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15 April 2014 - NPWJ News Digest on FGM & women's rights
Articles
Constitutional Reform and Women’s Rights in Nicaragua
By Thomson Reuters Foundation, 15 Apr 2014
A Constitutional reform was passed in Nicaragua on January 27, 2014 and entered into force on February 10th, which will allow consecutive presidential re-election as well military personnel to hold government posts. AWID spoke to Azahalea Solís, from Movimiento Autónomo de Mujeres de Nicaragua (MAM- Autonomous Women’s Movement) about the reform, women´s rights and the recent repression during the International Women’s Day (March 8th) demonstration.
Dynamic teenager Suzete Sangula fights to make women’s rights a reality in Mozambique, one step at a time.
By Al Jazeera, 14 Apr 2014
True gender equality in Africa might seem a remote dream. But in Mozambique, small steps are being made in the fight for women’s rights thanks to the passion and determination of one 18-year-old girl, Suzete Sangula. Incensed when a friend was forced to leave school after becoming pregnant by a male teacher, Suzete made it her mission to educate girls and young women about their rights and teach them strategies to defend them. Her work has already borne fruit in Maputo, and now Suzete is planning to expand her reach into rural Mozambique.
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Equality for women isn't an optional extra
By The Guardian, 13 Apr 2014
Last Tuesday, Barack Obama marked the US's equal pay day by signing two executive orders of profound importance to millions of American women. One order prevents federal contractors from retaliating against employees for sharing salary information with co-workers. The other directs the labour department to adopt regulations requiring federal contractors to report salary data to the agency, including sex and race breakdowns. To put it more simply, the US government is employing procurement imaginatively to push harder for equality in the pay packets of women, many of whom are the sole breadwinner in the family. Meanwhile, in the UK, David Cameron, in the wake of Maria Miller's resignation, exacerbated his recurring "woman trouble" still further. He reduced the number of females with full cabinet positions from four to three, the lowest number for 15 years. Now, the prime minister heads a team almost 90% of whom are utterly unrepresentative of the electorate they govern in that they are white, male and rich. For a diverse and vibrant society such as Britain, that is hardly a healthy demonstration of modern democracy.
"I am not just a sex symbol" - street girls battle stigma
By Thomson Reuters Foundation, 12 Apr 2014
“I am not just a sex symbol but a human being with thoughts, feelings and ideas that are important and matter,” a street girl from the UK answered when she was asked “If the whole was listening,what would you say?”, an initiative for International Day for Street Children 2014. Street girls are less visible than street boys. They are often trafficked into brothels or domestic work as soon as they reach a city. When on the street, girls face specific challenges based on their gender. Perhaps most shocking is the high levels of sexual violence reported from street girls. Sexual violence is a recurring theme in their lives – violence from adults in the community, those in positions of authority and other street children.