Friday, June 22, 2012

Women's Views on News

Women's Views on News

Unsafe abortions on the rise in Africa

Posted: 21 Jun 2012 11:00 PM PDT

Ed Knight
WVoN co-editor

The World Health Organisation (WHO) revealed that clandestine abortion procedures cost the lives of 68,000 women per year in Africa.

Dr. Olive Sentubwe, reproductive and maternity health expert for the WHO, said that 85,000 women per year are treated for complications during abortions.

This represents an increase in deaths in a continent that is technically moving forward with abortion laws.

So how can this be explained?

Abortions are legal  and without restriction in Cape Verde, Tunisia, South Africa, and, within certain parameters, Zambia.  In 2005, Ethiopia expanded its exceptions to include cases of rape, incest and fetal impairment, joining relatively moderate nations such as Kenya and Algeria.

Among the most liberalised nations, however, attitudes towards abortion have been slow to reach a state of wide acceptance. In Zambia, unsafe abortions are actually on the rise due to a heavy social stigma and in turn a lack of awareness as to the procedure's legality.

Jean Downey, director of New Life Crisis Pregnancy Centre (a religious organisation) in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, claims that “the kids are quite blasé” about abortion, and that the relaxation of laws in 1997 has now led to one procedure taking place every 10 minutes in the region.

This suggests that, while laws can be changed overnight, attitudes cannot.  Organisations dedicated to the advancement of reproductive health, such as the influential Guttmacher Institute, note that changes in law must be accompanied by education:

“A liberal abortion law does not ensure the safety of abortions. Service guidelines must be written and disseminated, providers must be trained, and governments must be committed to ensuring that safe abortions are available within the bounds of the law.”

In recent research the Institute notes that the relaxation of South Africa's laws in 1997 caused a drop of 91% in abortion-related deaths from the period between 1994 and 1998–2001.

More broadly, they note that, although the overall number of abortions in Africa increased over the past decade, this was in line with the increasing number of women aged 15–44, with a consistent average of 29 abortions per 1,000 women between 2003 and 2008.

As ever, it seems that those suggesting a damaging increase in abortions and who speak of an "African genocide" can use the numbers to prove whatever they wish.

John Smeaton, of the Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child, is one of those:

“This truth is that countries with strict laws against abortion have lower maternal death rates than countries which allow abortion widely,” he says.

“Ireland, where abortion is banned, has one of the world’s best maternal health records. Legalised abortion does nothing to improve medical care.”

While it is acceptable for Smeaton to presume that the medical infrastructure of a wealthy nation like Ireland is comparable to that of many African nations, it will not be for others.

It seems that, for both sides, statistics will be the most prized and misleading weapon for as long as the debate continues, which may be for a very long time indeed.

Misogynist trolls right to be “afraid of women’s voices”

Posted: 21 Jun 2012 10:00 AM PDT

Sarah Cheverton
WVoN co-editor

Anita Sarkeesian, the founder of Feminist Frequency, has become the latest victim of a misogynist trolling and online abuse campaign following her crowdfunding campaign for a video series analysing sexism in gaming.

Her Kickstarter campaign has become the target of extreme abuse, which has been catalogued on her own website and various gaming and media sites all over the internet.

Her crime? Daring to ask the online community to consider funding her idea for a new series examining the use of sexist tropes in video games.

That’s right, folks – an idea. The abuse started before the videos have even been made.

Sarkeesian decided to explore the creation of the new gaming series following the succcess of Feminist Frequency’s previous Women Vs Tropes video series.

Freely available via the website – and recently featured as part of a WVoN feature on feminist viral videos – the series explored the representation of women in movies.

Soon after launching a video promoting her Kickstarter bid and uploaded to YouTube, an online campaign publicised on various gaming forums led to torrents of abuse.

This included threats of sexual violence, anti-semitism and misogynist abuse, a screenshot of which has been published by Feminist Frequency.

The online campaign against Sarkeesian has been extensively covered in the international online and some mainstream media, including The Guardian and New Statesman.

However, although the abuse is important to note as part of the ongoing fightback against online misogyny, the resistance to the threats and harassment of Sarkeesian makes a more interesting point of focus.

Not only did the Kickstarter funding pitch meet its target within 24 hours of being launched,  it achieved 2,468% over its original target when it closed a few days ago.

Sarkeesian asked her followers to help her raise $6,000 – they gave $158,922.

