005 - (This Day) As Nigerian women join their counterparts the world over, to mark the International Women's Day for Peace and Disarmament, Women in Peacebuilding Network (WIPNET - Nigeria) has called on all women groups to join in the campaign to curb violence and arms proliferation.

Time to Give Women Voice
May 9, 2005 - (This Day) Women Organisations For Representative National Conference (WORNACO), an umbrella organisation founded with a mission to dismantle all structures and barriers that promote discrimination against women in Nigeria, recently held a one-day strategic meeting to discuss their engagement with the Confab and to also set agenda for the proposed Women's Summit slated for June 2005.

...as Agitation for Gender Equality Gathers Momentum
May 2, 2005 - (This Day) Shortly before President Olusegun Obasanjo inaugurated the National Political Reform Conference (NPRC), there were great expectations among women that the era of discrimination against them would soon be a thing of the past.

A World Without Women, Men Must...
April 20, 2005 - (This Day - Lagos) It is to imagine a world without women. But the continuous denial of women's basic rights and other various forms of abuse on women tend towards such an undeclared world without women. To reduce if not totally eradicate these imbalances, the United Nations (UN) set aside March 8 to mark the International Women's Day.

Extolling Women's Rights in Sharia
April 14, 2005 - (Daily Trust - Abuja) The days of 29th and 30th March, 2005 are historic to the women folk in northern Nigeria. They were the days when a two-day conference was held with the theme: "Promoting women's right through Sharia in Northern Nigeria," organised by Centre for Islamic Legal Studies Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, with the support of Security, Justice and Growth Programme Department for International Development, U.K (DFID).

On Discrimination Against Women
April 12, 2005 - (Daily Champion - Lagos) In her debriefing statement to media chief executives and gender reporters on the outcome of the 4th and 5th session of the Convention on Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), the Honourable Minister for Women Affairs Obong Rita Akpan spoke at length on the importance of media in accomplishing her ministry's tasks.

International Women's Day: Tinubu Preaches Gender Equality
March 9, 2005 - (Daily Trust - Abuja) The issue of gender equality and campaign against all forms of discrimination against women and girl child on Tuesday attracted attention as women across Lagos joined their counterparts all over the world to mark the 2005 International Women's Day.

'Insist on women's rights'
February 15, 2005- (News24.com - SA) Women rights activist Graca Machel Mandela, the wife of former South African President, on Monday urged African women here to insist on respect of gender equality by governments in their respective countries.

Rape On the Increase
February 4, 2005 - (Daily Champion - Lagos) Three years ago, 2002, Police statistics showed that four to six females were raped daily in Lagos. But 60 per cent of rapes in the area was said to be unreported officially. Subsequent official and newspaper reports indicate that the frequency of rape, especially of minors, has rapidly increased nationwide, particularly in such cities as Lagos, Enugu and Cross River State. By official estimate, 70 per cent of the cases was not reported officially.

Women Storm Abuja, Want Gender Issues On AU Agenda - Interview
January 30, 2005 - (Vanguard - Lagos) TOP on the African Summit of the Presidents due to start today in Abuja would be such issues as health, food security and environmental degradation. But a coalition of 19 women's groups under the banner of Solidarity for African Women Rights are in the Federal Capital City saying issues of women's rights also need to be highlighted.

Education: Nigeria Faces Challenges to Gender Parity in Basic Education
January 13, 2005 - (Vanguard - Lagos) Nigeria is a signatory to the international agreement reached on the elimination of gender disparities in primary and secondary education by the year 2005 which has just rolled in. This is sequel to achieving the target of education for all by 2015 which still remains a tall order for the Federal Government, even with ten years away.

2004

Unionist Charges Women On Gender Issues
December 25, 2004 - (This Day - Lagos) The International Confede-ration of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU-AFRO) has said that gender mainstreaming would bring about positive changes to Africa.

WRITA's Campaign Against Gender Violence
December 6, 2004 - (This Day - Lagos) Women Writers of Nigeria (WRITA) joined other organisations especially women all over the world in commemorating the International day for Elimination of Violence Against Women.

Minister Decries Violence On Women, Children
November 22, 2004 - (This Day - Lagos) Minister for Women Affairs Obong Rita Akpan, has expressed displeasure at the recent mayhem in Anambra state where property worth millions of naira was destroyed stressing that as usual women and children are at the receiving end in every conflict situation.

Death by stoning sentence overturned
November 10, 2004 - (The Guardian) An Islamic appeal court in Nigeria today overturned a sentence of death by stoning handed down to a 29-year-old pregnant woman for having sex out of wedlock. Hajara Ibrahim was convicted of adultery in September this year with her capital sentence suspended until after she gave birth. She lodged her appeal one week ago.

Medical Women Focus On Domestic Violence
November 4, 2004 - (Daily Champion - Lagos) Dangers associated with domestic violence was roundly discussed at a two-day workshop organised by Medical Women's Association of Nigeria, Lagos State Chapter. The workshop which took place at Cumberland Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, attracted about 500 women.

MASSOB Women Allege 'Killer Squad'
October 5, 2004 - (Daily Champion - Lagos) Women's wing of the Movement for Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) yesterday called for the immediate release of over 1,000 members of the organization languishing in police cells and prisons nationwide.

