Somalia’s hard line Islamist group al Shabaab has publicly whipped women for wearing bras they say violate Islam by constituting a deception.

Residents said gunmen had been rounding up any woman seen with a firm bust and then had them publicly whipped by masked men.

The women were then told to remove their bras and shake their breasts.

The group’s hardline interpretation of Islamic law has shocked many Somalis, who are traditionally moderate Muslims.

Read the full story at Reuters Africa.

Please note, IWDA does not necessarily endorse all the information contained in the newsletter, it is provided as an intended source of reference.

International Women’s Development Agency (IWDA) is committed to collaborating with project partners and stakeholders to promote and support dialogue in relation to women, gender and development. As part of our ongoing strategy to advocate for best practice in the sector, we are pleased to bring you E-Gender - a mechanism for Australian and international readers to share information on their gender and development work, both nationally and internationally, as well as sharing international resources and items of interest.

Thank you for your feedback to date and we encourage your ongoing input in this initiative. IWDA is keen to feature information about resources, events and opportunities in Australia and invites you to contribute. Please send information to be included to egender-items@iwda.org.au

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As part of the FEMNET Capacity building programme, the Internship programme is open to female students (both local and international) and those that have just completed their studies and are looking for experience and mentorship in the area of African women’s human rights, gender mainstreaming, African feminist movement and communications.

The Interns work under the supervision and guidance of the Programme Officer in charge of a specific programme, for a minimum period of 3 months and maximum 6 months.

The Interns are expected to agree with the programme officer on the terms of reference for the internship taking into account both FEMNET’s interest and the intern’s interest.

It is also expected that the intern produces a report at the end of their internship period.

For further information on this opportunity, please visit FEMNET.

Please note, IWDA does not necessarily endorse all the information contained in the newsletter, it is provided as an intended source of reference.

International Women’s Development Agency (IWDA) is committed to collaborating with project partners and stakeholders to promote and support dialogue in relation to women, gender and development. As part of our ongoing strategy to advocate for best practice in the sector, we are pleased to bring you E-Gender - a mechanism for Australian and international readers to share information on their gender and development work, both nationally and internationally, as well as sharing international resources and items of interest.

Thank you for your feedback to date and we encourage your ongoing input in this initiative. IWDA is keen to feature information about resources, events and opportunities in Australia and invites you to contribute. Please send information to be included to egender-items@iwda.org.au

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This 150-page report by Human Rights Watch documents repeated failures both in providing health care to pregnant women in Uttar Pradesh state in northern India, and in taking steps to identify and address those gaps in care.

Uttar Pradesh has one of the highest maternal mortality ratios in India, but government surveys show it is not alone in struggling with these problems, including a failure even to record how many women are dying.

For an emerging global economic power famous for its medical prowess, India continues to have unacceptably high maternal mortality levels.

In 2005, the last year for which international data is available, India’s maternal mortality ratio was 16 times that of Russia, 10 times that of China, and 4 times higher than in Brazil.

Having travelled and volunteered in India, it is easy to believe that maternal mortality levels are so horribly high. Even still, this publication has some shocking revelations. AR

To download the report, please visit Human Rights Watch.

The United Nations Foundation is seeking a Campaign Director for a new and exciting campaign (the “Girl Campaign”) that will have two primary goals: to raise awareness of the need to better the lives of the more than 600 million adolescent girls living in the developing world, and to raise funding for The Girl Fund, the UN Foundation’s vehicle for donors to support the on-the-ground work of the United Nations related to adolescent girls and complementary NGO advocacy activities.

The Girl Campaign will be multi-faceted; it will build a grassroots movement and interest in the potential of adolescent girls in the developing world and solutions for improving their lives among grassroots constituencies.

The Campaign Director will lead and manage the Girl Campaign to achieve its goals and objectives, specifically building a mass constituency engaged in the issue of elevating the rights and needs of adolescent girls living in the developing world and raising funds to re-shape their lives through The Girl Fund. The Campaign Director will be part of a dynamic team at the UN Foundation that includes professionals with programmatic, communications, marketing, and fundraising expertise.

Applications close November12 2009, please visit UN Foundation for details.

Please note, IWDA does not necessarily endorse all the information contained in the newsletter, it is provided as an intended source of reference.

International Women’s Development Agency (IWDA) is committed to collaborating with project partners and stakeholders to promote and support dialogue in relation to women, gender and development. As part of our ongoing strategy to advocate for best practice in the sector, we are pleased to bring you E-Gender - a mechanism for Australian and international readers to share information on their gender and development work, both nationally and internationally, as well as sharing international resources and items of interest.

Thank you for your feedback to date and we encourage your ongoing input in this initiative. IWDA is keen to feature information about resources, events and opportunities in Australia and invites you to contribute. Please send information to be included to egender-items@iwda.org.au

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The Isis Centre for Women and Development (based in Fes, Morocco and directed by Dr Fatima Sadiqi) is organising an international conference, March 8-10, 2010, on marginalised women: single mothers, divorced women, widows and household breadwinners.

