Women in Politics

Women & Youth Remain Politically Underrepresented in Africa’s Most Populous Nation

By Ulrich Thum and Lena Noumi
Two months after the general elections in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, things are back to normal. The incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari, a 76-year-old general and former military Head of State, clearly defeated his challengers.

The Geneva Centre reiterates the importance of fully including women in the labour market and in all spheres of society on the occasion of International Women’s Day

By Geneva Centre
On the occasion of the observance of the 2019 International Women’s Day, the Geneva Centre for Human Rights Advancement and Global Dialogue reiterated the urgent need to intensify efforts towards achieving gender equality in all spheres of society, eliminating all forms of violence against women and girls, and promoting women’s political and economic empowerment.

Will ‘People Power’, or Powerful People, Change the World?

By Solitaire Townsend
When I was a little girl, I wanted to be a hero. While my friends dressed up as princesses, I wore a home-made Joan of Arc costume. Where others read romance novels, I read about fighting dragons. I didn’t want to be a princess, I wanted to save them.

Protecting Women’s Space in Politics

By Isabelle Arradon
Women human rights defenders around the globe are facing heightened threats of violence and repression. Sometimes they are targeted for being activists, and sometimes just for being women. World leaders should do much more to secure space for women’s safe participation in public life.

Billions of Swedish Krona Supported the Struggle against Apartheid

By Ida Karlsson
Between 1982 and 1988 Birgitta Karlström Dorph was on a secret mission in South Africa. "Why didn't they stop us? Probably they were not aware of the scope of the operation. The money was transferred through so many different channels. We were clever, " Karlström Dorph says. 

A better life for women

By Amitava Kar
(The Daily Star, Bangladesh) - The book “Why Women Have Better Sex Under Socialism” (2018)—as provocative as it sounds— has nothing to do with women's carnal pleasures. In it, Professor Kristen Ghodsee of the University of Pennsylvania argues that implementing socialist concepts would make women's lives more independent and fulfilling. That such an idea is put forth by an Ivy League academic from the United States of America, and not by a bleeding-heart leftist from Cuba, is striking. But not surprising.

With All Things Equal Would the Ruling Party have Won the Elections in Bangladesh ?

By Naimul Haq
It was the first time in the history of parliamentary elections in Bangladesh that a party won with such a huge margin. But according to local analysts familiar with Bangladesh's political climate, the victory by the ruling Awami League (AL) led coalition—which won over 96 percents of seats in parliament in the country's 11th national elections on Dec. 30—was expected in the face of the country's unprecedented development. 

Empowering Women in Post-Conflict Africa

By Amber Rouleau
While its conflict ended in 2007, Northern Uganda struggles with its legacy as one of the most aid-dependent regions in the world.

Campaigns Promote Women’s Participation in Latin America

By Fabiana Frayssinet
An alternative network in Brazil promotes women's participation in elected offices with media support. This campaign, like others in Latin America, seeks to reverse a political landscape where, despite being a majority of the population, women hold an average of just 29.8 percent of legislative posts.

Zimbabwe’s Long Road to Gender Parity

By Ignatius Banda
Zimbabwe goes to the polls in July for the first general election since the departure of Robert Mugabe, and the jockeying over who will represent the country’s major political parties is in full throttle.

Mothers & Children: Addressing Disappearances through a Gender Perspective

By Rangita de Silva de Alwis
At the beginning of the Nuremberg Trials, Justice Robert Jackson, the Chief Prosecutor, charged the world that submitting the enemy to the judgment of the law is “one of the most significant tributes that Power has ever paid to Reason.”

Africa’s Corporate Boardrooms: Where are the Women?

By Kwamboka Oyaro
When a woman rises to the top rung of the traditionally all-male corporate ladder in Africa, it’s front-page news because women’s progress in business leadership on the continent continues to be achingly slow.

The Role of Law Schools in Shaping Global Gender Justice

By Rangita de Silva de Alwis
March 8th, 2018, International Women’s Day, saw an extraordinary global mobilization for gender equality. In the last year, global movements for gender equality-- from marches to powerful grassroots organizing and viral social media campaigns, such as #MeToo and #TimesUp in the United States and other countries-- have galvanized the world’s attention like never before.

A Fair Reflection? Women and the Media

By Audrey Azoulay
Information and communication technologies have the potential to open up new worlds of ideas and the media - television, newspapers, advertising, blogs, social networks, film – is increasingly omnipresent in the lives of many of us. In line with one of the major themes of this year’s Commission on the Status of Women, UNESCO is assessing how the media and ICTs shape the lives of women.

Press for Progress: Women’s Equality & Political Participation

By Peter Kagwanja and Siddharth Chatterjee
March 8, 2018 International Women’s Day offers another opportunity to reflect on the progress made towards gender equality and women’s political rights.

Women Peace Laureates Condemn Inaction on Rohingya “Genocide”

By Naimul Haq
Nobel Laureates Mairead Maguire, Shirin Ebadi and Tawakkol Karman met with more than 100 women refugees in camps in the coastal Cox’s Bazar region of Bangladesh this week, as well as travelling to the “no man’s land” where thousands of Rohingya have been stranded between Myanmar and Bangladesh.

A Long Way Still to Achieving Gender Equality: International Women’s Day

By Akinwumi A. Adesina
International Women's Day is a call to celebrate the extraordinary achievements of women and a reminder that globally, we are a long way from achieving gender equality.

“Banging on the Door” – Women Fight for a Voice and Space in Civil Society

By Tharanga Yakupitiyage
The space for civil society organizations is shrinking around the world, with particular impacts on women activists and human rights defenders who face additional barriers due to their gender or sexual orientation.

Lawmakers Impose Gender Parity in Argentina’s Congress, By Surprise

By Daniel Gutman
It was an unexpected move by a group of women in the lower house of the Argentine Congress. At one o'clock in the morning, during a long parliamentary session, they demanded the approval of a stalled bill for gender parity in political representation. There was resistance and arguments, but an hour later, the initiative became law by a large majority.

Historic Resolution on Women & Peacekeeping Remains Mostly Unimplemented

By Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury
At the 26 October launch of GNWP’s (Global Network of Women Peacebuilders) manual “No Money, No NAP” on dedicated budgetary allocation to fund the implementation of the 1325 National Action Plans, Executive Director of UN Women Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka characterized UNSCR 1325 as the most unimplemented resolution of the UN Security Council.

Despite Odds, Women Gain Stature in African Politics

By Kwamboka Oyaro
Once in a while, Africa produces talented women politicians who, despite the odds, overcome the obstacles that impede their success in the political arena.
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