Violence Against Women: Project Alert, UNIFEM Battle Age-Long Social Ill
September 16, 2004 - (Daily Champion - Lagos) IN continuation of it's campaign against violence against women, project Alert in conjunction with United Nation's Funds for Women (UNIFEM) held a two-day workshop recently in Akwa-Ibom State.

GOOD HEALTH: NIGERIAN WOMEN NEED BETTER POST ABORTION CARE SERVICES
September 7, 2004 – In Nigeria where abortion is illegal and the criminal code strictly prohibits any form of procurement of abortion except in saving the life of a woman, there are indications that induced abortion is still widely practiced.

THOUSANDS STILL DISPLACED THREE MONTHS AFTER RELIGIOUS CLASHES
August 18, 2004 - (IRIN) Three months after a spate of Muslim attacks on Christians in Kano, the largest city in northern Nigeria, thousands of people are still displaced from their homes and in dire need of shelter.

WHAT ROLE FOR WOMEN IN PEACE BUILDING?
August 4, 2004 - (This Day) Over the years, women have been relegated to the background in the area of peace building, whereas, they bear most of the negative consequences of violent conflicts. Andrew Ahiante writes on the new focus to engage their participatory role in decision making and execution in peace building and conflict resolution.

TRIBUTE: MARGARET EKPO, THE DOYEN OF WOMEN EMANCIPATION AT 90
August 1, 2004 - (Vanguard) She will be quick to tell you that she did not lead the Aba market riot of 1929. But she will not hesitate to tell you that she formed the Aba Market Women Association in 1946 According to her, in her autobiography, Breaking Barriers, she said the riot took place when she was only 15 years old and so, could not have led the riot.

ME AND MY WORK: BUILDING NETWORKS FOR WOMEN, EMPOWERS THEM - NMA ODI
August 1, 2004 - (Vanguard) Rural Women Empowerment Network (RUWEN) is a non-governmental organization formed as a result of the increased necessity to empower women at the grassroots level. It became necessary to sensitize, empower and educate women at the grassroots because of the flagrant abuses they have been subjected to.

WOMEN SHOULD BE INVOLVED IN PEACE BUILDING
July 22, 2004 - (Daily Champion) The need to involve women in peace building process took the centre stage at a two-day media workshop organised by West Africa Network for Peace Building in Nigeria (WANEP).

EBONYI WOMEN SEEK 30% ELECTIVE POSITIONS
June 12, 2004 – (Daily Champion) Women in Ebonyi State have called on political parties in Nigeria to always reserve 30 per cent of all elective positions for women.

OBASANJO, ATIKU WIN AWARDS FOR WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
June 12, 2004 – (This Day) The National Women Committee of ruling Peoles Democratic Party (PDP), has given awards of encouragement to President Olusegun Obasanjo, Vice President Atiku Abubakar and governors of five states for empowering women in their area of influence.

UNICEF URGES NIGERIA TO EDUCATE GIRLS
June 7, 2004 – (UN Wire) The UNICEF deputy country representative in Nigeria last week blamed a lack of education for a recent spate of crises plaguing the country.

'CONFERENCE TO CHART WOMEN'S PATH IN AFRICA '
April 26, 2004 – (This Day - Lagos) Chairperson of Women Trafficking and Child Labour Eradication Foundation (WOTCLEF) and convener of the African Women Conference, Mrs. Amina Titi Atiku Abubakar has said the conference is meant to reposition Africa and write a new chapter in the history of African women.

THOUSANDS OF NIGERIAN CHILDREN VICTIMS OF TRAFFICKING EACH YEAR
April 14, 2004 – (UN Wire) An estimated 200,000 Nigerian children are forcibly taken from their homes and put to work each year, many of them as young as 5 or 6, the London Independent reported yesterday.

CENTRE ENCOURAGES WOMEN PARTICIPATION IN POLITICS
April 9, 2004 – (This Day - Lagos) As part of efforts to encourage women's participation in politics in 2007 and beyond, the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) has advised all registered political parties to ensure that party constitution include provisions on affirmative action for women with a minimum of 30 per cent representation in the nomination of candidates for party primaries, elective and appointive positions, as well as offices within the party.

WOMEN URGED TO USE CONDOM AGAINST STDS
April 2, 2004 – (This Day - Lagos) Deputy Governor of Osun State, Erelu Olusola Obada has said that the recent introduction of female condom would protect women against being infected with the deadly HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.

LAGOS TRAINS 2,000 WOMEN IN VOCATIONAL SKILLS
April 2, 2004 – (This Day -Lagos) In its determination to train and empower women towards alleviating poverty, Lagos State Government has successfully concluded the training of about 2,000 women in various vocational skills to enable them be self-reliant and improve their standard of living.

HUMAN TRAFFICKING, BLOW TO NIGERIA
February 27, 2004 – (This Day - Lagos) The President and founder of Women Trafficking and Child Labour Eradication Foundation (WOTCLEF), Chief Mrs. Amina Titi Atiku Abubakar has described human trafficking as a major factor that affects the country's image.