In brief, women without men in a globalised world are seriously threatened by the impact of the financial crisis.

Discussing these categories of women is still taboo in the overwhelming majority of the Arab-Islamic countries, sub-Saharan Africa and many countries of the global south.

In addition to a couple of plenary sessions, the conference will feature workshops with grass-root activists, visits to three listening centres, life stories, and awards for some successful local marginalised women.

Conference details are available on the Fatima Sadiqi website.

Interested scholars/activists, or postgraduate students are welcome to contact Fatima Sadiqi at sadiqi_fatima@yahoo.fr

Please note, IWDA does not necessarily endorse all the information contained in the newsletter, it is provided as an intended source of reference.

International Women’s Development Agency (IWDA) is committed to collaborating with project partners and stakeholders to promote and support dialogue in relation to women, gender and development. As part of our ongoing strategy to advocate for best practice in the sector, we are pleased to bring you E-Gender - a mechanism for Australian and international readers to share information on their gender and development work, both nationally and internationally, as well as sharing international resources and items of interest.

Thank you for your feedback to date and we encourage your ongoing input in this initiative. IWDA is keen to feature information about resources, events and opportunities in Australia and invites you to contribute. Please send information to be included to egender-items@iwda.org.au

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This webpage is a comprehensive site dedicated to gender and development information and study.

The Social Institutions & Gender Index is based on extensive information gathering and research about gender inequality in social institutions in 124 countries.

Detailed country notes compile information on social norms and traditional practices related to relations in the family, ownership rights, child preference, physical integrity and civil liberties.

The coding of social institutions variables is based on a consistent scheme that is applied to all countries.

A country by country index of gender issues world wide, right at your finger tips!

To access any country profile, please visit the Gender Index homepage.

Please note, IWDA does not necessarily endorse all the information contained in the newsletter, it is provided as an intended source of reference.

International Women’s Development Agency (IWDA) is committed to collaborating with project partners and stakeholders to promote and support dialogue in relation to women, gender and development. As part of our ongoing strategy to advocate for best practice in the sector, we are pleased to bring you E-Gender - a mechanism for Australian and international readers to share information on their gender and development work, both nationally and internationally, as well as sharing international resources and items of interest.

Thank you for your feedback to date and we encourage your ongoing input in this initiative. IWDA is keen to feature information about resources, events and opportunities in Australia and invites you to contribute. Please send information to be included to egender-items@iwda.org.au

#egender   

We revolted not only against the cruelty and barbarity of war, but even more against the reversal of human relationships which war implied. Jane Addams, 1931 Nobel Peace Prize winner

In 1915 the International Congress of Women met for the first time to address the horrors of war and the role of women as peacemakers. However, it was not until October 2000 that the United Nations formally recognised the impact of war on women and women’s contribution to conflict resolution and sustainable peace.

October 31 was the ninth anniversary of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security. The resolution outlines the importance of increasing women’s participation in decision-making at all levels of conflict prevention, management and resolution, and in peace processes. It marks a significant moment in the history of the United Nations, the first time the Security Council specifically addressed the issue of women in peace and security.

UN Security Council Resolution 1325 is a landmark document, setting out steps that member states and UN peacekeeping missions need to take to reflect both the risks women face in conflict situations and their contributions to preventing and resolving conflict. The widespread nature of armed conflict underlines its importance: this month the International Crisis Group reported on 79 current and potential conflict situations globally, with situations deteriorating in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Guinea and Uganda. In our own region, current and potential conflict situations remain matters of concern in Burma, Fiji, the Philippines, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and West Papua.

Why did the Security Council highlight the role of women in conflict and post-conflict situations? There are three key reasons.

First, women and girls make up the majority of civilians adversely affected by armed conflict; as refugees, internally displaced persons, and increasingly as deliberate targets. As UNIFEM Executive Director Dr Ines Alberdi noted during her visit to Australia in August, in some conflicts it is more dangerous to be a woman than a soldier. Women’s experiences and voices need to be heard.

Second, as the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon put it earlier this month, ‘bringing women to the peace table improves the quality of agreements reached, and increases the chances of successful implementation.’ Yet women comprise less than 10 per cent of official negotiating teams at peace talks, as the pictures of suited men on evening TV news bulletins regularly confirm.

Third, peace processes and rebuilding efforts establish the conditions and foundations for just societies post-conflict. The lack of participation by women works against consideration of diverse perspectives, the inclusion of health, education, nutrition, childcare and human security issues, and the establishment of social and political structures and processes that respect and consider the voices of all.

