10 October 2017 - NPWJ News Digest on FGM & women's rights

Articles

Number of girls in education around the world falls by hundreds of thousands
By The Independent , 10 Oct 2017

The total number of girls in education worldwide has fallen for the first time in 10 years in what has been described as a “global crisis which perpetuates poverty”. The number of girls who are currently out of education has increased from 130.3 million to 130.9 million based on a survey by The ONE Campaign of 122 countries across the world. 
 

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Maharashtra villages set example in equal property rights for men and women
By The Times of India, 09 Oct 2017

20 villages in the tehsils of Satara, Jaoli, Koregaon and Khatao have set an ideal example of women empowerment and equal rights for men and women. The Dalit, Mahila Vikas Mandal has ensured that married women get equal ownership rights on house and property in these districts with a movement it conceived two years ago.

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Women’s rights are on the retreat yet again. Why?
By The Guardian, 08 Oct 2017

When modern women are finally fitted with their regulation compulsory chastity belts, dare one dream that they’ll come in a range of pretty colours, delightful materials and snazzy designs? Or would it just be the old-school medieval iron trad models? Hey, little ladies, do you think we’d be allowed to choose? I muse facetiously because, in the US, President Trump has issued a ruling that makes it far easier for companies and insurers to opt out of providing free birth control to employees on the grounds of religious and moral beliefs, rolling back a key feature of Obamacare. Now that it will become easier to opt out, many more will do so, with the potential to affect 55 million women. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the National Women’s Law Center have announced that they will sue the government over the decision.

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US: Many May Lose Family Planning Benefits
By Human Rights Watch, 06 Oct 2017

Two new interim final rules issued by the Trump administration put many women’s access to contraception in jeopardy, Human Rights Watch said today. The Department of Health and Human Services rules exempt nearly any employer or insurer with religious beliefs or moral convictions against contraceptives from including contraceptive benefits in their health plans. The first rule offers an exemption to employers based on “sincerely held religious beliefs.” The second extends a similar exemption to non-profits, closely held for-profit entities, and universities for “moral convictions.” Together the rules will reduce the ability of employees to access affordable reproductive health services. 

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