GOVERNMENT SETS UP AGENCY TO TACKLE HUMAN TRAFFICKING
February 26, 2004 – (Vanguard - Lagos) National agency against trafficking in human beings has been established. Announcing this at the University of Lagos Tuesday, Mrs Titi Atiku Abubakar, wife of the vice president and chairperson Women Trafficking and Child Labour Eradication Foundation (WOTCLEF) said the agency would henceforth take responsibility for the enforcement of laws against trafficking in persons, investigate and prosecute persons suspected to be engaged in trafficking in persons and for other matters connected therewith.

POLICE LOSE SEVEN FEMALE MOPOL
February 24, 2004 – (Daily Trust (Abuja) The women squadron of the Nigeria Mobile Police Force, Abuja, is battling to unravel the mystery surrounding the death of seven members of the squad in less than one year.

NIGERIA’S FIRST SUMMIT ON REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH CALLS FOR IMPROVEMENTS IN REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH
February 19, 2004 – (IPPF News) The News Agency of Nigeria reported that the rate of maternal morality in Nigeria is one of the highest in the world; it is reported to be at a rate of 800 deaths per 100 000 pregnant women.

NIGERIA: THE DEATH PENALTY AND WOMEN UNDER THE NIGERIAN PENAL SYSTEMS
February 10, 2004 – (Amnesty International) The death penalty as applied in Nigeria violates fundamental human rights and is sometimes used in a discriminatory way against women, Amnesty International said today in a new and its first report on women and the death penalty entitled: "Nigeria: The death penalty and women under the Nigerian penal systems. To see more articles on the report, go to UN wire, Allafrica, Feminist Majority.

FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION: A VANQUISHED TRADITION ?
February 8, 2004 – (This Day News) Mrs. Abigail John (not her real name) is a Lagos-based housewife, who has just delivered her first child - a baby girl. She was so happy because she wanted a girl as first child as her close confidants revealed later. On the day of the christening, there was a lavish party for the first child of the family.

NIGER: LEGAL BAN ON FEMALE CIRCUMCISION WIDELY IGNORED
February 6, 2004 - (UN Integrated Regional Information Networks) Niger's Minister for Social Development and Women's Affairs called on Friday for a government crackdown of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), widely known as female circumcision.

ANALYST STRESSES IMPORTANCE OF GENDER EQUITY
February 5, 2004 – (Daily Champion - Lagos) A gender analyst, M.S Okwuchi Kasali, has stressed the importance of gender equity, saying that it will promote women's economic security and contribute to the eradication of poverty among women.

'INJUSTICE, BANE OF REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH SYSTEM'
February 5, 2004 – (This Day - Lagos) The continued rise in cases of reproductive ill-health, and preventable pregnancy-related deaths and disabilities have been hinged on the social structures and traditions which defy reforms and remedy via legal challenges or enacted laws that would advance the goals of justice and equality of victims of such abuses.

2003

WRAPA DEMANDS STIFFER PUNISHMENT FOR RAPISTS
December 18, 2003 – (Daily Trust - Abuja) The increasing rate of sexual abuses against women has been attributed to lack of proper legal provision to punish offenders to serve as deterrent to the public.

BACKERS OF WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
December 15, 2003 – (P.M. News - Lagos) Women under the auspices of Justice, Development and Peace Commission (JDPC), in collaboration with Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) and Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre (WARDC), gathered in Ijebu-Ode recently to chart the way forward for Nigerian women.

'WOMEN, CHILDREN TARGET OF RIGHTS VIOLATION'
December 15, 2003 – (This Day - Lagos) Women and children have been identified as those prominently vulnerable to human rights violation occassioned by their being disadvantaged in terms of rights protection.

GROUP DECRIES UPSURGE IN VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
December 8, 2003 – (This Day - Lagos) Women all over the country have condemned the increasing rate of violent attacks upon their gender such as rape and murder.

RESIST INTIMIDATION, WOMEN POLITICIANS TOLD
December 2, 2003 - (Daily Trust - Abuja) The National Women Leader of the PDP, Mrs Josephine Anenih, has urged women politicians to resist intimidation and face political challenges squarely.

ADDRESSING THE RISING POPULATION OF WOMEN-LED HOUSEHOLDS
November 27, 2003 – (Daily Trust - Abuja) The rising of women-led households and the predicament of this group of women in the society came under searchlight at a seminar organised by the information and support centre for women and children, recently in Jos.

MEDIACON ADVOCATES FOR WOMEN, CHILDREN
November 25, 2003 – (Vanguard - Lagos) THE media in Nigeria has been tasked to focus more on health issues as they concern women and children in the country. Throwing the challenge in Lagos last week, Media Concern for Women and Children (MEDIACON) - a media-based not for profit organization, working in the field of sexuality and reproductive health / rights incorporating developmental issues, noted that the media owed society a social responsibilty by reporting development issues from the perspective of women.

COMMISSIONER WANTS MORE WOMEN IN GOVERNANCE
November 25, 2003 – (This Day - Lagos) Ebonyi State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Ugo Nnachi has said that women are more responsible, competent and effective in public office than their male counterparts and canvases that more women should be given higher responsibilities so that they would have the opportunity to positively transform the nation.

