General - News

The World Bank has amplified its rhetoric on the importance of gender equality in the context of development in recent weeks by promoting its flagship World Development Report on Gender Equality and Development and launching its Think Equal social media campaign. Unfortunately, for billions of poor women and girls worldwide, the bank's track record in promoting gender equality in its investments reflects an alarming gap between rhetoric and reality.

An Indonesian woman has won a United Nations Development Program-sponsored peace award for helping to build peace and prevent conflict in North Maluku. Electronita Duan, from Halmahera, was awarded the N-PEACE award along with fellow peace advocates Filomena Barros dos Reis of East Timor, Purna Shova Chitrakar of Nepal and Shreen Abdul Saroor of Sri Lanka.

Crime hurts, and the protection of victims from criminality is always a priority in any criminal policy.

Working with ex-child soldiers of Charles Taylor's army, and the girls they have taken as wives, has convinced Nobel Peace laureate Leymah Gbowee that the abuse women suffer during conflict is a reflection of the interaction between men and women, boys and girls, during peace time

n August of every year South Africa stages Gender Equality Month. Events are organised around National Women's Day on August 9. According to the ruling ANC, it "is a time to salute women for the role they have played and to reflect on challenges women continue to face".

Ritual killings and human sacrifice happen in many, if not all countries in Africa. Cases have been reported in such countries as Botswana, Lesotho, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Whether one considers the direct effects of military rule and conflict on women, or the global economic implications of the US war-on-terror, militarism threatens to strip away all the 20th century gains in women's rights, dispossessing us once more. African women must take a stand, says Amina Mama

It took almost 11 years to establish but it's better late than never.Veteran, award-winning women's rights activists have set up the first-ever regional advisory group on women, peace and security in Asia Pacific, an area where millions of women have been affected by conflict. They will help the United Nations, governments and civil society groups implement U.N. Resolution 1325 – adopted in October 2000 - which calls for women and girls in conflicts to be protected from rape, and for women to be more involved in negotiating peace agreements.There's a desperate need for a body that can provide such high-level advice in Asia Pacific.

After more than 10 years since it was passed, the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (Women, Peace and Security) is gaining more attention with the opportunity to develop and present a Regional Action Plan at the 2012 Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting.The “Women Count for Peace in the Pacific” side event at the 42nd Pacific Islands Leaders' Meeting, provided a key part of the strategy to develop the Regional Action Plan on Women Peace and Security by seeking inputs from senior officials on content and process and preparing the ground for country level initiatives in 2012 – 2013.

The “Women Count for Peace in the Pacific” side event at the 42nd Pacific Islands Leaders' Meeting, provided a key part of the strategy to develop the Regional Action Plan on Women Peace and Security by seeking inputs from senior officials on content and process and preparing the ground for country level initiatives in 2012 – 2013.