NEWS & ARTICLES

WOMEN’S RIGHTS CAMPAIGN
Move to take Domestic Violence Cases out of Religious Courts in Lebanon

WOMEN’S RIGHTS ACTIVISM
Legislated Victory for Women in Politics in Morocco
HRC appoints Farida Shaheed as Independent Expert in the field of Cultural Rights

GENDER RIGHTS
Palestinian Women Denied Rights even in Camps in Lebanon
Device to Help Women Feign Virginity, Is Controversial in Egypt

GENDER BASED VIOLENCE
High Vulnerability of Displaced Female-Headed Households in Iraq
Human Rights vs. Sharia: Violence Against Women

GENDER & PERSONAL STATUS LAW
Al-Azhar Bans Niqab from Schools and Colleges
Canada & Egypt - Initiatives to Ban Burkas, Niqabs
Egypt Cleric 'to Ban Full Veils'
Arab Charter on Human Rights - Ratification - Revision - Divisions - Gender

BOOKS & REPORTS

GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT
Accelerating Change for Women and Girls: The Role of Women's Funds
Arab Human Development Report 2009 - Gender
Challenges to Human Security in the Arab Countries

GENDER EQUALITY
Study-Status of Women & Freedom of Religion or Belief & Traditions

GENDER AND ECONOMY
Women in the Informal Economy & the Global Economic Crisis

GENDER AND ICT
Information for Development Magazine

GENDER AND MEDIA
Algeria, Morocco & Tunisia - Media Role on Women in Politics

RESOURCES

Animated Film Confronts Breast Cancer Taboo in Palestine-Gaza

NEWS & ARTICLES

WOMEN’S RIGHTS CAMPAIGN
Move to take Domestic Violence Cases out of Religious Courts in Lebanon
As lawmakers struggle to form a government three months after Lebanon's parliamentary elections, women's rights activists await the opening of parliament to debate a new bill on domestic violence. Ghida Anani, programme coordinator of KAFA, a Lebanese organization campaigning against violence and the exploitation of women, estimates that as many as three-quarters of all Lebanese women have suffered physical abuse at the hands of husbands or male relatives at some point in their lives. http://www.wluml.org/english/newsfulltxt.shtml?cmd[157]=x-157-565399

WOMEN’S RIGHTS ACTIVISM
Legislated Victory for Women in Politics in Morocco
In the June 2009 local elections, women entered the municipal councils in force for the first time in Moroccan history. Some 3,406 women were elected, making up over 12 percent of the total winning candidates, compared to less than 1 percent in 2003. Women made up 16 percent of the overall candidates, compared to less than 5 percent in the last elections in 2003.
These results reflect a strong desire on the part of the political elite to correct the huge gender imbalance within elected institutions more than a social and cultural development in Moroccan society at large. Nearly all (98 percent) of the women elected won within the districts set aside for women, in accordance with a change in law that took effect in January 2009. to read the full article please follow the link: http://www.carnegieendowment.org/arb/?fa=show&article=23950

HRC appoints Farida Shaheed as Independent Expert in the field of Cultural Rights
The Human Rights Council concluded its 12th session by naming the first Independent Expert on cultural rights, Farida Shaheed, Director of Research at Shirkat Gah - Women's Resource Centre & longstanding council member of Women Living Under Muslim Laws. An internationally recognized sociologist, writer, academic and development consultant, Farida Shaheed has over 25 years of experience in development research and training. Since 1980, Ms. Shaheed has served as consultant to various U.N. and bilateral development agencies as well as to the Government of Pakistan on issues of governance and policy-formulation.
http://www.wluml.org/english/newsfulltxt.shtml?cmd[157]=x-157-565487

GENDER RIGHTS
Palestinian Women Denied Rights even in Camps in Lebanon
Palestinian women in one of Lebanon's largest refugee camps say that with no rights in the country or even within their own community, they feel they are treated "worse than dogs." Offering a unique insight into life in one of 12 refugee camps in the country, Medical Aid for Palestinians, a British charity working for the health of Palestinians in Lebanon, released the study by the Palestinian Women's Humanitarian Organization, Wednesday, on the disenfranchisement of Burj al-Barajneh's women.
http://www.wluml.org/english/newsfulltxt.shtml?cmd[157]=x-157-565480