PUBLIC OFFICE: WOMEN MORE COMPETENT - COMMISSIONER
November 23, 2003 – (This Day - Lagos) Ebonyi State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Ugo Nnachi has said that women were more responsible, competent and effective in public office than their male counterparts and canvassed that more women should be given higher responsibilities so that they would have the opportunity to positively transform the nation.

NIGERIA, ITALY AGREE TO COOPERATE AGAINST HUMAN TRAFFICKING
November 14, 2003 – (UN Wire) With the assistance of the U.N. Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute, Italy's anti-mafia chief prosecutor and the Nigerian minister of justice signed an agreement Tuesday to promote cooperation between their two governments regarding human trafficking, one of several new efforts to halt the illegal trade in Western Europe.

NEW ZEAL FOR SHARIA PENALTIES REFLECTS POLITICAL CLIMATE, SAYS RIGHTS ACTIVIST
November 13, 2003 – (allAfrica.com Interview) In late September this year, people all over the world breathed a sigh of relief after a Nigerian Sharia court upheld the appeal of Amina Lawal against her conviction for adultery. The intensity of the international reaction related to her punishment. Lawal was found guilty and sentenced in 2001 to death by stoning, a penalty that astounded and appalled many. But on September 25 the appeal judges held that pregnancy outside of marriage is not proof of adultery, that Lawal's alleged confession was no confession in law, and, that her rights of defence had not been properly recognised by the lower courts.

NATIONAL COUNCIL OF WOMEN SOCIETIES TASKS GOV ON SECURITY, PEACE
November 13, 2003 – (This Day - Lagos) The National Council of Women Societies (NCWS) has called on the Lagos State government to tackle potential areas of conflicts, ethnic or otherwise, that may lead to a break down of law and order in the state. NCWS made the call in Lagos yesterday, at a conference it organised in collaboration with Centre for Development and Population Activities (CEDPA) and United States Agency for Information and Development (USAID).

PDP HAS FAILED THE NATION - ANPP WOMEN LEADER
November 11, 2003 – (This Day - Lagos) The National Women Leader of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) Hajia Muinat Obalowu has scored the ruling Peoples Democratic party (PDP) low in performance, declaring that the party has failed the nation.

A POLITICAL AGENDA FOR NIGERIAN WOMEN
November 6, 2003 – (Daily Trust - Abuja) Forty-three years after Nigeria's independence, there are still fears that increased participation by women in governance is being threatened by practise already discarded by other democracies.

GROUP LAMENTS UNDER-REPRESENTATION OF FEMALES IN LEADERSHIP
October 26, 2003 – (This Day - Lagos) The Executive Director, Female Leadership Forum (FLF), Barrister Comfort Idika-Ogunye has lamented the under-representation of females in leadership positions of all the tertiary institutions across the country, which she noted was less than two per cent.

WOMEN AFFAIRS MINISTER HARPS ON PRIORITY ISSUES
October 17, 2003 – (Daily Trust - Abuja) The Minister of Women Affairs and Youth Development, Obong Rita Akpan, has told state commissioners for Women Affairs to tackle priority issues in their areas.

NO NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT WITHOUT WOMEN - TINUBU
October 13, 2003 – (Daily Trust - Abuja) Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has described women as vital and indispensable resources for the social, economic and political development of any nation.

'ISLAM ACCORDS MEN, WOMEN EQUAL STATUS'
October 13, 2003 – (This Day - Lagos) They all have one thing in common, the determination to liberate Muslim women, who they claim, were still relegated to the background in utter disregard for their rights and priviledges as set forth in the Islamic legal code, Sharia.

PSD SALUTES JUDGEMENT ON AMINA LAWAL
October 7, 2003 – (Daily Trust - Abuja) The Party for Social Democracy (PSD), a.k.a Labour Party, has commended the recent decision of the Sharia Court of Appeal, Katsina, in the case of Amina Lawal who was charged for committing adultery and having a baby out of wedlock.

NIGERIA: WOMEN GROUP CALLS FOR REVIEW OF SHARIA
October 2, 2003 – (This Day - Lagos) Nigerians have been enjoined, as part of the 43rd independence anniversary package, to take a second look at the implementation of Sharia, the Islamic legal code, particular as it relates to women and their rights.

NIGERIAN MUSLIMS SUPPORT HARSH PUNISHMENT
October 2, 2003 - (AP) One man stole a goat, another a cow, another two bicycles. Each had a hand cut off by order of Islamic courts.

AMINA LAWAL: SHEKARAU LAUDS VERDICT
October 1, 2003 – (This Day – Lagos) Governor Ibrahim Shekarau of Kano State yesterday applauded the September 25, ruling of the Katsina State Sharia Court of Appeal which acquitted Aminal Lawal of charges of adultery. According to him, the verdict showed that the Sharia law is all about justice.

SHARIA STILL WRENCHES NIGERIA
September 29, 2003 – (CSM) In the northern Nigerian town of Katsina, Muslims preparing for afternoon prayer filled tins and colorful plastic teapots with water from three large earthenware pots opposite the town's main mosque.

