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17 August 2021 - NPWJ News Digest on FGM & women's rights
Articles
What Women's Advocacy Groups Worldwide Are Doing For Women In Afghanistan
NPR, 16 Aug 2021
For women in Afghanistan, the Taliban takeover of the country puts their rights at stake, as well as their lives. When the Taliban last held power between 1996 and 2001, women were denied education and employment opportunities. Girls couldn't attend school and women could only be seen in public with a male escort and their bodies fully covered. Punishment for disobeying these strict rules was severe, ranging from beating to execution.
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As the Taliban seized cities, they sent women home
Al Jazeera, 16 Aug 2021
In early July, as Taliban fighters were seizing territory from government forces across Afghanistan, some of them walked into the offices of Azizi Bank in Kandahar and ordered nine women working there to leave. The gunmen escorted them to their homes and told them not to return to their jobs. Instead, they explained that male relatives could take their place, according to three of the women involved and the bank’s manager.
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Malala Yousafzai ‘deeply worried’ as Taliban take control in Afghanistan
The Guardian, 16 Aug 2021
The Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai, who was shot in the head by the Taliban for publicly advocating education for women and girls, has said she is in “complete shock” that the group has taken control of Afghanistan. The 24-year-old said she was “deeply worried about women, minorities and human rights advocates” and called for more intervention from world leaders.
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North Carolina is a destination for child marriage. A new bill could change that
The Guardian, 15 Aug 2021
Known for its coastlines, mountains and the state that was “first in flight”, North Carolina has also developed a more dubious reputation as a regional destination for adults who want to marry children. State lawmakers are nearing passage of a bill that could finally dampen the state’s appeal as the go-to place to bring child brides – but would still leave it short of a national push to increase the age to 18.
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Victims of femicide are shamefully ignored in strategy on violence against women
The Guardian, 15 Aug 2021
Femicide – the killing of women and girls by men – is once again hidden in plain sight by the government. A new Violence Against Women and Girls strategy announced last month fails to address the worst form of men’s violence against women and girls: their killing. The same omission was made in the two previous strategies. Our End Femicide campaign’s first objective is to “name it”. Six months in to the campaign, our government has failed women and girls at the first hurdle.
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Zimbabwe: More Pressure on Govt to End Child Marriages
All Africa, 14 Aug 2021
LOCAL Youth based NGO, SAYWHAT has added its voice o the growing demands for government and parliament to tighten the forthcoming new marriage bill as a way to stop child marriages and pregnancies. In a statement issued Thursday, in commemoration of the 2021 International Youth Day, SAYWHAT expressed concerns over an upsurge in teenage pregnancies and marriages. SAYWHAT specialises in sexual and reproductive health among students in local tertiary institutions.
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Tunisia: Full Gender Equality Needed to Strengthen Women's Rights - Ministry
All Africa, 13 Aug 2021
Full gender equality, mainly in public policies, needs to be achieved to strengthen women's rights, said the Ministry of Women, Family and Seniors as Tunisia is observing Friday National Women's Day. Horizonral integration of women's rights in public policies is called for, in addition to positive action. A real willi to effectively implement women's rights is still required, the ministry further said on this 65th anniversary.
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Tanzania: FGM Reverse, Whole Community Intervention Necessary
All Africa, 12 Aug 2021
AS more accolades will keep on pouring to the Association for Termination of Female Genital Mutilation (ATFGM), a local organisation that fights Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in Mara Region for rescuing more than 500 girls from 'facing the knife' in the area, a lot is still expected from the community as an entity to phase out this degrading practice in the society.
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Kenya: Nairobi Records Drastic Rise in Sexual Violence Cases
All Africa, 12 Aug 2021
Sexual violence cases have continued to rise in Nairobi with the city recording a staggering 3,716 cases in only six months, a report has shown. The Kenya Health Information System (KHIS), says the cases were reported between January and June this year. This is already 266 more than what was recorded the whole of last year, where 3,450 cases were reported.
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