03 November 2020 - NPWJ News Digest on FGM & Women's Rights

Articles

Poland delays implementing abortion ruling amid protests
ABC News, 03 Nov 2020

Poland’s right-wing government is delaying the publication and implementation of a high court ruling that tightens the abortion law and that has triggered almost two weeks of nationwide protests. A government official said Tuesday that the leaders are taking time to debate the contested ruling and find a solution.

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Bangladesh's High Court questions ban on marital rape prosecutions
Reuters, 03 Nov 2020

Bangladesh’s High Court has questioned a ban on marital rape prosecutions after women’s rights groups argued it was discriminatory to stop alleged rapists from being charged if they are married to their victims, activists said on Tuesday. The court’s decision to seek an explanation from the government on the issue comes amid growing concern about sexual violence in Bangladesh, where the penal code and domestic abuse laws do not contemplate marital rape as a crime.

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New Zealand's Jacinda Ardern appoints country's first Indigenous female foreign minister
CNN, 02 Nov 2020

New Zealand appointed its first Indigenous female foreign minister Monday to represent what's shaping up to be one of the most diverse parliaments in the world. Nanaia Mahuta, who is Māori, the Indigenous people of New Zealand, four years ago also became the country's first female member of parliament to wear a moko kauae, a traditional tattoo on her chin. The country's previous foreign minister, Winston Peters, is also Māori.

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First Person: supporting migrants on the COVID-19 frontline in Myanmar
UN News, 01 Nov 2020

Myanmar has been preparing for the return of hundreds of thousands of workers – some 650,000 are in Thailand alone – and one of the key tasks was to set up quarantine facilities for those returning migrants and carry out awareness raising on COVID-19 health messaging and prevention of gender-based violence – a key concern among the women migrant returnees. 

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Russia loses UN vote over women's rights in conflict zones
The Guardian, 30 Oct 2020

Attempts by Russia to introduce a UN security council resolution, which activists said would have unravelled the rights of women in conflict have failed as 10 countries abstained on a crucial vote on Friday. The UK, US, Germany and France were among the abstaining member states, which meant the resolution did not gain the nine votes required to pass. Campaigners said the proposed resolution did not advance women’s rights and watered down previously agreed commitments on human rights, prevention of conflict-related sexual violence and women’s equal participation in peace negotiations.

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