WOMEN TAKE OVER OIL RIG IN NIGER DELTA
September 29, 2003 – (Vanguard - Lagos) WOMEN from Ikebiri community in Apoi-Olodiama local government area of Bayelsa State have taken over an oil rig (Bintanc Kalamatani) belonging to Farashole Drilling, working for the Nigeria Agip Oil Company. The women, numbering about five hundred, most of them elderly are protesting against Agip for not implementing parts of the agreement it signed with the community five years ago.

NIGERIAN WOMAN AVOIDS STONING DEATH
September 25, 2003 - (AP) A single mother facing death by stoning for adultery had her sentence overturned by an Islamic appeals court Thursday in a case that has sparked international outrage.

AMINA LAWAL'S DEATH SENTENCE QUASHED AT LAST BUT QUESTIONS REMAIN ABOUT DISCRIMINATORY LEGISLATION
September 25, 2003 – (Amnesty International) Amnesty International welcomes the decision today by the Sharia Court of Appeal of Katsina State, in northern Nigeria to quash Amina Lawal's sentence to death by stoning handed down by a Sharia court at Bakori, in Katsina State on 22 March 2002.

AKUME SWEARS IN 4 WOMEN PERMANENT SECRETARIES
September 23, 2003 – (Vanguard - Lagos) Benue State Governor, Mr. George Akume, has sworn in eight Permanent Secretaries, four of them women, with a pledge that the state is poised to encourage women in the state to achieve the ultimate in their chosen careers.

OBASANJO DECRIES LOW STATUS OF WOMEN IN W/AFRICA
September 16, 2003 – (This Day - Lagos) President Olusegun Obasanjo yesterday in Abuja expressed regrets that though women in the West African sub-region were dominating the informal and service sector and making in road into the industrial sector as entrepreneurs, such contributions were hardly recognised becuase they still had gender barriers.

N25 MILLION EARMARKED FOR WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
September 16, 2003 – (Daily Trust - Abuja) Over N25 million has been earmarked for the training and economic empowerment of women in various vocational studies by the Lagos state government.

ANC WOMEN TO VISIT OVER AMINA LAWAL
September 12, 2003 – (Daily Trust - Abuja) The women's league of the African National Congress (ANC) has announced that it would send a delegation to Nigeria this month to meet President Olusegun Obasanjo over Amina Lawal.

WOMEN IN NIGERIA (WIN) WANTS MORE WOMEN IN KADUNA GOVERNMENT
September 9, 2003 – (Daily Trust - Abuja) The Kaduna State chapter of Women in Nigeria (WIN) has called on the state House of Assembly to reject Governor Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi's nominees for commissioners and insist that more women be included.

MARKAFI REACTS TO ACCUSATIONS OF MARGINALISATION BY WOMEN
September 9, 2003 – (Vanguard - Lagos) KADUNA State Governor, Alhaji Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi has denied allegations of marginalisation of women in appointments into sensitive positions in the state.

NEW INFORMATION CONCERNING CASE OF AMINA LAWAL WHO WAS SENTENCED TO DEATH BY STONING BY A SHARIA COURT
August 28, 2003 – (World Organisation Against Torture Press Release) According to information received, on 27 August 2003, an Islamic court of appeal in Katsina State heard arguments with respect to the appeal of Amina Lawal, who was charged with adultery in March 2002 and sentenced to death by stoning. Ms. Lawal's appeal has been postponed multiple times since last August when a court upheld the death sentence (see OMCT appeal 250302.4 VAW). After hearing arguments, the court announced that it would issue its judgment on September 25, 2003. The judges also reaffirmed that, if convicted, Ms. Lawal, who was charged based on the birth of her child after she was divorced, should not be stoned until she has weaned her baby, Wasila, in January 2004.

IJAW WOMEN CONDEMN WARRI CRISIS, BLAME GOVERNMENT
August 26, 2003 – (Vanguard – Lagos) Ijaw women of Niger Delta have condemned the renewed spate of violence in Warri and blamed the federal and Delta state governments for not putting a stop to the unending crisis.

OBASANJO APPOINTS DIRECTOR FOR WOMEN ANTI-TRAFFICKING AGENCY
August 8, 2003 – (Daily Trust -Abuja) The war against human trafficking gathered momentum yesterday with the appointment of Mrs Carol Ndaguba as the executive secretary of a newly established National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons by President Olusegun Obasanjo.

WOMEN ACTIVISTS TAKE CONTROL OF SHELL FACILITY
August 5, 2003 – (Vanguard - Lagos) Women toting babies and stirring cooking pots are occupying a Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) oil installation in a peaceful demonstration amid surging ethnic violence in the restive Niger Delta.

EXPERTS EXAMINE OBSTACLES TO WOMEN POLITICIANS
July 30, 2003 – (This Day – Lagos) Nigerian women have been urged to take active part in politics by aspiring for any elective position where they can add value to national leadership. The call was made at the openning session of a seminar on: 'Gender, Power and Political Leadership in Nigeria, Overcoming Barriers to Women's Emergence as Leaders' held in Lagos, yesterday.

WOMEN ACTIVISTS CONTROL NIGERIAN OIL SITE
July 29, 2003 - (AP) Toting babies and stirring cooking pots, village women are occupying a Shell Oil installation in a peaceful demonstration amid surging ethnic violence in Nigeria's restive oil delta. For a related IRIN story, click here.

