Peruvian Women Still Denied Their Right to Abortion
Global Issues , 22 Nov 2022
In this Andean nation of 33 million people, abortion is illegal even in cases of rape or fetal malformation. It is only legal for two therapeutic reasons: to save the life of the pregnant woman or to prevent a serious and permanent health problem. Peru thus goes against the current of the advances achieved by the “green wave”. Green is the color that symbolizes the changes that the women’s rights movement has achieved in the legislation of neighboring countries such as Uruguay, Colombia, Argentina and some states in Mexico, where early abortion has been decriminalized. These countries have joined the ranks of Cuba, where it has been legal for decades.
As the Taliban doles out lashings, what have Afghan women and girls lost in 15 months under the extremists?
CBS News, 21 Nov 2022
Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers said over the weekend that 10 women and 11 men were lashed for crimes of theft, adultery and running away from their homes. The country’s Supreme Court said each of those convicted was “lashed 39 times,” in beatings meted out at the main mosque in the city of Taloqan, in the northern Takhar province, after Friday prayers last week. Local elders, scholars and residents watched. A man and woman were also publicly lashed in a sports stadium last week in central Bamyan province, in what appeared to be the first official lashing implemented in the country since the Taliban retook power 15 months ago. While the Taliban’s harsh interpretation of Islamic “Shariah” law has had an undeniable impact on all Afghans, the country’s women and girls have lost the most.
In Silence or Aloud, High-Profile Iranians Signal Support for Protests
The New York Times , 21 Nov 2022
At the World Cup in Qatar, Iran’s soccer players on Monday declined to sing their country’s national anthem. In Tehran, two well-known actresses were arrested over the weekend for defiantly removing their head scarves. And at least nine prominent Iranians were summoned for questioning for daring to criticize the authorities. High-profile Iranians are increasingly making public gestures of support for the protests that have gripped the country for the past two months, posting photos and messages critical of the government on social media, or flouting the country’s strict hijab laws.
‘This Is Not Iran’ | Israel’s Religious and Far-right Parties Demand Law to Legitimize Gender Segregation
Haaretz, 20 Nov 2022
In exchange for joining the coalition, the far-right Religious Zionism and United Torah Judaism parties have demanded legislation that gender separation at public events will not be considered discrimination. Likud has not yet decided whether to grant the demand. Prime Minister Yair Lapid said in response: “While in Iran courageous women are fighting for their rights, in Israel, Smotrich and the ultra-Orthodox nationalists are trying to send women behind barriers and enshrine into law separation between men and women. Where is Likud? Why are they silent? This is not Iran.”According to a report in Israel Hayom, Religious Zionism and UTJ want to legalize separation of men and women at ultra-Orthodox and Orthodox cultural events, education and public services. This will prevent what they call “judicial persecution by the legal system.”
In focus: 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence
UN Women , 18 Nov 2022
The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence is an annual campaign that begins on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and runs through International Human Rights Day on 10 December. Led by civil society, the campaign is supported by the United Nations through the Secretary General’s UNiTE by 2030 to End Violence against Women initiative. This year, the UN marks the 16 Days under the theme “UNiTE! Activism to end violence against women and girls”.Violence against women and girls remains the most pervasive human rights violation around the world. Already heightened by the COVID-19 pandemic, its prevalence is now being further increased by the intersecting crises of climate change, global conflict and economic instability.