Many trolls spent their time posting abuse, threats and vitriol towards Sarkeesian, her website and her idea.

Meanwhile, almost 7,000 people worldwide turned their words into action, giving their time, money and support.

The reaction from the blogosphere has been phenomenonal. My personal favourite is posted above, from Ill Doctrine and Animal New York video blogger, Jay Smooth, founder of New York’s longest running hip-hop radio show, WBAI’s Underground Railroad.

Smooth’s comments apply not only to Feminist Frequency but to online misogyny everywhere:

“A lot of these dudes if you challenge them will tell you that they don’t have any real feelings about this, and they’re just trolling ‘for the fun of it’; that they don’t really hate women, they just think it’s funny to treat women as if they hate them.”

He continues:

“Only somebody who hates women and sees them as less than human would even think that’s a meaningful distinction and I don’t know what I could say that would get through to someone that’s so invested in detaching from their own humanity.”

Men, Smooth states, “have an obligation to speak out against [misogyny] more often.”

“When you bully and harass a woman for speaking her mind, all you do is show us that you’re afraid of that woman’s voice.”

There’s a lesson here for misogynist trolls everywhere.

Where trolls combine their hate and words, activists combine hope and action.

Where trolls toil to turn time backwards, activists push forward to a fairer future.

And most importantly, where trolls whine, activists win.

Forget about empowerment, corsets are just a fad

Posted: 21 Jun 2012 08:30 AM PDT

Denise Turner
WVoN co-editor 

The current trend for corsets popularised by popstars like Lady Gaga and burlesque artist Dita Von Teese gives a fascinating insight into the politics of feminine underwear and economics.

For much of the 19th and 20th centuries, wearing a corset was mandatory for 'respectable' women; it was a literal illustration of their role in a patriarchal society.

At the beginning of the 20th century, socialist groups such as the Fabian Society and pre-Raphaelite artist William Morris advocated that women abandon their corsets as a political gesture.

This trend gained momentum in World War 1 as women took on men's roles and socialist parties supported women's emancipation. Dresses became less structured and did not need constraining undergarments.

But when austerity returned, so did constraining fashion. Dior's 'New Look', required tiny waists or girdles. And in the workplace, most women had positions that were subservient to men.

When the economy in the west began to improve in the 60s and 70s, fashion again became unstructured and the British feminist publication Spare Rib encouraged women to burn their bras. In the underwear department, this meant that women could once more, 'let it all hang out.'

It’s clear why people who follow fashion trends such as punk or goth like corsets (I for one support them when it's a question of an adult making a personal choice), but why have women not in these groups also embraced the corset?

Fans of the corset, such as dancer Liberty Sweet of burlesque troupe The Folly Mixtures say that it represents empowerment.

I'd agree that for popstars like Madonna and Miley Cyrus, that’s probably true. It may also be true of the women who last year contributed an additional 45% to the sales of royal corset maker, Rigby and Peller. Like their A-list sisters, they have economic clout.

But what about teenagers haunted by the spectre of having to don a corset to go clubbing?  This could be one more pressure that leads to desperate acts like the suicide of Fiona Geraghty, a British schoolgirl who was bullied about her body shape.

Like most changes in what we wear, today’s fad for corsets has nothing to do with empowerment and personal expression. Instead it’s about an economic juggernaut called the fashion industry.

Feminists call on Hollande to make good his promise on parity

Posted: 21 Jun 2012 07:00 AM PDT

Denise Turner
WVoN co-editor 

Following the success of the French Socialist Party in elections last month, women now constitute a quarter of MPs in the French parliament.

This lifts France from 69th to 34th in the world in terms of the proportion of women parliamentarians, according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union. Britain is joint 55th.

Had another party won, it’s likely that women would have fared much worse – 37% of Socialist MPs are women compared with 14% of former president Sarkozy’s right-wing UMP party.

The socialist president François Hollande also made good on his pre-election promise to ensure equal representation of women and men in his cabinet.

But this is a long way from the parity enshrined in law and pledged by Hollande prior to victory. Overall the proportion of female candidates standing for election fell from 41.6% in 2007 to 40% in 2012.

Feminists say that Hollande must do more. Thalia Breton of Osez le Féminisme (Dare Feminism) says, “We don’t want excuses from the political parties, we want them to start organising parity within their organisations.”