NIGERIAN WOMEN STAGE PEACEFUL PROTEST
July 29, 2003 – (Feminist Daily News Wire) A group of 80 Nigerian village women, ranging from 25 to 60 years old, took over a Shell Oil pipeline station last week in a peaceful demonstration, reiterating calls for employment opportunities, infrastructural development, and microcredit lending programs from the multinational corporation. "Our children and our husbands... have never been employed by the company. We want to know: Why [Shell] should continue operating here?" protest leader Bessie Orhorhe told the Associated Press. The women, who gained occupation of the pumping station after driving employees out and replacing the locks, forced Shell to shut down facility operations, resulting in a daily loss of 40,000 barrels of crude oil.

TOWARDS A GENDER SENSITIVE CONSTITUTION
May 14, 2003 – (This Day-Lagos) A cross section of Nigerians recently converged at the University of Ibadan to look at the 1999 constitution and how to make it women friendly.

NIGERIAN STONING TRIAL DELAY
March 25, 2003 – (BBC Nigeria) An appeal, due to begin in northern Nigeria for a Muslim woman convicted of adultery and sentenced to death by stoning, has been postponed because the judges failed to turn up.

TACKLING THE SEX SLAVE TRADE IN NIGERIA
March 2, 2003 – (The Observer- Commentary by United States Under-Secretary of State Paula Dobriansky) Mercy escaped her slavers last year. Like many Nigerian women smuggled or lured into Italy with the promise of jobs, Mercy was forced into prostitution to earn her freedom. But escape did not end her nightmare. Three weeks after speaking publicly to human rights groups about her experience, her sister was reported dead in Florence, true to the threats made by her former captors.

DEMOCRACY, WOMEN'S RIGHTS AND SHARIA LAW IN NIGERIA
January 23, 2003 – (Pambazuka Editorial) The emergence of a more democratic polity in Nigeria demands a redefinition of the relationship between citizens and the state. While the essence of military or indeed any other dictatorship is the denial of fundamental rights in one guise or another, the essence of democratic governance rests on the respect for, defence and advancement of human, civil, political, economic and cultural rights of all without distinction. At least, this is the way it ought to be.

WOMEN AS SOCIETY'S PEACE BUILDERS
January 15, 2003 – (This Day-Lagos) Recently, a Lagos-based non-governmental organisation organised series of public enlightment campaigns to sensitise women on their political rights as well as position them for peace building in the society.

 

2002

WOMEN URGED TO PLAY ACTIVE POLITICS
December 27, 2002 - (This Day-Lagos) Nigerian Women have been advised to use the opportunities provided by the nation's democracy to get involved in active politics to better the lots of womanhood. This was contained in a keynote address presented at this year's celebration of Rivers Women Day in Calabar by the Rivers State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mrs Aleruchi Lookey-Gam. The commissioner, represented by the state's solicitor-general, Mrs. Mina Benebor, insisted that in the March towards full participation in governance, women should intensify interest and involvement inall activities in the new political dispensation.

GROUP SEEKS SUPPORT FOR WOMEN DEVELOPMENT
December 23, 2002 - (This Day-Lagos) Executive Director, Women Advancement Forum (WAF), Mrs. Oluseyi Banjo has stressed the need for socio-economic development of women and youth towards grassroots development for the growth of the nation. She made the observation in Lagos at the WAF-organised press dialogue to commemorate the World AIDS Day." Banjo said the purpose of the dialogue was to entertain ideas, to package the womenfolk towards economic development.

A WIDOW'S NIGHTMARE
December 15, 2002 – (Newswatch - Lagos) Nwanneka attacked with acid in a battle to regain control of her late husband's property from her brothers-in-law

NIGERIAN NGO DECRIES RISING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
December 9, 2002 – (This Day) Women's Aid Collective (WACOL), a non-governmental organisation, which seeks to protect the rights of women, has decried high incidence of violence against women in the country and called on all relevant authorities to help stem the scourge.

NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT TO BAR STONING SENTENCES BY ISLAMIC COURTS
November 11, 2002 - (UN Wire) Nigeria said Saturday that it will block Islamic courts in its Muslim north from stoning women for adultery and other offenses.

WOMEN URGED TO PARTICIPATE MORE IN POLITICS
September 16, 2002 – (This Day - Lagos) Civil Resources Dev-elopment and Docum-entation Centre (CIR-DDOC), an NGO in Abakaliki, has urged women to show more interest in politics to boost female representation in governance.