Device to Help Women Feign Virginity, Is Controversial in Egypt
Whether it's seen as a clever little gadget to help a woman keep a secret or a devilish deception that threatens Islam, the Artificial Virginity Hymen Kit is not welcome in Egypt.
The kit allows a bride who is not a virgin to pretend that she is. A pouch inserted into the vagina on her wedding night ruptures and leaks a blood-like liquid designed to trick a new husband into believing that his wife is chaste. It's a wink of ingenuity to soothe a man's ego and keep the dowry intact.
Egyptian conservatives condemn the device as technology that will promote promiscuity in a culture that forbids premarital sex. Their protests are arising in a nation that over the last 40 years has gone from miniskirts and secularism to hijabs and religious devotion. But seldom have conservatives faced such brazen advertising.
To read the full story plz follow the link: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-fake-hymen7-2009oct0...

GENDER BASED VIOLENCE
High Vulnerability of Displaced Female-Headed Households in Iraq
The International Organization for Migration says female-headed households displaced in Iraq suffer most from lack of health care, basic services and the threat of eviction. IOM is beginning a new program to help these vulnerable families get the humanitarian assistance they need and to protect them from violence.
The International Organization for Migration says most of Iraq's more than 1.5 million internally displaced people are caught in a vicious cycle of despair. It says most are unemployed, which makes it difficult for them to get adequate food or shelter.
http://www.voanews.com/english/2009-10-04-voa13.cfm

Human Rights vs. Sharia: Violence Against Women
The great irony of the recent International Conference on Violence Against Women hosted by the Italian Ministry for Equal Opportunities, is that if the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Violence Against Women (CEDAW), ratified by 185 countries, or over 90% of the United Nations, were implemented, there would be no need for this conference.
In Islamic countries, for example, although 46 out of 57 members of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) ratified it, they did so with “reservations.” It seems there are Muslim intellectuals and human rights defenders who are still ambivalent about pursuing engagement with Islam and Islamic law, and gender equality and women’s empowerment in Muslim societies. To read the full article plz follow the link http://www.hudsonny.org/2009/10/human-rights-vs-sharia-violence-against-...

GENDER & PERSONAL STATUS LAW
Al-Azhar Bans Niqab from Schools and Colleges
Egypt has embarked on a campaign to restrict the most conservative forms of Muslim dress after one Sheikh Mohammed Tantawi ordered a schoolgirl to remove her niqab, or veil. Tantawi was reportedly angered during a tour of a Cairo school when he saw a girl wearing a niqab, the full veil worn by some devout Muslim women which covers the entire body except for the eyes. Sheikh Tantawi, regarded by many as Egypt's Imam and Sunni Islam's foremost spiritual authority, asked the teenage girl to remove her veil saying: "The niqab is a tradition, it has no connection with religion." http://www.wluml.org/english/newsfulltxt.shtml?cmd[157]=x-157-565498

Canada & Egypt - Initiatives to Ban Burkas, Niqabs
Middle Eastern garments designed to cover a woman's face are "medieval" and "misogynist" symbols of extremism with no basis in Islam, a Canadian Muslim lobby group said Wednesday as it urged Ottawa to ban the burka and the niqab. The Muslim Canadian Congress called on the federal government to prohibit the two garments in order to prevent women from covering their faces in public - a practice the group said has no place in a society that supports gender equality.
http://www.ginsc.net/main.php?option=view_article&mode=0&article=9401&la...

Egypt Cleric 'to Ban Full Veils'
The niqab has become increasingly popular among Egypt's Muslim radicals
Egypt's highest Muslim authority has said he will issue a religious edict against the growing trend for full women's veils, known as the niqab.
Sheikh Mohamed Tantawi, dean of al-Azhar university, called full-face veiling a custom that has nothing to do with the Islamic faith.
Although most Muslim women in Egypt wear the Islamic headscarf, increasing numbers are adopting the niqab as well. To read the full article: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8290606.stm

http://www.ginsc.net/main.php?option=view_article&mode=0&article=9369&la...

