Her Daily News

In building bridges, one must take down a few walls, and as Secreatary of State Hillary Clinton knows, one of the toughest walls to break sown is misconception - so she sought to set one straight. “If you want to know if democracy, Islam, modernity, and women’s rights can coexist, go to Indonesia,” she told other attendees at a dinner during her visit to Indonesia, chronicled in a recent New York Times article. Indonesia holds a special meaning for the current administration - President Obama lived there for part of his childhood. However, the country has also undergone what Mrs. Clinton referred to as a “great transfomation” - after the Asian financial crisis in the late ’90’s, Indonesia has bounced back as a democracy after escaping the autocratic rule of Suharto.

The Obama administration is reaching out to other countries in an effort to establish diplomatic relations, and it seems that Islamic countries are at the top of the list. However, Mrs. Clinton emphasized that this effort is not at the expense of worldwide diplomacy. She said to reporters, “There is no pigeonholing; there is no exclusivity. We are reaching out to the entire world.” Nevertheless, Indonesia does hold special interest for the Obama administration - the country’s counterterrorism efforts, along with environmental factors, give the administration particular motivation to increase relations. The global economic crisis is a factor as well - and as it is a global crisis, the administration is making an effort to guard against protectionism. As the world economy recovers, no nation is an island.

This time of year brings to mind romance, but women can give themselves the biggest Valentine of all by banding together to end domestic violence. On Friday, a bevy of big Hollywood names assembled to mark V-Day, playwright Eve Ensler’s event meant to bring an end to violence against women. The luncheon brought together stars of the screen, including Rosario Dawson (far right), who most recently appeared in Seven Pounds. According to People, Dawson reminded the crowd that violence against women and their families touches those in all walks of life. She said of Jennifer Hudson, who lost three family members in a triple homicide last October, and Rihanna, whose boyfriend Chris Brown is under investigation for domestic violence, that “these women are our sisters.” She also encouraged serious discussion of domestic violence rather than the treatment of the subject as gossip.

The event also featured the reading of accounts of violence against women overseas - in particular, attendees listened to accounts of the rape and mutilation of women in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Actress Jessica Alba (second from right) read the story of one woman, and found herself brought to tears as she did so. The stories hit close to home for some stars in attendance. South African actress Charlize Theron (not pictured) recalled similar occurrences in her home country - the Oscar winner said, “I was born and raised in a country with similar turmoil. People want to help, but don’t know how.” Hopefully, efforts like V-Day will bring violence against women closer to an end.

This morning brings tragic news: Mariana Bridi da Costa, a Brazilian model who had been fighting a severe infection, has died at the tender age of 20, according to CNN.

Ms. Da Costa, who had been a finalist on the Miss World pageant circuit, was a healthy, active young woman just one month ago - she showed no sign of illness until December 30, when upon her arrival at the hospital, she was diagnosed with a kidney stone and sent home.

Her boyfriend Thiago Simoes tells Britain’s Daily Mail that her condition worsened two days later - she returned to the hospital, where it was determined that she had a severe infection. As the antibiotic-resistant bacterial strain Pseudomonas aeruginosa spread through her system, her blood flow was severely compromised, and doctors eventually amputated her hands and feet in an effort to stop the infection’s spread. She also underwent surgery to remove her kidneys and part of her stomach, and eventually went into organ failure as a result of her illness. She passed away at 3 a.m. today.

Da Costa’s loved ones have told the media that she was a rising star with a warm heart. Simoes told CNN that she expressed hope, even in the throes of her illness: “She told me she was praying to stay alive, that she still had a lot to do on this earth, that she wanted to go on with her plans.” He says that she had been well on her way to becoming a star, having signed with renowned modeling agent Dilson Stein. On his blog, da Costa’s friend Renato Lindgren expressed gratitude for the solidarity shown by supporters all over the world: “On behalf of all the family, we are grateful for the support and the affection that the entire world has sent to us.”

There are a lot of women living safely in our nation with a burning memory of childhood that is unforgivable and unshakable. Their lives began in small villages of West and North Africa where tradition in local tribes includes a rite of passage ceremony known as female genital circumcision, or female genital mutilation (FGM). This practice, believed to make a girl more chaste and more marriage-worth occurs across religious, class and tribal lines but is more common in rural communities than in cities. In Africa, three million girls are at risk each year of being subjected to FGM.

The United States has granted political asylum to many victims of forced circumcision after a landmark immigration ruling in 1996, however, recently, immigration courts are narrowing the grounds on which they will issue legal sanctuary to these frightened women. Only a few hundred have won asylum claims due to FGM.

