Women's eNews (https://womensenews.org/author/wency-leung/)
A Canadian bill that would protect the divorce rights of aboriginal women is being delayed by the suspension of parliament. Some First Nations women’s advocates oppose the proposed law as infringing on their sovereignty.
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An advocate for Canada’s Aboriginal women chides the government for neglecting a marginalized population. Aboriginal women account for 33 percent of federally-sentenced female offenders in the country.
After fleeing abuse at Fort Campbell, a lesbian now living in Canada is hoping for asylum on the unusual grounds of anti-homosexual persecution within the U.S. military. Her case could affect other claims by asylum seekers from democracies.
Sex workers in Canada are challenging the country’s ban on activities associated with prostitution, arguing it conflicts with their constitutional rights. Opponents say decriminalization of sex work would increase sex trafficking.
The Muslim Canadian Congress is lobbying to ban the burka and niqab, but authorities say apparel is a matter of individual expression. Young women who have adopted the clothes say they like the modest attire.
The Czech Republic has just assumed the rotating presidency of the EU. One of its outspoken female journalists says the country lags on women’s rights. “There is absolutely no pro-women culture,” says Jana Ciglerova.
A group of women and young people are getting in touch with their First Nations ancestry by learning to carve a totem pole in memory of the lost women of Vancouver’s skid row.
An ex-husband is challenging a Canadian Supreme Court judgment that has been heralded as a major boost in the global cause for Jewish women’s stronger religious divorce rights. The woman in the case doesn’t think he has a chance.
The murders of women–most of them Aboriginal–along Canada’s Highway 16 in British Columbia stirred advocates to request a shuttle service to reduce hitchhiking on the dangerous road. A year later, women are still sticking their thumbs out.
Sex workers in Vancouver–the scene of Canada’s worst suspected serial murder case–are planning a cooperative brothel, which they say will give them a safe place to work as officials polish the city’s image for the 2010 Winter Olympics.