Women in Politics

Are We “Celebrating” Women Again?

By Catherine Bertini
It is time to “celebrate” International Women’s Day (IWD) again. Celebrating women sounds like a positive, upbeat action. We can note women’s increasing roles in government, in business, and as leaders of civil society. We can also describe how women are the backbone of every community and virtually every family.

Step It Up for Gender Equality

By Ambassador Walther Lichem
In 1911, more than one million men and women attended rallies to commemorate the first International Women’s Day. Demonstrators advocated for an end to gender discrimination and for the promotion of women’s rights to work, vote, receive an education, and hold public office.

Women’s Political Participation Slows, New Report Shows

By Tharanga Yakupitiyage
As the world celebrates International Women’s Day March 8, the International Parliamentary Union (IPU) revealed a disappointing low for women’s participation in parliament.

El Salvador Pension Reform Could Take Women into Account

By Edgardo Ayala
El Salvador is debating reforms of the country’s privatised pension system, which could introduce changes so that it will no longer discriminate against women.

Cameron at large: Want Not to Become a Terrorist? Speak Fluent English!

By Baher Kamal
“Do you speak English fluently? No? Then you risk to become a terrorist!.” IPS posed this dilemma to some young Muslim women living in Cairo, while explaining that this appears to be UK prime minister David Cameron's formula to judge the level of Muslim women's risk to fall, passively, into the horrific trap of extremism.

Women’s Rights First — African Summit

By Baher Kamal
Despite the enormous challenges facing Africa now, the leaders of its 1.2 billion plus inhabitants have decided to spotlight the issue of Human Rights With a Particular Focus on the Rights of Women in their 26th summit held in Addis Ababa on 21-31 January this year. Why?

Spanish Member of Congress Causes Controversy after Breastfeeding in Parliament

By Lorena Di Carlo
A member of the Spanish Congress, Carolina Bescana, of the anti-austerity Podemos Party, created a controversy last week when she took her six-month old baby to work and openly breastfed him during a session. The delegate was widely criticized by almost all parties for her action and the event has spurred a lively debate on the image of mothers who juggle motherhood with their jobs.

Africa, Only If It Bleeds It Leads?

By Baher Kamal
Africa is clearly one of the most negatively impacted regions in the world, not helped by the increasing trend of the mainstream media to focus on tragic news, following a self-imposed rule: “if it bleeds it leads”.

Seven Top Challenges Facing African Women

By Baher Kamal
Economic exclusion; financial systems that perpetuate their discrimination; limited participation in political and public life; lack of access to education and poor retention of girls in schools; gender-based violence; harmful cultural practices, and exclusion of women from peace tables, are the major standing barriers to achieving gender equality in Africa.

2016 Potential Landmark Year for Women Leaders in US and UN

By Thalif Deen
The United Nations is hoping 2016 will be a landmark year for gender empowerment – not only for the world body but also for the United States.

Brazil 2015: The Year When Everything Went Wrong

By Fernando J. Cardim de Carvalho
As 2015 approaches its end, Brazilians live a period of extraordinary uncertainty. The recession seems to get worse by the day. Inflation is high and shows unexpected resistance to tight monetary policies applied by the Central Bank. The sluggish international economy has largely neutralized incentive and the strong devaluation of the domestic currency could represent a reality to exporters and to producers who compete with now more expensive imports. After an initial resistance, employment levels began to fall.

Saudi Women Make Huge Advances After Victory in Polls

By Katherine Mackenzie
The triumph of 19 women in what is being seen as a landmark and historical election in a largely traditional and conservative country is a massive gain for women. A United Arab Emirates (UAE) daily newspaper called this a right step in the Islamic spirit.

“Jasmine Revolution” Challenges Male Domination of Tea Trade Unions

By K.S. Harikrishnan
Until September this year, Lissie Sunny was not a name known to the Indian public. All of this changed when this lean and dark woman, working for over a quarter century plucking tea leaves in the misty mountain slopes of southern India finally had enough and took on one of the most powerful tea companies in the world.

Only 1325 National Plans will trigger the Resolutions Implementation

By Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury
This week, the United Nations Security Council is holding an open debate to undertake its High Level Review of the 15 years of implementation of the landmark Resolution 1325 on “Women and Peace and Security.”

Opinion: Turn Words into Action Involving Women for Lasting Peace

By Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka
We have recently celebrated the peace deal struck between the government in Colombia and the main guerrilla group. The deal reached on justice issues represents the clearest sign yet of a possible end to five decades of conflict.

Electoral Revolution in Brazil Aimed at Neutralising Corporate Influence

By Mario Osava
From now on, elections in Brazil will be more democratic, without corporate interference, which had become decisive and corruptive. A Sep. 17 Supreme Court ruling declared unconstitutional articles of the elections act that allow corporate donations to election campaigns.

Opinion: Women’s Major Role in Culture of Peace – Part Two

By Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury
Another reality that emerges very distinctly in culture of peace is that we should never forget when women – half of world’s seven billion plus people - are marginalised and their equality is not established in all spheres of human activity, there is no chance for our world to get sustainable peace in the real sense.

Opinion: Women in the Face of Climate Change

By Renee Juliene Karunungan
After surviving the storm surge wreaked by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines in November 2013, women in evacuation centres found themselves again fighting for survival … at times from rape. Many became victims of human trafficking while many more did anything they could to feed their families before themselves.

Strong Words, But Little Action at Arctic Summit

By Leehi Yona
After a one-day summit in the U.S. Arctic’s biggest city, leaders from the world’s northern countries acknowledged that climate change is seriously disrupting the Arctic ecosystem, yet left without committing themselves to serious action to fight the negative impacts of global warming.

Winning Women a Greater Say in Somaliland’s Policy-Making

By Katie Riordan
Bar Seed is the only female member in Somaliland’s 82-person Parliament, but activists hope upcoming national elections may end her isolation.

The U.N. at 70: Leading the Global Agenda on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality – Part Two

By Lakshmi Puri
The efforts of the United Nations and the global women’s movement to promote the women’s rights agenda and make it a top international priority saw its culmination in the creation of U.N. Women, by the General Assembly in 2010.
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