Women's eNews (https://womensenews.org/tag/africa/page/2/)
The new U.N. point person on sexual violence in armed conflict doesn’t plan to do it on her own. Zainab Bangura, a former health minister from Sierra Leone, is tapping governments to work alongside her nine-person staff.
A new report points to the extensive violence experienced by girls attending school in Zambia. But victims rarely speak up about the abuse, and a lack of clear policies fuel the cycle of violence.
Few Kenyan women have enough money to even consider cosmetic surgery. But doctors say higher-earning women are beginning to fuel demand. One woman says she’s had four procedures in the past three years.
Cheers
Wisconsin Court of Appeals reinstated a paid sick leave ordinance, according to the Milwaukee-based BizTimes.com , in the city of Milwaukee March 24. Women’s Media Center celebrated the decision calling it a "landmark victory" for workers.
In Zimbabwe 45 people–including 11 women–were held in prison for over two weeks for gathering at a political meeting to watch news clips of the uprisings in North Africa. On Monday the group facing treason charges was narrowed to six.
Liberia’s high rate of maternal mortality is partly due to the long distances women must travel to reach clinics. A project closes that gap by building “maternity waiting homes” near these facilities. The first one opens its doors this week.
A low-cost ultrasound system is on its way to Uganda in early summer. Produced by students at the University of Washington, it’s intended to help midwives battle the high death rate in the country’s rural areas.
Jean-Pierre Bemba’s trial marks the first time that sexual violence is central to an International Criminal Court case. But so far, few female victims in the Central African Republic are giving testimony and many charges have been dropped.
Eliza Griswold’s “The Tenth Parallel” began as a probe of religious fundamentalism’s link to violence. After traveling through Africa and Southeast Asia, she just wanted to tell the stories she found along the way.
Uganda’s parliament recently passed bills on domestic violence and female genital mutilation. Now one female lawmaker hopes colleagues will approve in January long-awaited modernizations of marriage and divorce.