NIGERIAN STATE GOVERNMENT IGNORES WOMEN'S PLEA FOR LIFE
September 11, 2002 - (Feminist.org) The government of the Katsina state in Nigeria will not stop an Islamic courtís sentence of death by stoning of Amina Lawal. TAKE ACTION http://capwiz.com/fmf1/issues/alert/?alertid=410741&type=TA

FMF AND NOW PROTEST WOMAN'S DEATH SENTENCE AT NIGERIAN EMBASSY
August 29, 2002 - (Feminist.org) The Feminist Majority Foundation joined forces with the Capital City National Organization for Women (NOW) in a protest at the Nigerian Embassy today to demand that the Nigerian government take action to immediately reverse the unjust sentence of death for Nigerian woman Amina Lawal Kurami, who bore a child out of wedlock. TAKE ACTION http://capwiz.com/fmf1/issues/alert/?alertid=410741&type=TA

STONE HER TO DEATH: FAMILY VALUES
August 27, 2002 - 'God is in control. I believe he will vindicate me," said Amina Lawal just before she faced her judges. But God was missing that day in the courtroom. Amina's eight-month-old daughter, Wasiya, was all the proof they needed of her guilt. They sentenced her to be taken out to a public square, buried up to her neck and stoned until she's dead -- just as soon as she weans her baby.

NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT OPPOSED TO DEATH BY STONING
August 26, 2002 - (Feminist Majority News) The government of Nigeria announced its opposition to an Islamic courtís ruling of death by stoning for a single mother, Amina Lawal Kurami, who is the second Nigerian woman condemned to death by stoning for engaging insex before marriage. TAKE ACTION http://capwiz.com/fmf1/issues/alert/?alertid=410741&type=TA

ISLAMIC COURT UPHOLDS DEATH-BY-STONING SENTENCE
August 19, 2002 - (IRIN) An Islamic appeal court in Katsina State, northern Nigeria, on Monday upheld a death sentence imposed by a lower court on a woman found guilty of adultery.

WOMEN ARE CREATIVE MOULDERS OF CIVILISATIONS - ALKALI
August 14, 2002 – (Daily Trust - Abuja) Dr. Zaynab Alkali has called for the revival of Africa's rich cultural values and heritage, which is significant in the effort at rediscovering the family, and strengthening of our cultural base.

SHELL DENIES DEATH DURING PICKETING BY NIGER DELTA WOMEN
August 10, 2002 – (This Day - Lagos) Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) yesterday denied media reports that a Niger Delta woman was killed during Thursday's picketing of the company's operational base in Warri, Delta State.

WOMEN'S PROTESTS AGAINST CHEVRONTEXACO SPREAD THROUGH THE NIGER DELTA: INITIAL DEMANDS MET, ISSUES REMAIN
August 7, 2002 – (CorpWatch – Special) Abiteye village lies in the heart of the Niger Delta region. American oil giant ChevronTexaco has a gas plant and an oil flow station here. But for its oil installations, the company's premises could pass for a maximum-security prison. Barbwire fences and iron bars separate the company from the community. Inside the company's premises, police, soldiers and naval personnel clutching assault rifles stand guard.

RESOURCE CONTROL: TENSION AS NIGER DELTA WOMEN PLAN ANOTHER MASS PROTEST
August 3, 2002 – (Vanguard - Lagos) THE gale of protests by Niger-Delta women against continued oil exploitation and criminal neglect of the area by the Federal Government and the oil companies may soon take a new dimension. This followed widespread consultations amongst the various women leaders in the area and the agreement that they (the women) should stage a week-long co-ordinated protest on all oil installations in the six major oil producing states of the Niger-Delta. No date has, however, been fixed for the planned protest.

IN BAUCHI, NURSES BATTLE SHARI'AH
July 22, 2002 – (This Day - Lagos) The Shari'ah Islamic code is affecting non-Muslims in Nigeria. Those affected in recent times are 11 nurses. The 11 women are facing disciplinary action for their refusal to wear the Islamic prescribed uniform of veil and trousers, for nurses at the Federal Medical Centre, Azare, Bauchi State.

CRUSHING POVERTY SPURS NIGERIAN VILLAGE WOMEN INTO OIL STANDOFF
July 19, 2002 - (AP) When hundreds of unarmed village women captured a ChevronTexaco terminal, winning promises of jobs and development from the oil giant, Helen Amushuka was too sick to join them. Her situation is typical of many in the surrounding areas.

NIGERIAN WOMEN OCCUPY FOUR MORE CHEVRONTEXACO FACILITIES
July 18 2002 - (Feminist.org) Just as hundreds of Nigerian women at the Escravos oil terminal ended their 10-day standoff Wednesday, women from a rival tribe seized control of four ChevronTexaco flow stations 50 miles east.

NIGERIAN WOMEN END CHEVRONTEXACO PROTEST
July 15, 2002 - (Feminist.org) After more than eight days of protest, 600 unarmed Nigerian women who took over ChevronTexacoís Escravos oil terminal agreed today to end their siege after the company offered to hire at least 25 villagers and to build schools, electrical and water systems.

WOMEN PROTESTERS HOLD 700 OIL WORKERS HOSTAGE
July 10, 2002 - (IRIN) At least 150 women protesters have besieged Chevron-Texaco‚s main oil export facility in Nigeria‚s southern oil region to back demands for jobs for their children, company officials said on Wednesday.

VOTING POWER RESIDES IN WOMEN, SAYS MINISTER
June 28, 2002 – (This Day - Lagos) With women forming 49.68 per cent of the country's population according to a 1991 census, even though they are still marginalised politically, they remain very powerful as they control voting numbers in Nigeria, the Minister of Women Affairs and Youth Development, Hajiya Aisha Ismail has said.

