Women

UN Names Two Women to Highly Visible Envoy Posts

April 30, 2017

Two women have been named to highly visible posts at the United Nations: Pramila Patten of Mauritius is the new special envoy on sexual violence in conflict and begins in mid-June; and Virginia Gamba, an Argentine, is special envoy on children in armed conflict, beginning May 1. The latter is arguably the more controversial job because …

Child Soldiers, Gender-Based Violence, UN Special Envoys, Women

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TOPIC: WOMEN

Feminists Made the Difference: How Women Won National Leadership Roles

April 23, 2017

by Torild Skard

Hillary Clinton did not make it to the top, but Theresa May, the British prime minister, and Angela Merkel, chancellor of Germany, did. Since Sirimavo Bandaranaike became the world’s first female prime minister, in Sri Lanka in 1960, one-hundred women have been heads of state or government around the world. How did they get …

Governance, Women

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TOPIC: WOMEN

UN’s First Female Force Commander Talks Gender Equality in the Military

April 13, 2017

by Shana L. Childs

Maj. Gen. Kristin Lund made history in 2014 when she was appointed the first female force commander of a United Nations peacekeeping mission — in this case, Cyprus. Still in active duty in the Norwegian military, General Lund, 58, gives lectures and advises the Norwegian Defense University College in Oslo. Although she is proud …

UN Careers, UN Peacekeeping, Women

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TOPIC: WOMEN

Was the US a Bad Host at the UN Women’s Conference?

March 25, 2017

by Laura E. Kirkpatrick

The annual women’s conference at the United Nations may have encountered severe weather on its second day, when a blizzard swept through the region and events had to be canceled at the UN, but the real storm originated with the actions of the host country, the United States. Indeed, the role that the US …

US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations, Women

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TOPIC: WOMEN

Is Feminism in Britain Slipping Under Theresa May’s Leadership? Women’s Groups Wonder

March 20, 2017

by Rhona Scullion

NOTTINGHAM, England — Britain’s Prime Minister Theresa May once famously wore a “This is what a feminist looks like” T-shirt and has been vocal in her support for women — much more than her only female predecessor and fellow Conservative Party member Margaret Thatcher. Yet May has remained a divisive figure among the feminist …

Gender-Based Violence, Poverty, US Foreign Relations, Women

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TOPIC: WOMEN

US Immigration Ban Stirs Controversy at the Annual UN Women’s Forum

March 13, 2017

by Laura E. Kirkpatrick

Despite fears that efforts by President Trump to bar visitors to the United States from a number of Muslim majority would limit attendance at this year’s annual United Nations conference on women in New York, UN officials have kept saying there will be record participation. On the first day, however, people were more worried …

Gender-Based Violence, Terrorism, UN Agencies, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations, Women

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TOPIC: WOMEN

In Burkina Faso, the Shame of Unwed Motherhood Never Leaves

March 6, 2017

by Nabila El Hadad

OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso — A white van roams the streets of the capital here every Wednesday morning to help young women and girls who may be homeless or destitute to take them to a health clinic on the outskirts of the city. There, a small team tries to help the clients, who may be …

Africa, Women

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TOPIC: WOMEN

Women’s Rights Must Be Backed by Legal Rights, a New Coalition Insists

February 28, 2017

by Barbara Crossette

More than two decades have passed since a series of dynamic international conferences in the 1990s — on human rights, reproductive choices and broad empowerment for women — inspired and encouraged women around the world to raise their hopes in many ways. Subsequently, there have been gains in female education at all levels, a …

Development, Gender-Based Violence, Women, World Bank

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WORLDVIEWS

Women Are Invisible at the Syria Peace Talks

February 23, 2017

by Rafif Jouejati

WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Jan. 22, millions of women around the world took to the streets to march for equal rights, equal representation and equal access in all avenues of public and private life. On Jan. 23 in Astana, Kazakhstan, 55 delegates met to try to reach an agreement on the war in Syria. …

