The former Cambodian Khmer Rouge prison chief Duch, who was convicted of crimes against humanity, will appeal against his sentence, his lawyer has said.

Duch, 67, whose full name is Kaing Guek Eav, was sentenced to 35 years in prison by a UN-backed court on Monday.

He was found guilty of overseeing the torture and execution of thousands of people at the notorious Tuol Sleng prison in Phnom Penh.

Even after the aftershocks of the devastating Jan. 12 quake subsided, women's bodies were still trembling in Haiti. The cause, according to a new report, is the systematic, persistent (and often gang) rapes that have become part of women's daily lives in camps for internally displaced persons (IDP).

Mohamed Mostafaei was detained in Turkey because of passport problems but can apply for asylum if he wants to, the agency said. He disappeared from view late last month after being summoned for questioning in Tehran. Amnesty International accused the Iranian authorities of harassing him. Though the stoning penalty was lifted, she may still be executed by hanging.

One in three Native American women will be raped at least once in her lifetime. And that's why President Obama's signing of the Tribal Law and Order Act today is so vital. Tribes will now have the right–and the resources–to investigate and prosecute rapes perpetrated by non-Natives on tribal lands.

Two Malaysian women have been cleared to hear the same cases as their male colleagues in Sharia court.

According to the Christian Science Monitor (CSM), they will join the bench on August 2 and will serve on lower courts in the capital, Kuala Lumpur and the city of Putrajaya.

For 490 years the liquid continent of Oceania has been called by the name that Ferdinand Magellan gave it, the Pacific Ocean (Mar Pacifico) because of its apparent stillness. World class navigator he may have been, but I believe history has proven that he was a bad judge of character. Or perhaps he was not aware of the adage that 'still waters run deep'.

A new political party that will represent the views of Solomon Islands' women is in the making.

Founder and leader of the Peace, Oneness and Prosperity Party for Solomon Islands Delmah Nori says from past experience, women have always found it difficult to join existing parties.

She says the few women who were accepted into male dominated parties were voice-less and unfairly represented.

In a move that is set to put the struggle of South African women in the forefront, the Department of Arts and Culture announced on Tuesday that the graves of struggle icons Helen Joseph, Lillian Ngoyi and Charlotte Maxeke will be declared as national heritage sites.

Arts and Culture Minister Lulu Xingwana said the occasion has already been gazetted and the sites will officially be unveiled at a ceremony later this month.

There has been an improvement in socio-economic equality between men and women in South Africa, the latest MasterCard Worldwide Index of Women's Advancement shows.

Released on Tuesday, the Index saw South Africa's score increase by almost six points from 87.96 to 93.5 between 2009 and 2010.

South Africa's Ministry for Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities is developing a new Bill that will enforce gender parity measures across all sectors of society, Minister Noluthando Mayende-Sibiya said on Monday.

Speaking at the launch of this year's Women's Month, Mayende-Sibiya said the Gender Equality Bill will be tabled in Parliament soon and could be in effect as early as next year.