The Washington Post reports that “Today, despite world condemnation, legal bans in many nations and years of educational efforts, female circumcision is still widely practiced in Africa. In nine countries — Egypt, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Somalia, Mali, Eritrea, Gambia and Djibouti — more than 75 percent of women have been circumcised.”

The procedure itself is brief, it is known in the West as female genital mutilation. Part or all of the external genitalia are cut off, usually with a hot knife or sharp stone for no medical reason. There is no anesthesia, there is no sterile surface or bandages or medication. The procedure is usually done to pre-puescent girls. Bleeding after the procedure is often severe and can result in shock, infection and death.

International health organizations report that these victims suffer lifelong complications with urination, menstruation, childbirth and intercourse. It is estimated that 100 to 140 million girls and women worldwide currently live with consequences of FGM.

FGM is internationally recognized as a human rights violation.

Source: World Health Organization, Washington Post

The East African nation of Rwanda is trying something new. Historically dominated by men, women are driving the economy by working on construction sites, in factories, as truck and taxi drivers and also holding seats in the government.  With a population of 10 million, 55percent are women.

Rwanda is integrating women into government far more aggressively than any other African nation and this is putting them at odds within the continent.

Women currently hold a third of all cabinet positions. The foreign minister, education minister, police commissioner general, and Supreme Court chief are all women. Rwanda’s parliament is the first in the world where women are in the majority.

The countries of Africa have historically been ruled and governed by archaic patriarchal laws, including one that prohibits women from inheriting land. The legislature, now ruled by women is passing bills aimed at ending domestic violence and child abuse. There is hope that discriminatory laws will be purged from the legal code now that women are in charge and looking out for the greater good of the country, particularly one that requires a women to get her husband’s signature on a bank loan.

While the scars of recent genocide run deep, there exists a strong sense of national purpose among these women.

The capital of Rwanda is Kigali. Rwanda is bordered by Congo to the west, Burundi to the south Tanzania to the Southeast and Uganda to the northeast. It rests just south of the Equator and just west of Lake Victoria.

Source: The Washington Post, Print Edition, Monday October 27, 2008

Christina Applegate, best known for her 10-year roll on Fox’s Married with Children as Kelly Bundy and more recently as star of Samantha Who?, admitted this morning on Good Morning America that she had a double mastectomy just three weeks ago. She plans to undergo reconstructive surgery during the next year.

Diagnosed just this summer with breast cancer that was confined to one breast, she opted for the the more radical treatment of a double mastectomy. Applegate’s mother battled breast cancer and she tested positive for the BRCA1 gene mutation that has been linked to more severe forms of breast and ovarian cancer.

Since her diagnosis she has opted for a healthy diet including fish, grains and vegetables and taken a serious matter-of-fact approach in making decisions that will effect her health and the rest of her life.

“I’m going to have cute boobs till I’m 90, so there’s that,” she joked in the interview, which aired Tuesday. “I’ll have the best boobs in the nursing home. I’ll be the envy of all the ladies around the bridge table.”

Applegate appears to be taking things in stride although, without a doubt she is experiencing stress and anxiety on unprecedented levels.

In recent years she has stepped out of type-cast role as a dumb-blonde-bimbo and taken on some more serious and challenging rolls. Her Daily News hopes Applegate has a speedy recovery and quickly returns to the set.

This article on Newsday comments on the increase in women having preventative double mastectomies. Do you find this to be too radical? Or, do you think this is a wise decision when faced with the challenges of BRCA1-breast cancer?

Some other Breast Cancer Information Sites:

Breast Cancer Info

Susan G. Komen Race For the Cure

National Cancer Institute

The Namibian Businesswoman of the Year 2007 prize was awarded to Rhiana Potgieter, owner of the Shadonai Beauty School. This article on AllAfrica.com stated the awards were given during a banquet on Friday, October 12. Also taking home awards were Helene Vosloo, winning the category of Community and Government, and Margaret Bennett, winner of the Private and Corporate Sector category.

In the announcement of the nominees, Desere Lundon-Muller stated the Businesswoman of the Year program was started 12 years ago to honor the “women whose achievements, commitment and vision have made them leaders in their chosen fields of endeavour.” Telecom Namibia and Castle Brewing Namibia are sponsors for the event, and the Namibia Economist newspaper serves as the organizer.

In an interview with the Namibia Economist, Potgieter said she started the school with just five students and no accreditation. Today, she has 20 full-time and 40 part-time students, and is accredited through the Namibian Training Authority as well as international organizations. “I definitely have an enormous impact on their lives and this is the biggest responsibility of all,” she says.

