Stories about Women & Gender from April, 2009
Hong Kong: SexyPhotoGate uploader sentenced
Just over a year since photos of Edison Chen in bed with his Hong Kong celebrity friends appeared online, computer technician Sze Ho-chun has been found guilty of uploading the 1,300 images, blogs an anonymous The Dark Side blogger.
Israel: ‘Slumdog’ Star Films Movie About Palestinians and Israelis
Frieda Pinto, the female star of Slumdog Millionaires, is in Israel preparing for a film about the interconnected lives of Palestinian and Israeli women from the founding of Israel through modern times. Checkpoint Jerusalem has the story.
Egypt: Plans for Sexual Harassment Film Unveiled
After the success of Egypt's Anti-Harassment Day, Egyptian blogger Asser Yasser invited women to share their personal experiences with this issue. Women and young women will be filmed going about their everyday lives, registering the different forms of harassment they are subjected to. Marwa Rakha has the story.
Egypt: “Egyptians are not Arabs”
Mathilda wrote her thoughts in a scientific research that believes Egyptians are not Arabs; it focused mainly on the Egyptians around Luxor, where old upper Egypt was located.
St. Lucia: The Heat is On
Repeating Islands reports that the race for the prestigious position of the Oxford Professor of Poetry has become “decidedly unpoetic”.
Lebanon: Billboard Marriage Proposal
Lilane, from Lebanon, draws our attention to a billboard which contains a marriage proposal: ‘While driving on the highway towards Antelias from Jal el Dib, just near Antelias bridge on the left, this huge billboard (a bit blurry) caught my eyes (and the eyes of all Lebanese who drove by...
Cuba: Strike of the Period?
Cuba's ration market for feminine hygiene products is not always reliable, prompting Generation Y to envision “a ‘Strike of the Period,’ a massive protest marked by the ovulation cycle.”
World Book Day: Women's lives in the mirror of their men
Do women's lives paint themselves on- or against - the canvas "their" men provide them through the years ? A literary stroll gives us a bigger picture and takes us from Quebec, to France and finally, to some fascinating Algerian writers.
Cuba: Female Political Prisoner Released
Diaspora blogger Uncommon Sense reports that “perhaps the best known female political prisoner in Cuba” has been released.
Kuwait: Blackberry Lunches, Arab Sex Talk and Election Responsibility Plea
From the censorship of video games to discussions about Kuwait's upcoming parliamentary elections on May 16, the Kuwaiti blogosphere offers a mixed bag this week. Also in this post, by Amer Al Hilal, a concern raised by a Kuwaiti female blogger about Arab women talking about sex in public.
Bangladesh: Women Power
Pakistani blogger Marvi Sirmed visits Bangladesh and comments: “One thing that I could not miss in Dhaka was, women engaged with all aspects of life. Economic activity, intellectual discourse or arts, women are everywhere. Gender segregation practically does not exist. Music is a pet of every household.”
Trinidad & Tobago: Film on Calypso Rose
de cooler : soca news blogs about a new documentary on the life of legendary Trinbagonian singer, Calypso Rose.
Saudi Arabia: Temporary Marriages or Prostitution?
“Saudi's temporary marriages are prostitution,” charges American blogger Sand Gets in my Eyes, who lives in Saudi Arabia. Click the above link, for more on the debate.
Saudi Arabia: First Women-only Fashion Show Held
Writing at Mideast Youth, Ahmad Ghashmary reports on Saudi Arabia's first fashion show, which was held for women only – and where cameras were not allowed.
DoGooderTV: Voting Open for the NonProfit Video Awards
The voting period to select the winners of the DogooderTV 2009 Non Profit Video Awards ends this Saturday, April 25, so now is the perfect time to head over to their site, view the different videos uploaded by organizations to promote a cause. Today we´ll show you some of the competing videos which focus on international issues.
Russia: Hyde Park; WinRAR; Hot Water; etc.
A few links to recent posts at IZO: president Medvedev “to create a Russian Speaker's Corner, based on Hyde Park”; a Russian ad agency shows “how the WinRAR data compression utility shrinks files” – “bad idea, badly executed”; a useful link for Moscow-based readers who'd like to know when there'll...
Czech Republic: “Kuličky”
The Reference Frame writes about the Czech movie “Marbles” (Kuličky), screened at the 22nd Festival of Czech Films.
Mexico: Theater Documentary Recounts Testimonies of Relatives of Women Killed
Women of Sand is a theater documentary that chronicles the testimonies of relatives of victims of the feminicides of Juarez, Mexico and has been performed by more than 30 groups worldwide writes Nuestras Hijas de Regreso a Casa [es].
Saudi Arabia: Support for fatwa prohibiting “immoral” women's sports clubs
Writing on Arabic online forum Al Saha Abu Marmesh applauds a new fatwa (religious edict) by a Saudi scholar which bans women only health and sports club in Saudi Arabia. “We have to stand together against all those who try to abuse our girls and women,” he writes.
Jamaica: Perspective on Pirates
Jamaica-based blogger Annie Paul happened to be reading a manuscript about pirates at a time when “the pirates of Somalia were rousing international consternation by capturing a US ship and holding its crew hostage” – and she shares an alternative perspective on this age-old profession.
Barbados: The Danger of Hate Speech
Bajan Dream Diary makes a case for hate speech legislation in Barbados.
