Increased cases of rape and sexual abuse of women and girls is closely associated with armed conflict and its aftermath in Africa. "Rape has been used as a weapon of war by militia, and this hurts women forever, because even in peacetime you find little response in terms of repairing the effects and providing justice," Marie Jalloh told IPS.

A Regional Consultative Meeting convened by Akina Mama wa Afrika was held at Munyonyo Commonwealth Resort, in Kampala, Uganda on 28th 29th April 2009 on the theme “The Power Of Women’s Leadership And Movement Building: Gender Based Violence And Sexual And Reproductive Rights In Conflict And Post Conflict Africa’. The consultation drew together a cross section of actors in the area of conflict and post conflict in Africa. The consultative meeting reflected on national, regional and continentals strategies, challenges, lessons learnt, emerging trends and experiences.

In the year since Egypt outlawed female genital mutilation the government hasn't prosecuted a single case. Nonetheless, some activists say the law is a tool, among others, for gradually dismantling an ancient tradition.

At 18-years old, Maria Ivone Soares decided politics was her calling and the decision has paid off well. Soares is now one of Mozambique’s most respected, outspoken politicians. Growing up in Maputo, Soares wanted be part of the democratic revolution, so she joined Renamo, which waged a 16-year old civil war with the ruling Frelimo to fight off socialism and is now Mozambique’s leading opposition party.

The body of a man believed to be homosexual has twice been dug up from a Muslim cemetery in Senegal. The man, in his 30s, was first buried on Saturday before residents of the western town of Thies dug up his body and left it near his grave, police say. His family then reburied him, but he was once more exhumed by people who did not want him buried there. His body was dumped outside the family house.

This report and reflection paper documents a roundtable convened by Inter Pares, which brought together over twenty women's rights activists from Africa, Asia, Latin America and Canada, with significant experience working on issues related to sexual violence against women in armed conflict. Although the women present recognized that they were acting in very different contexts, they also identified that their distinct struggles had commonalities.

The Research and Advocacy Unit [RAU], an NGO working on providing specialist assistance in research and advocacy in the field of human rights , democracy and governance, has released a video and written report documenting political and human rights violations against women in Zimbabwe. The documentary, ‘Hear Us – Zimbabwean Women Affected by Political Violence Speak Out,’ and accompanying report, “Putting it Right: Addressing Human Rights Violations Against Zimbabwean Women,” present the findings of RAU’s study and call for action on the issue of politically motivated violence against women.

Made possible through a generous grant from the Fred J. Hansen Foundation, the Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice's (IPJ) Women PeaceMakers Program invites four women from around the world who have been locally involved in human rights and peacemaking efforts. Women accepted into this program are seeking ways to further their peacemaking efforts in their home countries.

World Press Freedom Day on 3 May comes just a few days after the dust has settled on the 22 April South African elections. While some have bemoaned the lack of depth in media coverage, the elections and media coverage have - by and large - been certified as free and fair. But how true is that when viewed through a gender lens? We start from the premise that freedom of expression means that all views and voices are heard.

An influential women rights organisation in Malawi, Women in Law in Southern Africa-Malawi (WILSA-Malawi), is suing the government of Malawi for preventing women from accessing safe abortion. Malawian law prohibits abortion - Section 149 of the country’s penal code says any person who administers abortion shall be liable to imprisonment for 14 years, while Section 150 indicates that any woman who solicits abortion is liable to seven years imprisonment.

Ensuring gender equality and promoting the participation of women in the search for peace in Darfur are among the aims of a new initiative launched by the United Nations in the strife-torn Sudanese region. Under a cooperation agreement announced today, police serving with the joint African Union-UN hybrid operation in Darfur (UNAMID) will team up with the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) to support innovative measures to boost the standing of women in the region.

Teresa Barros’ problems started last year with the death of her baby. "Our youngest daughter died," Barros (38) explained. "My husband blames me, and now he drinks a lot and picks fights and makes confusion." "My family won’t do anything. They said my other children need their father, and I must stay with him. But it’s desperate, I can’t go on like this," she added.

cc Thoroughly dissatisfied with the persistent failure of Kenya's leadership to rise above its petty squabbles for the country's greater interest, a coalition of women's groups known as the G10 is calling for a one-week sex strike. In a bid to oblige President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga to settle their differences once and for all and begin to effectively serve the nation they represent, the G10 will be delivering performance contracts to Kenya's leaders at the end of the week-long strike.

Gender Links, a Southern African NGO based in Johannesburg specialising in gender, media, women’s rights and governance, seeks the services of experienced individuals in SADC countries (Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe,) to serve as field officers for its gender justice and governance programme. The main task of the incumbent, each of whom will be based in their home countries, will be to work with local councils, partners and stakeholders to develop gender and gender violence (GBV) action plans for local government at the district level as well as providing backstopping and support.

Gender Links, a dynamic Southern African NGO based in Johannesburg that promotes gender equality and justice through its media, justice and governance programmes seeks to fill the post of Gender Justice and Local Government Manager on an initial two year contract basis.

Gender Links, a dynamic Southern African NGO based in Johannesburg that promotes gender equality and justice through its media, justice and governance programmes seeks to fill the post of Research Manager on an initial three year contract basis.

Gender Links, a dynamic Southern African NGO that promotes gender equality through its media, justice and governance programmes, seeks to fill the post of knowledge and training manager for an initial three year period.

On 29th April 2009, Akina Mama wa Afrika (AMwA), a Pan-African International non-governmental organization based in Kampala, Uganda launched a 3-year project on “The Power of Women’s Leadership and Movement Building: Gender Based Violence and Sexual and Reproductive Rights in Conflict and Post Conflict Africa”. This regional project will be implemented in Central Africa (Democratic Republic of Congo) and Western Africa (Sierra Leone) and is supported by a grant from the MDG3 Fund, an initiative of the Netherlands Government.

The accused, Constance Rukia, was taken to court on Monday and charged with assault causing bodily harm (under section 251 of the Penal Code). The case will be mentioned on Monday April 27 at the Chief Magistrate’s Court. So far, COVAW and KHRC are the only organizations that have officially agreed to watch brief for the case and several activists have written statements of support on internet listservs in reaction to the hate crime that happened last week. We would like to see a bigger show of solidarity particularly from within civil society

Made possible through a generous grant from the Fred J. Hansen Foundation, the Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice's (IPJ) Women PeaceMakers Program invites four women from around the world who have been locally involved in human rights and peacemaking efforts. Women accepted into this program are seeking ways to further their peacemaking efforts in their home countries.