Stories about Women & Gender from November, 2007
Egypt: Wedding of the Year
“The Egyptian newspaper in the last two weeks has nothing to speak about except the wedding of the year Ahmed Ezz and Shahinaz El-Nagger in a very stupid way,” explains Zeinobia .
Czech Republic: Discussion of Actress’ Son's Death Banned
When a Czech actress’ infant son died, a number of Czech newspapers closed down discussions of this story on their sites, a step the Czech Daily Word disapproves of: “Being offensive is not illegal.”
Saudi Arabia: Treatment of Women
Saudi Arabia’s medieval practices (only one manifestation of its backwards ideology) have been tolerated far too long, notes The Arabist, from Egypt, who links to an op-ed about the situation of women in the Kingdom.
Egypt: Polygamy Anyone?
Egyptian blogger Eman was eavesdropping. Tune in to what she overheard in Cairo here.
Bahrain: One-Year Contract
Bahraini blogger Faceless says she has signed a one-year agreement with her boyfriend. Read all about it here.
Ukraine: Tymoshenko's B-day & “Feminine Strategies”
Among other, no less important, things, Orange Ukraine reports that the government has declared Jan. 1-7 holidays, Yulia Tymoshenko has turned 47, and someone has written a paper titled, “Beauty Will Save the World: Feminine Strategies in Ukrainian Politics and the Case of Yulia Tymoshenko.”
Kyrgyzstan: Feminism and women’s movement
Genderstan observes the activity of women’s organizations in Kyrgyzstan, listing the ideological goals of women’s movement and saying that they usually have clearly defined clients and goals.
Japan: Sumie Kawakami Interview
David Marx from Neojapanisme posts an interview with Sumie Kawakami, author of Goodbye Madame Butterfly: Sex, Marriage and the Modern Japanese Woman.
African prostitution and human trafficking in Europe
la plume plus posts an article featuring first-hand accounts of human trafficking and the prostitution of African women [Fr] in Europe.
Jordan: How Can Women be Leaders?
Jordanian Nasimjo accuses women in his country of being selfish and wonders how they can aspire to become leaders.
Bahrain: Losing its identity?
This week in Bahrain we have opinions on Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit, a blogger's dilemma about whether to have a female friend, another getting stuck between his wife-to-be and her family, a call for more Islamic bloggers, and a fear that Bahrain won't stay Bahraini for much longer...
India: Take Back The Tech
Conversations with Dina writes about Take Back The Tech. “This is a collaborative campaign by ICT users, advocates, collectives and organisations that take issue with the prevalence of Violence Against Women in our diverse realities.”
Brazil: Violence against woman
Marcelo Tas [pt] compares two recent incidents of violence against women in different parts of the planet. In Abaetetuba, Brazil, a teenager was incarcerated in a cell with 20 male inmates. It had the predicable result, the girl was raped repeatedly. In Saudi Arabia, a girl was found in a...
Morocco: Women's Stories from Around the Globe
This week, Moroccan bloggers share their interest in issues affecting Muslim women around the world. From the treatment of gynecologists in Iraq to new workforce development initiatives in Morocco to rape sentencing in Saudi Arabia, Jillian York has the story.
Japan: Kids these days
What do you do when you've had enough of young girls sitting on the floor of the train, talking on their phone and acting like it's their home, when meanwhile you've had a gruelling day at work and just want to get through? One 35-year-old man in Yokohama decided that he'd had enough and kicked the 17-year-old girl sitting and chatting with friends beside him. Bloggers had mixed opinions about the incident, but the majority seemed to be sympathetic.
Trinidad & Tobago: Disconnect?
Jumbie's Watch posts “a collection of quotations showing the vast distance between brain and mouth.”
India: Patriarchy and Mythology
Days in a Wannabe Punks Life takes a closer look at Hindu mythology, goddesses and the element of overarching patriarchy.
Jordan: Lessons from the Elections
Shifaa, from Jordan, brings us the lessons learned and implications of the parliamentary elections held this week. The good news is that a woman won a seat without resorting to the women’s quota.
Iran: Arrest and Destruction
The Iranian government has continued its policy of repression against women's rights activists and Sufi Muslims in recent weeks. Maryam Hosseinkhah, a women’s rights activist and journalist was arrested a few days ago, and a Sufi Muslims’ Center was destroyed by security forces about one week ago.
Qatari Wedding
Xena announces the wedding of a young Qatari female blogger in this post.
Azerbaijan: Trafficking
Blogian says that war and conflict often prevents Armenians and Azeris from looking at the similarities between the two nations. Unfortunately, one thing that both Armenia and Azerbaijan have in common is a high rate of human trafficking.