Non-government organisations play a pivotal role in promoting peace-building at community and national level. They work to build spaces for dialogue, develop leadership skills and capacity, reduce violent responses to conflict and trauma, and hold governments accountable for their commitments. This role was recognised by the Security Council in resolution 1325, endorsing the participation of civil society, particularly women and their organisations, in formal peace processes and operations.

Across the South Pacific, women’s organisations have contributed to ceasefire agreements, peace interventions and mediation during political and armed conflict, weapons disposal programs, and gender and human rights training. Women’s organisations continue to have a vital ongoing role in peace-building, especially given the ongoing political instability experienced in the region. It takes many years to overcome the mistrust and fear created by civil unrest and conflict. Bougainville continues to rebuild after widespread conflict throughout the 1990s, with the reintegration of combatants into communities an ongoing issue.

In the Solomon Islands, communities are still rebuilding from the violence that broke out in 1998. Violence and lawlessness are likely to remain a concern while the government fails to meet the interests of the majority of the population and the benefits of development are distributed unevenly. Fiji experienced its fourth coup in 2006 led by Commodore Bainimarama, who has since abrogated the constitution, placed strict restrictions on the media and removed the independent judiciary. A military-led interim government remains in place with elections not planned until at least 2014.

fem’LINKPACIFIC is a media organisation that was established in the aftermath of the 2000 political crisis in Fiji. Initially the aim was to provide women with a voice on peace and security issues. Since 2004, their radio station - fem’TALK 98.2FM - has also promoted awareness of human rights and offers a safe space for women of all ages and cultural backgrounds to discuss and contribute to Fiji’s post-conflict transformation. Well-respected in the region,

fem’LINKPACIFIC supports the development of women’s media initiatives in Bougainville, Solomon Islands and Tonga. It also coordinates Pacific input into the Global Media Monitoring Project: a worldwide study to collect data on indicators of gender bias and discrimination in news media.

In a difficult political context, fem’LINKPACIFIC has led advocacy and public awareness about the need to implement 1325 in Fiji and the Pacific more broadly. It has attended United Nations summits and Pacific Islands Forum Regional Security Committee meetings, provides the Pacific Regional Secretariat for the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict, and was involved in regional consultations on a draft Pacific Human Rights Security Framework.

Also based in Fiji, the Pacific Centre for Peacebuilding (PCP) was established in 2007 to transform, reduce and prevent conflict in Fiji and the Pacific, and has since facilitated critical dialogues between community, civil society organisations, the military and government members. It also supports re-integration of ex-prisoners into society, and women’s economic security through community development activities. The Fiji agency Women’s Action for Change (WAC) uses innovative theatre-based techniques in their work with young women and men to develop mediation and negotiation skills, and supports students to develop school mediation networks to promote non-violent responses to conflict. WAC also works with diverse women living in 17 informal settlement communities in Fiji, facilitating the development of sustainable livelihood and food security options and pathways. WAC’s approach is grounded in a broader understanding of security that takes into account the local realities of gender based violence, freedom of movement, and economic security.

In some areas of the Highlands of Papua New Guinea, violence is a daily experience for many. Limited opportunities for young people and the amassing of firearms overlay traditional tribal conflicts. Kup Women for Peace (KWP) was established in 2000 by four women activists determined to end tribal fighting and violence against women and children, and to build peace among clans and tribal groups. Despite the founders of KWP belonging to ‘enemy’ clans, they joined together - prompted by the killing of one woman’s son - and collectively said that violence must stop.

Nine years later, a remarkable change has taken place. KWP, now a well-respected organisation, has helped to reduce violence by documenting police abuse of human rights and laws during elections, organising training for police in conflict resolution and human rights, supporting communities to find non-violent solutions to tribal disputes, and providing a safe space for women to speak out about their experiences of violence, including at the hands of police. They have worked with the police leadership to ensure police do their job and respond appropriately to violence against women and children. The work of KWP, while making a significant improvement to the security situation in the area, remains in need of ongoing support as communities are still vulnerable to violence and conflict as recent disputes relating to compensation for land demonstrate.

These examples from across the South Pacific highlight the powerful, practical efforts of women to promote peace and ensure women’s and men’s voices, ideas, skills and commitments are included. Yet all too often, when women are identified as having a role to play, it is confined to the home and local community level. As the UN Security Council recognised nine years ago, it is well past time to ensure women are represented in formal spaces of decision making during the transition from violent conflict to peace. This is the pivotal moment - a window of opportunity in which institutions, structures and relationships within a society can be transformed and the root causes of violent conflict analysed and addressed. Through UNSCR1325, the Security Council has mandated that all Governments and peacekeeping forces ensure that women have opportunities to be heard and make decisions on national and regional security issues, and are protected from sexual violence in conflict.