Syria, UN Special Envoys, Women, WORLDVIEWS

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TOPIC: WOMEN

It Still Exists: Slavery Drags On in Mauritania Despite Being Illegal

February 15, 2017

by Johanna Higgs

NOUAKCHOTT, Mauritania — “The officials here in Mauritania will tell you the opposite of what victims will tell you, which is that there is no slavery in Mauritania,” said Brahim Bilal Ramdhane, who lives in this West African capital and was enslaved during his childhood. “They will just tell you that people who say …

Africa, Gender-Based Violence, Human Rights, Women

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TOPIC: WOMEN

Citing Trump Immigration Ban, a Major Group Drops Out of UN’s Annual Women’s Conference

February 11, 2017

by Dulcie Leimbach

The annual meeting of the United Nations’ Commission on the Status of Women, held in New York every March, may be in trouble because of uncertainty and fear about the Trump administration’s attempt to ban immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries. One major group has announced it is pulling out, and calls are being heard …

UN Agencies, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations, Women

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TOPIC: INDIA

Marriage Is Not for Her

January 30, 2017

by Pushpa Achanta

BANGALORE — Ask any woman to describe marriage in a few words, and she is most likely to say: romance, respect, understanding, support, care. The reality of this relationship for a sizeable number of women, unfortunately, is marred with violence, deceit, exploitation and other traumas. Yet a woman in India cannot imagine her life …

India, Women

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WORLDVIEWS

It’s Time to Rally Grass Roots to Fund the UN Population Fund Again

January 29, 2017

by Jane Roberts

Imagine yourself a pregnant woman in Syria making her way on foot to a refugee camp when suddenly you go into labor. The United Nations Population Fund is there to save you and your baby’s life. That is what UNFPA does. I have seen their work on site in Mali and in Senegal. President …

UN Agencies, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations, Women, WORLDVIEWS

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TOPIC: WOMEN

Trump’s ‘Gag Rule’ Contradicts UN Policy Helping Women in Distress

January 24, 2017

by Barbara Crossette

Just days after a global outpouring of support for a movement demanding protection for the rights of women and other advances promoted by civil society, Donald Trump has fully turned back the clock. On Jan. 23, with a stroke of his presidential pen, he banned all official American aid to any global organization that …

Gender-Based Violence, Health and Population, Human Rights, Poverty, Refugees, US-UN Relations, Women

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TOPIC: WOMEN

Alice Hecht, Longtime UN Career Officer and Chief of Protocol, Dies at 67

January 13, 2017

by Susan Manuel

Alice Hecht, who died in New York City on Dec. 28, 2016, at age 67, after a 35-year career at the United Nations, was most well known there for her role as chief of protocol. Appointed by Secretary-General Kofi Annan in 2006, Hecht’s job was to guide presidents and popes to UN daises and …

UN Careers, Women

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Women

UN Names Two Women to Highly Visible Envoy Posts

Feminists Made the Difference: How Women Won National Leadership Roles

UN’s First Female Force Commander Talks Gender Equality in the Military

Was the US a Bad Host at the UN Women’s Conference?

Is Feminism in Britain Slipping Under Theresa May’s Leadership? Women’s Groups Wonder

US Immigration Ban Stirs Controversy at the Annual UN Women’s Forum

In Burkina Faso, the Shame of Unwed Motherhood Never Leaves

Women’s Rights Must Be Backed by Legal Rights, a New Coalition Insists

Women Are Invisible at the Syria Peace Talks

It Still Exists: Slavery Drags On in Mauritania Despite Being Illegal

Citing Trump Immigration Ban, a Major Group Drops Out of UN’s Annual Women’s Conference

Marriage Is Not for Her

It’s Time to Rally Grass Roots to Fund the UN Population Fund Again

Trump’s ‘Gag Rule’ Contradicts UN Policy Helping Women in Distress

Alice Hecht, Longtime UN Career Officer and Chief of Protocol, Dies at 67

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