Participation

Iranians take to the streets in Tehran to show support for Bahraini women enduring the violence and crimes committed against them by Saudi-backed security forces.

Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of the capital following the Friday Prayers to condemn the brutal repression of anti-regime protests in Bahrain, Fars News Agency reported.

The United Nations Children's Fund or UNICEF has warned that the gender gap in student enrolments in Papua New Guinea schools is widening.

The Post-Courier newspaper says an education workshop on gender and education is being held in Port Moresby until May 13.

Speaking at the workshop, UNICEF country representative Bertrand Desmoulins said Papua New Guinea has made some progress in girls' education.

Chief electoral officer Pansy Tlakula called on Friday for a quota system to improve women's representation in the public and private sector.

She said the Independent Electoral Commission was not happy with the number of women candidates in local government elections to be held on May 18.

"The male/female split is not pleasing at all," Tlakula told a business breakfast in Johannesburg.

Syrian security forces on Saturday arrested two veteran opposition figures and a group of female protesters as part of a crackdown on pro-democracy campaigners, rights groups said.

The reports came as the Syrian human rights organization Sawasiah said security forces had killed at least 560 civilians since protests started just over six week ago.

Currently, more women in Kurdistan are seeking primary, secondary and higher education, creating a more educated female workforce.

The Global Summit of Women 2011 to be held here from May 5-7, will see the congregation of leading figures from various countries to chart the strategies and programmes to ensure further achievements for women in the economic field.

Senior United Nations officials today stressed the need to promote the participation of women in decision-making, noting that democracy and gender equality are interlinked and mutually reinforcing.

An all-female delegation of women from Paktika province convened for the first time April 25, 2011. Influential female Afghan representatives, like the director of women's affairs, or DoWA, for Paktika, attended.

"It is my responsibility to reach out and help the women and to let them know they have rights," said Bibi Hawa, Paktika director of women's affairs.

Sen. Edgardo J. Angara said there should be equal opportunities in the labor force after a recent study reported that women are more at risk of losing their jobs amid the ensuing economic crisis.

“The government and private sector institutions should develop and strictly implement gender-fair policies that protect women workers as well as promote opportunities for women's economic empowerment,” he said.

The historic May Day is being observed in Bangladesh along with the rest of the world today, with the pledge to establish the rights of workers. The day is observed in commemoration of the struggle by workers in Chicago, USA over a century ago to establish the rights of workers to a eight hour working day.