Réjane Sénac, a specialist in gender equality at Sciences-Po and the National Centre for Scientific Research, said that the fact that 73% of MPs are male reflects a national problem and called on Hollande to stop political parties receiving public funds untill they implement a policy of equality.

Axelle Lemaire (pictured above with Hollande) won the Northern Europe constituency, one of France’s 11 newly created overseas seats covering Britain, Ireland, Scandinavia and the Baltics. She lives in London, France’s sixth biggest constituency.

Sadly another high profile female Ségolène Royal, Hollande's former partner, lost her contest for the seat for La Rochelle to dissident Socialist candidate, Olivier Falorni.

Italy to fund food aid for Egyptian women and young people

Posted: 21 Jun 2012 06:00 AM PDT

Joanna Perkin
WVoN co-editor

Despite its own economic troubles the government of Italy is financing a $3 million project to improve both the nutritional intake and financial status of women and young people in Egypt, according to the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations (UN).

The project will set up community gardens for women and young people who will be taught how to grow food using organic fertilisers and how to raise small animals. It is hoped that households will be able to improve their incomes through the sale of the food products.

Participants in the scheme will learn about food processing and preservation techniques, food safety and hygiene, food preparation and marketing. They will also receive training in budgeting and record keeping.

Radio programmes and other events will be used to foster an understanding of the importance of good nutrition. National and local government staff and community workers will also receive training in this area.

It is hoped the project will go some way to addressing the high unemployment rates for young people and women in Egypt, which according to the FAO are estimated to be around 25%, while also tackling the problem of malnutrition "the route cause of over a third of illnesses affecting children under five".

Women dominate international journalism competition

Posted: 21 Jun 2012 05:45 AM PDT

Joanna Perkin
WVoN co-editor

Sixteen writers (eight amateur and eight professional) have been chosen from a longlist of 40 for the Guardian's International Development Journalist Competition 2012, it was announced this week.

The competition, now in its fifth year, aims to highlight some of the crucial issues facing the developing world, which are often overlooked or under-represented by the media.

Each competitor had to write a 650-1000 word feature on one of the given 16 themes.

All bar two of the finalists are women. Women's issues are conspicuous in the choice of themes with many focusing on issues related to pregnancy and childbirth.

One article, which highlights unsafe abortion procedures in Pakistan, reports that 890,000 unsafe abortions are carried out each year in Pakistan. As a result, 800 women die and a further 197,000 are hospitalised.

Another entry discusses the anti-abortion stance of Chile and points out that "many women are forced to resort to cheap and unsafe means of abortion such as self-inflicted torture, self-poisoning and inserting sharp objects, like knitting needles, into the vagina".

Both articles demonstrate the link between restrictive abortion laws – in Pakistan, abortion is only legal to preserve a mother’s health, while in Chile, it is not legal under any circumstances – and incidences of unsafe pregnancy terminations. Both call for changes in the law and the right for women to have safe abortions.

A piece on maternal mortality in Africa reports that "one in 22 women… will die in pregnancy or childbirth". This, the author explains, is often due to lack of skilled birth attendants and access to emergency obstetric care. Vouchers that can be exchanged for healthcare at accredited private clinics are put forward as one solution.

Maternal mortality is also high in Yemen. Titled 'Child brides in Yemen: the fight for the right to say no', this article makes the link between teenage pregnancy and the risk of life-threatening obstructed labour due to undeveloped narrow hips.

Although the minimum age for marriage was scrapped in Yemen in 1999, just over half of girls are married before their 18th birthday, according to a 2008 study.  Rather than argue for legislation, the author says education is the way to improve the rights of girls.

Another problem surrounding pregnancy in developing countries – fistulas – is the subject of another article.

According to the World Health Organisation two million women worldwide live with the devastating reality of a fistula as a result of childbirth, 99% of which occur in developing countries. A mixture of education and better treatment is seen as the route to addressing this problem.

The 16 finalists will now be flown to a developing country to research a new assignment.

The two winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in London on 22 November 2012.

Chinese microbloggers campaign for rape law reform

Posted: 21 Jun 2012 05:30 AM PDT

Thanks to Tea Leaf Nation for translating this graphic into English

Sarah Cheverton
WVoN eo-editor

An online campaign to abolish a law that lets those guilty of statutory rape to be charged with  ’patronizing an underage prostitute’ has gone viral on Chinese social media.

Created by Chinese news site 3G.CN, the campaign started in response to a spate of recent cases of abuse and an increasing number of sexual assaults on children in China.