Alongside our partner agency fem’LINKPACIFIC, International Women’s Development Agency urges all governments to act on UNSCR 1325 and develop National Action Plans specifying how the directions of the Security Council will be implemented to ensure meaningful ongoing consultation, involve women in national and regional security decision-making, and ensure that decision makers and peacekeeping forces have the training and resources to identify and respond to women’s specific needs in conflict situations, and to prevent sexual violence in conflict.

We welcome the recent adoption of UNSCR 1888 which offers the UN and member states comprehensive frameworks to review the implementation of 1325 and to further enhance the participation of women and girls in peace processes. Therefore, in the lead up to the 10th anniversary of the resolution, we also reiterate the call for the Secretary General to appoint strong and dynamic advocates of the 1325 agenda to the roles of Special Representative on sexual violence in armed conflict and head of the new UN gender entity. We believe that the role and responsibilities of the Special Representative should cover all aspects of the women, peace and security agenda, not just the issue of sexual violence.

Women’s active involvement in safety and human security issues is a basic human right.

Without women’s voices there can be no inclusive, just or enduring peace.

 Amy Schwebel

6 November 2009

The MMMF was established in 1981 to honour the late Margaret McNamara and her commitment to the well-being of women and children in developing countries.

The purpose of the grant is to support the education of women from developing countries who are committed to improving the lives of women and children in their home countries. 

Previous grant recipients studied agriculture, architecture, urban planning, civil engineering, education, forestry, journalism, nursing, nutrition, paediatrics, public administration, public health, social sciences, and social work.

Deadline for applications is February 18, 2010.

For grant details, please visit MMMF.

Please note, IWDA does not necessarily endorse all the information contained in the newsletter, it is provided as an intended source of reference.

International Women’s Development Agency (IWDA) is committed to collaborating with project partners and stakeholders to promote and support dialogue in relation to women, gender and development. As part of our ongoing strategy to advocate for best practice in the sector, we are pleased to bring you E-Gender - a mechanism for Australian and international readers to share information on their gender and development work, both nationally and internationally, as well as sharing international resources and items of interest.

Thank you for your feedback to date and we encourage your ongoing input in this initiative. IWDA is keen to feature information about resources, events and opportunities in Australia and invites you to contribute. Please send information to be included to egender-items@iwda.org.au

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Climate change is the defining human development issue of our generation.

The 2007 Human Development report acknowledges that climate change threatens to erode human freedoms and limits choice.

It further underscores that gender inequality intersects with climate risks and vulnerabilities.

Poor women’s limited access to resources, restricted rights, limited mobility and muted voice in shaping decisions make them highly vulnerable to climate change.

The nature of that vulnerability varies widely and it is believed that climate change will magnify existing patterns of inequality, including gender inequality.

This resource guide presents principal conceptual and methodological advances on gender relations in the context of climate change, with the overall objective of providing guidelines for actors, practitioners and consumers in this relatively new programme area.

This resource is great for gender studies but it can also be relevant to a whole range of issues in development. Climate change is here; its time to change the way we do things, for everyone, before it’s too late. AR

To access the full publication, please visit ELDIS.

Please note, IWDA does not necessarily endorse all the information contained in the newsletter, it is provided as an intended source of reference.

International Women’s Development Agency (IWDA) is committed to collaborating with project partners and stakeholders to promote and support dialogue in relation to women, gender and development. As part of our ongoing strategy to advocate for best practice in the sector, we are pleased to bring you E-Gender - a mechanism for Australian and international readers to share information on their gender and development work, both nationally and internationally, as well as sharing international resources and items of interest.

Thank you for your feedback to date and we encourage your ongoing input in this initiative. IWDA is keen to feature information about resources, events and opportunities in Australia and invites you to contribute. Please send information to be included to egender-items@iwda.org.au

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A call for papers for the Michigan State University Working Paper series.

This series focuses on the relationships between gender and global transformation, and publishes reports of empirical studies and projects, theoretical analyses, and policy discussions that illuminate the processes of change in the broadest sense.

Individual papers in the series address a range of topics including women’s historical and changing participation in economic and political spheres, intra- and inter-family role relationships, gender identity, women’s health and health care, and the gender division of labor.

If you are interested in submitting a manuscript to the Publication Series, please visit MSU. 

Please note, IWDA does not necessarily endorse all the information contained in the newsletter, it is provided as an intended source of reference.

International Women’s Development Agency (IWDA) is committed to collaborating with project partners and stakeholders to promote and support dialogue in relation to women, gender and development. As part of our ongoing strategy to advocate for best practice in the sector, we are pleased to bring you E-Gender - a mechanism for Australian and international readers to share information on their gender and development work, both nationally and internationally, as well as sharing international resources and items of interest.

Thank you for your feedback to date and we encourage your ongoing input in this initiative. IWDA is keen to feature information about resources, events and opportunities in Australia and invites you to contribute. Please send information to be included to egender-items@iwda.org.au

#egender