Arab Charter on Human Rights - Ratification - Revision - Divisions - Gender
Among the remnants of the wave of reform that is said to have hit the Arab world earlier in this decade is the Arab Charter on Human Rights, adopted at a summit of the League of Arab States in May 2004. The Charter came into force in March 2008 and has been accepted by ten Arab states: Algeria, Bahrain, Jordan, Libya, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
For more information:
http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/instree/loas2005.html

BOOKS & REPORTS

GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT
Accelerating Change for Women and Girls: The Role of Women's Funds
Women’s funds are uniquely situated on the funding landscape. They provide invaluable resources for women’s rights work, help raise the profile of emerging women’s rights issues, and are part of women’s movements. Accelerating Change for Women and Girls: The Role of Women’s Funds, a report of a survey by the Foundation Center and the Women's Funding Network shows how significant the work of women’s funds is. Although the amount of money that women’s funds give is on the whole far less than what large foundations give for women and girls, the impact of their work is far greater. Women’s funds are in effect, the report says, “punching above their weight.” Please follow the Direct Link to Report Highlights: http://www.foundationcenter.org/gainknowledge/research/pdf/womensfunds20...
And you may follow the Direct Link to Full 50-Page Report:
http://www.womensfundingnetwork.org/sites/wfnet.org/files/TheRoleofWomen...

Arab Human Development Report 2009 - Gender
Challenges to Human Security in the Arab Countries
Direct Link to Full 288-Page UN Report:
http://www.arab-hdr.org/publications/other/ahdr/ahdr2009e.pdf

GENDER EQUALITY
Study-Status of Women & Freedom of Religion or Belief & Traditions
To have access to the Arabic UN Translation - UN Study on the Status of Women & Freedom of Religion or Belief & Traditions, Please follow the Direct Link to WUNRN Website for Full 84-Page UN Study ARABIC Translation: http://www.wunrn.com/un_study/arabic.pdf

GENDER AND ECONOMY
Women in the Informal Economy & the Global Economic Crisis
Much has been said about the impact of the global economic crisis on those employed in the formal economy while its impact on those employed informally - in enterprises and as wage workers - has received little or no attention. To address the gap in information about the impact of the crisis on the working poor, WIEGO and its partners in the Inclusive Cities project collected information on the impact of the crisis on three categories of these workers - home-based workers, street vendors, and waste pickers.
Direct Link to Full 35-Page Study:
http://www.inclusivecities.org/pdfs/GEC_Study.pdf
Direct Link to Full Report: http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---dgreports/---dcomm/documents/...

GENDER AND ICT
Information for Development Magazine
For most of this century, technology has been regarded as an engine for economic growth and social development. As socioeconomic models evolve, there is increased awareness that the technology is not the most important part, but the information and knowledge that it enables us acquire and use towards human development and economic growth (Hafkin, 2008). Information and communication technologies (ICTs) provide tools with which to find, create, share and manage this knowledge.
Direct Link to 48-Page Issue:
http://www.millennia2015.org/files/files/Publications/i4d_Gender_and_ICT...

GENDER AND MEDIA
Algeria, Morocco & Tunisia - Media Role on Women in Politics
Media in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia generally show a positive attitude towards women taking part in political life. However, women politicians are underrepresented in the media. Even during the elections in Algeria and Morocco this year, female candidates were only given limited coverage.
As part of the UN-INSTRAW/CAWTAR project “Women's Political Participation in Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco,” which aims to reinforce women’s leadership and participation in politics and decision-making processes in the three countries, special attention has been given to the visibility of the actions and contribution of women who have already reached the political sphere. Written press, television and radio can play a crucial role in the promotion and legitimization of women´s political participation. Therefore, media representation of these women is in the limelight of a new project study, conducted by students from departments of information and communication in the three countries as part of their graduate degree. To read the article plz follow the link:
http://www.un-instraw.org:80/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1...

RESOURCES

Animated Film Confronts Breast Cancer Taboo in Palestine-Gaza
The harsh reality of life and death in Gaza is a common theme for Palestinian filmmakers.But it was the 2004 death of a young Palestinian woman -- not at the hands of a militant attack or an Israeli incursion -- that struck a note with two filmmakers.
Their animated film, "Fatenah," is inspired by her struggle with breast cancer, which is still a sensitive subject in the Palestinian territories.
"The amount of trouble she has to go to just to survive, you feel somehow committed to be part of that project, it is so strong and so emotional," director Ahmad Habash told CNN.
Fatenah, which tells the fictional story of a young seamstress from a Gaza refugee camp, is the first commercial Palestinian animation film ever made.
The heart-wrenching tale follows Fatenah's pain and humiliation as she struggles to leave Gaza for treatment after finding few Palestinian doctors willing to help. For more information plz follow this link: http://www.wunrn.com/news/2009/10_09/10_12_09/101209_palestine.htm