An article published yesterday in the Global Times highlighted the results of a survey from February 2012 which found that over 2,500 teenagers had been sexually abused in Guangdong Province alone between 2008 and 2011. Most of the victims were girls under the age of 14.

A loophole in Chinese law allows perpetrators to sidestep prosecution under the law of statutory rape by claiming that the victim gave her consent.

The lesser charge of ‘patronizing an underage prostitute’ is then used, which carries a maximum 15 year sentence rather than the maximum death penalty carried by rape. If the lesser crime is accepted, the perpetrator cannot also be found guilty of rape.

3G.CN describe this loophole as ‘a protective umbrella for perpetrators’.

In May, web activists raised a similar storm following reports that a former senior official, Li Xingong, in the city of Yongcheng had confessed to raping 10 girls.

Li Xingong’s case is still being heard in the courts, however e-magazine Tea Leaf Nation – which translated the 3G.CN campaign into English – highlight that serious cases of similar child abuse “frequently occur”.

The campaign calls upon social media users to “Abolish the crime of ‘underage prostitution’, protect our daughters!’ urging that “Each retweet brings hope.”

Women in Motorsport Commission announces first ambassadors

Posted: 21 Jun 2012 01:00 AM PDT

Penny Hopkins
WVoN co-editor

The governing body of motorsport, the Federation Internationale de l'automobile (FIA) has announced the names of its first Women in Motorsport Commission (WMC) ambassadors.

When establishing the Commission in April 2012, FIA President Jean Todt said:

"The FIA's membership around the world comprises men and women; each has an identical part to play in sport. Like many international federations, we will support, promote and help advance the participation of women in motorsport to ensure equal opportunities at all levels."

The Commission wasted no time in signalling its intentions at its first National Coordinators Seminar on 13-14 June in Paris.

Representatives from the FIA's national sporting authorities (ASNs) all over the world discussed the issues affecting women involved or trying to get involved in motorsport.

It is working at a strategic level to introduce policies that will promote education and encourage more women into the sport.  It will also take a role at international forums and conferences devoted to wider issues in women's sport.

As a first step, appointing ambassadors is an important one.  Their remit is to disseminate the messages of the commission, with an emphasis on showing how women can succeed all areas of motorsport as well as pushing forward the FIA's Action for Road Safety campaign.

The five women ambassdors are all achievers in various aspects of motorsport:

Michèle Mouton (President of the Women in Motorsport Commission and honorary ambassador) was the first, and so far only, woman to have won a round of the FIA World Rally Championship.  She won four World Championship rallies in the 1980s and was last year awarded the rank of Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur by the French President.

She described the ambassdors as "high profile, professional and influential women with a voice in our sport; they are proof that where there is a desire, there is a possibility to succeed."

She said that their aims are "to try and remove barriers that may exist and to demonstrate that gender is not an obstacle when you want to succeed in your chosen field."

Monisha Kaltenborn is chief executive officer of Sauber Motorsport; the first woman to take on the position in Formula 1.

"The challenge now is to develop the platforms for [women] so they have equal chances to show their abilities in all business areas they are interested in, which may include motorsport."

Susie Wolff started her career in karting and is now a full time driver for Mercedes-Benz.  She is also a development driver with the Williams Formula 1 team.

"There were not really any role models for me in motorsport when I was younger….If what I am doing can inspire just one girl to give racing a go, then I would feel I had made a positive difference."

Maria de Villota has tested for the Lotus Renault GP team and is now a Formula 1 test driver for Marussia.

"It is very important to let other women know that with enough belief and application, you can overcome any hurdle.  If I can be an F1 test driver, I am sure a lot of women can do it too…Being different is hard.  Not having another woman around to ask is tough and your destiny really is in your own hands."

Katherine Legge also began her career in karting, winning many races during the 1990s.  She tested for Minardi Formula 1 in 2005.  She now competes in the United States in IndyCar.

"If I can help young people in their quest for success in racing, whether it be driving or otherwise, then I see that as a great way to 'give back' to the sport…we have big plans for the future."

I make no apologies for including this level of detail about the ambassadors.  I'm not sure how many of us can say we have heard of any of these outstanding sportswomen, and that is another issue altogether, but just reading about them is inspirational.

If they can raise the profile of motorsport for women and help more women get involved there could be exciting times ahead both for women and for the sport.