1,098 VICTIMS OF TRAFFICKING DEPORTED IN THREE YEARS
June 26, 2002 – (IRIN) Two hundred victims of human trafficking were deported to Nigeria last week, bringing to 1,098 the number sent back from Europe and North America in the past three years, figures released on Wednesday by the Nigerian immigration authorities showed. More than 98 percent or 1,081 were women who had been sold to prostitution rings in the different countries. Only 17 of the victims were male.

AJANAKU WANTS GENDER BALANCE IN PARTIES
June 25, 2002 – (This Day - Lagos) The Special Adviser to the President on Women Affairs, Mrs. Titilayo Ajanaku, has called for the restructuring of the political parties at all levels to ensure gender balance. She said "all stakeholders hold it as a duty to see how the women can be encouraged to function and how to make the atmosphere conducive for women's participation without destroying their identities and distinctiveness."

WOMEN, GREATEST VICTIMS OF TRAFFICKING
June 29, 2002 - (IRIN News) Women accounted for about 98 percent of Nigerians - most of them victims of human trafficking - who have been deported from various other countries in recent years, immigration authorities reported this week.

STONING SENTENCE SUSPENDED UNTIL 2004
June 20, 2002 - A Sharia appeal court in Katsina State, northern Nigeria, has postponed until 2004 the execution of a 30-year-old woman whom a lower court sentenced to death by stoning for adultery.

WOMEN IN RURAL NIGERIA USE ICT FOR PEACE
June 20, 2002 - (APC) The Bayanloco Community Learning Centre in Kaduna State, Nigeria, an initiative of the Fantsuam Foundation led by Kazanka Comfort provides basic computer literacy classes to women to allow them to act as detectors of potential flash-points of communal violence and as peace brokers. Ms. Comfort sensed that fast communication among the rural women could mean the difference between life and death in an emergency situation. In 2001, the initiative won the The first Association for Progressive Communication Africa Hafkin Communications Prize in recognition of its outstanding and creative uses of ICT.

WOMEN LAWYERS SEEK JUDICIAL INTERPRETATION OF CONSTITUTION ON SHARIA
June 7, 2002 – (Vanguard - Lagos) Women lawyers in the country have called on the Federal Government to seek judicial interpretation of the constitution on the issue of Sharia legal system in order to prevent continued human rights abuse on its implementation. The female lawyers made the call in Abuja when they visited President Olusegun Obasanjo under the umbrella of the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA).

HOUSEWIFE FACES SHARIA COURT OVER ABORTION IN NIGERIA
May 21, 2002 – (Daily Trust - Abuja) Barely two months after the discharge and acquittal of Safiya Mohammed by a Sharia Court of Appeal in Sokoto, another case involving a housewife, Rabi Bello, from Gawon Nama area in Wamakko Local Government Area of Sokoto State who was dragged before the Upper Area Court in Sokoto for abortion has now become a centre of attraction.

WOMAN GETS 100 STROKES OVER PREGNANCY IN NIGERIA
May 6, 2002 - A 19-year-old woman from Zaki local government area of Bauchi State, Adama Yunusa, who dragged her fiance, Isa Katagum, before a sharia court over unwanted pregnancy, would receive 100 strokes for indulging in immoral act. Katagun had denied the allegations, saying he never had any sexual intercourse with the complainant.

FINAL DECISION EXPECTED IN NIGERIAN STONING CASE
March 22, 2002 - (WEnews) A court's decision to execute a woman for adultery has fueled controversy over Nigeria's version of Islamic justice. Now an influential Islamic body hopes to stop the country's planned ratification of numerous U.N. conventions protecting human rights.

NIGERIAN WOMAN SENTENCED TO DEATH BY STONING CHANGES DEFENSE
January 28, 2002 - (Feminist.org) Sufiyatu Huseini, the Nigerian woman sentenced to death by stoning for alleged adultery, is now being helped by a local women’s rights group (financed by the Ford and MacArthur Foundations) who have hired lawyers to defend Huseini.

NIGERIAN TEENS FLOOD ITALY'S SEX MARKET
January 25, 2002 - (WEnews) Nigerian women, many of them teen-agers, now make up the largest percentage of illegally trafficked sex workers in Italy. Albanian teens are now joining them. The Italian government is trying to assist them in leaving this dangerous industry.

 

2001

CHRISTIAN WOMEN DEMONSTRATE OVER SAFIYA
December 6, 2001 -The women's wing of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) under the aegis of Social Securities Outreach (SSO) on Monday staged a peaceful demonstration to the Lagos State Governor's office protesting the death sentence passed on Safiya Hussain by a Sokoto State Sharia Court.

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, SOKOTO FIGHT OVER WOMEN
November 26, 2001 - The Federal and Sokoto State governments are poised for a fight over the sharia verdict passed by a Gwadabawa sharia court to stone a woman, Safiya Hussaini to death for committing adultery.

WOMEN SWEEP APPOINTMENTS FOR KEY NIGERIAN COURT
October 8, 2001- (WeNews) One of every five Africans is Nigerian, yet the continent's largest nation has lagged behind many others in one key measure--the advancement of women. Now, in what may be a breakthrough, 17 out of 25 Lagos state court judges are women.

 

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