Stories about Women & Gender from March, 2008
Pakistan: Women and Honour
Five Rupees on the case of a woman who is trying to escape being killed for her family's honour – bringing to light issues of women's status in a society and the idea of lost honour.
Trinidad & Tobago: A Woman Scorned
“WOMAN's son is murdered by her husband and the first thing that springs to the Trinbagonian mind is that she must have been horning him”: Trinidad and Tobago's latest murder/suicide spurs Andre Bagoo to write a thoughtful post on gender issues, double standards and sexual stereotypes.
Libya: Killing Time at Weddings
From Libya, Khadija Teri takes us along with her to a wedding in Tripoli – where she discovers a new way to kill time.
Saudi Arabia: Diplomatic Quarter Nightmare
Saudi Jeans complains about the trouble Saudi men have to go through to enter the high-security Diplomatic Quarter in Riyadh, which houses embassies, offices and the living quarters of people who work in that district.
Middle East and North Africa: Client Number Nine
Eliot Spitzer's fall from grace grabbed the headlines as soon as newsmen caught wind of the scandal. Bloggers followed closely on their heel, including those from the Middle East and North Africa, whose attention was turned to the humiliation his wife must have suffered from and indignation of having her to stand by him as he announced his resignation.
Libya: Wedding Blues
“Libyan weddings are BORING. They are all the same – the same food is served, the same music is played, the brides all look the same. BORING… sigh,” writes Khadija Teri, who had to attend two ceremonies.
Jordan: Viagra Prescriptions
Jordanian Hareega, who is a doctor by profession, writes about the miracles of the magical blue pill -Viagra – and the changes it brought to some men's lives.
Iran:Women in Baluchestan
You can watch Iranian women in Baluchestan in 18 photos in Chn Photo.
South Korea: Fashion Wave
Metropolitician blogs about the cultural background for the potential rise of Korean fashion wave.
Barbados: Archaic Laws
Barbados Free Press has heard of a woman “who was recently raped by her estranged husband – and our police say they are unable to lay charges because our laws are reflect a time when wives were owned by their husbands.”
Cape Verde: Woman's day
Eurídice Monteiro [pt] takes the opportunity of the Cape Verde Woman's Day today to reflect on gender equality in the country. “The point is that we try to understand the current situation and demand that, regardless of gender, people are treated with respect and have the necessary means to live...
Burkina Faso: Home of black bags, baobabs and cute kids?
This roundup will begin with some old business. From Stephen Davis of Voice in the Desert: His book Sophie and the Albino Camel is up for the Norfolk Shorts shortlist of books under 150 pages. While he won’t know the outcome until April 16, he did expound on why he loves writing short fiction.
Malawi: Blogging about marriage, language, lifestyle and health
The Malawian blogging community is gradually growing in terms of size and topics. In this roundup, I introduce four blogs dedicated to marriage and children issues, Tumbuka language, health and lifestyle issues.
Japan and Korea: Comfort Woman
Michael Solis from Ohmynews! reported on Korean comfort women who live in the house of sharing.
Poland: The Abortion Issue
The beatroot writes about the Council of Europe and the issue of “legal access to abortion” in Poland.
South Korea: Women's Expectation of their President
Korea Beat translated a local report on Korean women's expectation of their president regarding “protection and childcare assistance”.
Jamaica: Beauty and Race
“What beauty contests say about women is still an open and now tired debate, but what it says about race, particularly in a country like Jamaica is still up for grabs”: Marlon James explains.
Czech Republic, Slovakia: Whipping Girls and Other Easter Traditions
Easter is a very important celebration both in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, called Velikonoce - from Veliké noci or Great Nights. Although the religious connotations of Easter were suppressed under the communist regime, nowadays Czechs and Slovaks are again aware of the strong Christian background of Easter, although they regard it as mostly fun times. Many traditions are still observed, especially in villages. Several bloggers have been describing some of them.
Yemen: No Women Abuse
Omar Barsawad discusses reports on abuse and violence against women in Yemen and asks: “I visit relatives and friends in other parts of Yemen – I do not see or notice the kind of general abuse that those articles reported. … I wonder, which parts of Yemen those articles were...
Libya: Internet Grooming
Anglolibyan, from Libya, draws our attention to Internet grooming – which is slowly finding its way to his country.
Saudi Arabia: Two Killed in Religious Police Chase
“A boy and a girl have died in a horrific car accident after being chased by a patrol that belongs to the Commission for Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in the northern city of Tabuk,” reports Saudi Jeans.