Women in Namibia are beginning to gain more equal status in some areas, but those living in rural regions still face many hardships and discrimination. In A Physical Educator’s Perspective of Namibia, Africa, Bonnie J. Reimann explores the major issues still affecting women’s rights. The greatest of these issues continues to be HIV/AIDS, with the number of young women living with the disease estimated to be more than twice that of young men. In addition, many widows find themselves suddenly having their property taken away by male family members after the death of a husband. This fact sheet on women’s rights in Namibia may shed some light into this situation faced by agricultural, rural women:

Namibia is a signatory to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).

The Constitution of Namibia guarantees equal rights for women and provides for affirmative action to redress past imbalances. However, the Constitution also states that all laws in force at independence remain in force until repealed or amended by Parliament, and that customary and common laws also remain valid, as long as they do not conflict with the Constitution or statutory laws. Thus many discriminatory laws that affect rural women remain intact, including those that limit women’s control over property and access to land over property and access to land and credit.

Reimann stated, “This lowered economic status can encourage high-risk behavior such as engaging in unsafe sex for money, housing or food for women and their children. It becomes evident that the cycle of poverty, HIV/Aids transmission, and gender disparity will be difficult to break.” During her visit to Namibia, she also toured the education programs offered to girls to women in the country. While there are some quality programs in place, the women of Namibia need access to much more. Strong business leaders like Potgieter and the other winners offer the hope that perhaps the gender disparity explored by Reimann, although difficult, can be overcome.

To read how other international women are overcoming oppression, check out Afghanistan City Helping Women Own Businesses.

women, businesswomen, Namibia, Namibian women, women’s rights

Afgha.com has reported that five women-owned stores in the city of Mazar-e Sharif are doing well. The women’s affairs department helped the women set up their retail shops, something almost unheard of in Afghanistan.

The success of these lady-owned and operated business led to the provincial governor laying the foundation stone for the Women’s Garden, a planned shopping center for 200 more stores. Men as well as women will be allowed to shop there, though it was pointed out that, “officials say their behaviour will be closely monitored.” As expected, there have been some disagreements among religious leaders over the rights of these females, but there are many local clerics who see it as a positive step.

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I actually found this clip while searching through the online site Lankaweb, a news and opinion site on Sri Lanka. The video clip features Arab-American psychologist Wafa Sultan on an Al-Jazeer broadcast. Clearly, her views expressed in the video could put her life jeopardy. At the same time, her speech is a bold statement made by a woman who has seen and studied both the effects of oppression and of freedom, not just in the war between Iraq and America, but for women around the world.

The best explanation ever

Here is One impressive woman making a huge difference with her powerful and amazing statements on Al jazeera television. The woman is Wafa Sultan, an Arab-American psychologist from Los Angeles. I would suggest watching it ASAP because I don’t know how long the link will be active. This film clip should be shown around the world repeatedly !

Watch video

women’s news, international woman, video, women’s rights

Pratibha Patil was elected India’s first female president on Saturday. Though the office is viewed as mostly ceremonial, the election is seen as a positive step for the country’s girls and women. You can find the full story in Sydney Morning Herald article. With America facing the opportunity to elect it’s own first female head-of-state, it makes me if a country that claims to be a progressive as ours is ready for such a change. Only the next year will tell if we are.

women, politics, elections, India, president

Turkey’s Brothels Produce Two Election Candidates

Two former prostitutes are running for seats in Turkey’s July 22 election to raise awareness about the stigma sex workers face in the nation. With little chance for political victory, they say their goal is to change society instead.

How could this not catch my eye? The cover story on Women’s eNews is a compelling one indeed. This prostitution system that is in place in parts of Europe is unfamiliar to most Americans. There, prostitution is government-run in such countries, offering health benefits and even retirement. But the downside to such a life, as mentioned in the article, is that you forced to register with the police. Such a record is used when running background checks on you and your family members and is used as a way to screen out undesirables.

In a way that is similar to the United States, there is a negative stigma that surrounds workers in the industry. In a way for them, it is a catch-22 because their government funds the occupation, along with benefits and retirement but society treats the workers as outcasts. I find it ironic that in society that mostly consist of strict Muslim’s, prostitution is even a legal way to earn a living.

Another disturbing fact is that many of these women do not chose their occupation. Like the two women discussed in the article, both were sold by their families into prostitutions as young girls. They are then forced to work to pay off their sale price. Once their debt is paid, they are free to leave. Unfortunately, society is not welcoming them with open arms.

