News
When the United Nations inaugurated a landmark special agency for women last January, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon set an initial target of 500 million dollars as the proposed annual budget for the new gender-empowered body. But nearly six months later, the voluntary funding for U.N. Women (UNW) from the 192 member states has remained painfully slow. Ambassador Hardeep Singh Puri, India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, expressed disappointment over the funding shortfall. Nearly six months after its operationalisation, the actual contributions and pledges received are modest and only around 80 million dollars, he said.
Jozwill Cloete, 13, dreamed of being a policeman when he finished school so that he could put gangsters in jail. Instead, he’s been shot dead – allegedly by one of them.
At Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital (PMMH) in Umlazi, the largest township outside the South African port city of Durban, using midwives to provide maternity services has positively impacted maternal care in the area, but a national shortage of these specialist health personnel has made it difficult to replicate the model elsewhere. “Midwives are integral to ensuring that we take quality care of our mothers and babies,” Rachel Gumbi, the hospital’s CEO, told IRIN. “The success story of this hospital is because of the teamwork between doctors and midwives.” The maternity ward at PMMH is one of the busiest in the country, with more than 1,200 deliveries a month, but the staff of 123 midwives and 15 doctors have managed to reduce both infant and maternal mortality rates. Although 40 percent of the women visiting the hospital’s antenatal clinic are HIV positive, the midwives play a key role in ensuring that 95 percent of those in need of antiretroviral (ARV) medication receive it, and that the rate of mother-to-child transmission of HIV is below 3 percent.
The rape of a young woman that has become a symbolic case in Nicaragua was ruled a "crime of passion" by the Supreme Court in a verdict that is suspected to have political overtones.
"There is no excuse. It is a bad precedent for Nicaraguan justice that such a serious crime against a woman should be viewed by the Supreme Court as a lesser case, and that it would let a rapist off the hook," Juana Jiménez, a member of the Autonomous Women's Movement, one of the organisations that held a protest vigil against the verdict, told IPS.
ANC Youth League president Julius Malema has apologised to "all women", particularly President Jacob Zuma's rape accuser for his sexist remarks. "I am sorry, sorry and very sorry about that. And commit not to repeat the similar mistake again. Issues of women are sensitive, and once a person says 'I'm offended', it doesn't matter whether you are right or not, you must have the capacity to say sorry, The Star newspaper reported on Thursday. "I want to say sorry to the lady and to the Sonke Gender [sic], and I commit to pay them that R50,000 and pay legal fees for that case," he said.
The alleged gender war dates back to March when one woman was said to have been shot with a pellet gun by a male officer. It was believed that the case was squashed when other officers refused to submit statements to the investigating officer.
Yesterday three officers said the seven women would prefer to be transferred than endure "gender discrimination" on a daily basis.
US First Lady Michelle Obama had inspiring words for the youth this morning, telling them, among other things, that they can be the change they want to see in the world. Addressing hundreds of people gathered at the Regina Mundi Church in Soweto on Wednesday, Obama appeared visibly moved when the audience stood and sang as she approached the stage. Placing her hands over her heart, she thanked the crowd who had gathered for the Young African Women Leaders Forum as she seemed to choke back tears. Obama, who is a strong advocate for human rights, started her speech by touching on South Africa's history, the importance of Women's Day and the contributions of struggle icons such as the late Albertina Sisulu.She also honoured the class of 1976, and challenged her younger audience, asking the crowd: "What generation will you be?" Using her husband's "Yes, we can" campaign slogan to motivate the crowd, she challenged them saying, "no matter how young, you're ready now to make the difference."
"You can be the generation that ends HIV and Aids in our time, the generation that fights not just the disease, but the stigma of the disease. "... You can be the generation that holds your leaders accountable for open, honest government at every level, government that stamps out corruption," Obama, who was wearing a stunning blue outfit, told the cheering crowd.
Justice Minister Jeff Radebe will be called to appear before the National Assembly justice committee to explain why the Sexual Offences Act, hailed by MPs in 2007 as a “revolutionary breakthrough” in women’s and victims’ rights, has not been implemented. Regarded as one of the most progressive pieces of legislation post-1994, which aimed to stem endemic sexual violence against women and children, the act was passed by Parliament in November 2007, after 13 years in the making.
But on Tuesday, a disenchanted chairman of the oversight committee on justice, Luwellyn Landers, said “maybe we had stars in our eyes when we adopted the bill”, during a briefing by the department on the failure to roll out the legislation.
LGBTI issues are often excluded in the mainstream media unless it covers a story when a lesbian is being brutally murdered or assaulted for their sexual orientation/ identity. Also the programmes that the government is implementing often does not include LGBTi issues which give an impact to high rise of hate crimes in townships.
Through technology the voices of the LBT women are being amplified, groups or pages have been formed on Social Networks tools, where relevant information is shared and discussion platforms are formed to speak about the violence perpetrated against black lesbians in townships. Also coming up with solutions to fight gender based violence, raising awareness through writing and enhancing their identity.
The ANC Youth League has come under fire for failing to elect more females into its top leadership. Gender activist group Sonke Gender Justice Network has slammed the ANCYL, whose top five positions remain under patriarchal domination. At the weekend, the ANCYL congress elected 17 females and 13 males as additional members to its 35-member national executive committee. The congress elected Kenetswe Mosenogi, the only female in the top five, as deputy secretary-general. In the previous leadership, Vuyiswa Tulelo, the outgoing secretary-general, had been the only woman in the top five ANCYL positions. Sonke spokesman Mbuyiselo Botha said the league was sending the wrong message to the public. “What message is this sending to the girl child, who has faith in the ANC’s 50/50 zebra stripes?” asked Botha. He said the youth league, as a “preparatory school” for the ruling party, should take the lead in the empowerment of women. Since its formation in 1944, the ANCYL has never had a woman president.
"The Commission has been lobbying government to look into the possibility of enacting Hate Crimes legislation and is pleased that government has set up a task team to deliberate on this matter.
"The Commission is pleased that the UN has firmly placed on its agenda issues relating to the rights of LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and inter-sexed)," said spokesman Vincent Moagi said in a statement.
A regional workshop has been opened in Accra with a call on women to take up leadership challenges to break barriers for young women in Africa. The acting Director of Baobab-Women’s Learning Partnership (WLP), a non-governmental organisation, Ms. Chibogu Obinwa, made the call at the opening ceremony of the workshop for 25 participants from Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Zambia, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe on Tuesday.
Urgent action is needed to stop the "scourge" of violence against lesbians, Minister for Women, Children and People with Disabilities Lulu Xingwana said on Tuesday. Urgent action was needed to stop the violence and "corrective rape", she said during her department's budget vote at Parliament. "Our country faces a serious crisis of violence against women and children... women, young and old, are falling victims to rape and murder. The right to sexual orientation as stipulated in our Constitution is also being violated through the so-called corrective rape of lesbian women."