These women admit that the chances of winning are slim to none, their goal goes beyond votes. Their goal is to raise awareness about the inhumane way women are treated under the government controlled prostitution business. They also want to show that they aren’t bad people as their society would have you believe. If they are able to at least get people thinking about the problem, that is the first step to change.

women, prostitution, Turkey, government, sex, politics

The running of the bulls in Spain. An event internationally known for its exciting atmosphere and historic traditions. From what I have seen and heard it sounds like good fun for all right? Well a women’s group this year isn’t happen with the festivals tradition of running only bulls. They are calling for cows to run as well. Yes, that is right, an anonymous group is calling for the equality of the bulls and the cows. The article in the Washington Post shows the women are quite serious about their stance.

Of course the notion is being dismissed as absurd since women and men are both allowed to run with the bulls. But is it so far-fetched to think that cows should be allowed to participate as well? It might actually be safer for the participants since they won’t have to worry about being shanked with a bull horn.

I guess the point that this group is trying to make is that gender equality doesn’t extent to the animal kingdom. Even if the idea is a little out there, I think the point was to make people take notice. At the very least, it got a laugh.

bulls, cows, running, Spain, gender equality

Talk about a man’s world. An article in the People’s Daily Online shows that China is the most gender imbalanced nation in the world right now. Currently, there are 37 million more males than females. And the ration of girls born compared to boys is at 100:116 and expected to climb. The story cited three major reasons for the problem: “a long period of paying more attention to men than women, an incomplete social security system, and the abuse of ultra sound technology.” That is a polite way of putting it I think. Years of systematically aborting, murdering and neglecting baby girls seems like a more direct way of stating the cause.

Because of the growing problem a number of laws have been implemented to curb the problem. Just to name a few: “ Population and Family Planning Law, A Regulation on Banning Non-medical Need of Identifying the Gender of a Fetus, and Sexually Discriminative Artificial Suspension of Pregnancy. The Care for Girls Activity was also launched to advocate the idea that men and women are equal, in order to deal with the gender imbalance.” So the conclusion can be drawn that the country is taking positive steps to educate their citizens.

It still leaves me to wonder how difficult it will be to break the tradition. Boys are favored because they will care for their parents when they are older, while women will marry into another family and do nothing to support their family. If that tradition alone changed there wouldn’t be much of a problem. Women could grow up and get an education and help support her parents the same as her male counterpart if women were given the opportunity for success the same as men. Another issue raise in the article was social security. These parents rely on their sons to take care of them when they are older because the government has nothing else in place. Wouldn’t some sort of social security program or retirement education benefit in this case?

China is headed down a slippery slope if changes aren’t made in how women are viewed. They aren’t just risking the present security of the women and children that will become the victims of the societal chaos but they are also risking their future. If some have forgotten how valuable women are to a society let me refresh you memory: women are the ones that carry, birth and raise the children, male and female. So this leaves a society such as China’s in a catch-22. In order to continue their sexist traditions of valuing men over women, they will need to take a step back and start valuing women enough to close the gender gap.

women, China, gender, abortion, human trafficking, social security

Frustrated with the lack of representation of women in their government, a group of Australian women have launched a predominantly female political party. The party is called What Women Want and was launched in Brisbane, Australia today. The party wants the opportunity to enhance women’s roles.

The party was launched by Justine Caines, a mother of six, who is running as a party candidate, has been lobbying for improvements in maternity leave provisions. Though the party is female-centered, it does have 38 male members who support the groups goals and ideas the same as the other female members. The party has plans to run Senate candidates in each state and territory and wouldn’t rule out running a male candidate.

So, what could this type of mentality mean for other countries around the world? A successful campaign with a female-centered party could mean a change in the way political parties as a whole are viewed. These types of parties might be able to find a way to focus less on candidates and more on the issues. Eventually,this party may not be just viewed as a party that is focused on women’s issues but a party that is working toward a common goal of equality and fairness within the government. The stigma of being outside of the norm male in politics might lose it’s negative connotation if it is shown to move toward change in a positive way. We wish them the best of luck.

Source: Women launch political party - LAURA ANDERSON, AdelaideNow.com

women, politics, political parties, Australia, female, Brisbane

The abortion discussion in America is often times different from those of other countries. In Mozambique it is a question of protection of women’s lives. Too often women seek abortions in this country, where it is illegal, only to suffer serious injuries and even death because of improper procedure. These illegal abortions are the third leading cause of maternal mortality in Mozambique. For a country with the highest maternal mortality rate in the world, the measure will offer women a chance to seek procedures in proper facilities. The Feminist Daily News has the rest of the story.

women, abortion, Mozambique, international, mortality, maternal