Violence against women

UK: 'Young Girls Forced into Under-Age Marriages in London'

The forced marriage of under-age girls is prevalent in many countries, with an estimated 25,000 young girls forced into marriage each day. The issue is becoming an increasing concern in the U.K., and in the London Borough of Islington. Girls as young as nine-years-old are being forced into marriage in the London Borough of Islington, with marriages carried out by back street Imans. Although child marriage is illegal in Britain, families circumvent the law by conducting marriages in shariah courts attached to mosques.

UK: "'Honour' crimes are domestic abuse, plain and simple"

This week's Panorama, Britain's Crimes of Honour, made for harrowing viewing. In the space of 30 minutes, the programme recounted horrific murders of women in the UK. There was video footage of Banaz Mahmod, the young Iraqi Kurdish woman from south London whose family murdered her and buried her in a suitcase after she was spotted kissing her boyfriend outside a tube station. There was the grieving mother of Laura Wilson, the teenager from Rotherham who was knifed repeatedly by her boyfriend, Ashtiaq Asghar. Then there was the wedding clip of Nosheen Azam, who came to Sheffield from Pakistan as a young bride and was trapped in an abusive marriage. She was found in her back garden, aflame. Nosheen survived but is brain dead, her body badly burnt. No one knows whether she set herself alight to commit suicide or whether it was attempted murder. Her father, who visits her in a care home, wiped tears from his eyes as he recalled telling her not to leave her husband, for the sake of her family's pride.

Mapping Stoning in Muslim Contexts

Women Living Under Muslim Laws, the Violence is not our Culture Campaign, and Justice for Iran are pleased to announce the release of a new publication: Mapping Stoning in Muslim Contexts. This report locates where the punishment of stoning is still in practice, either through judicial (codified as law) or extrajudicial (outside the law) methods.

Algérie: Observatoire des Violences faites aux Femmes, Charte d’adhésion à l’Observatoire des Violences faites aux Femmes

Confrontées depuis des décennies à des violences, des féministes algériennes ont décidé de créer un observatoire national, indépendant, sur les violences faites aux femmes. Si le thème n’est actuellement plus un tabou, grâce, notamment aux actions de l’ensemble du mouvement féminin et féministe national, les autorités algériennes, contraintes de se saisir de ce dossier, ne lui ont pourtant pas accordé l’attention que l’on pouvait espérer.

Lebanon: 'Tussle over gender violence law'

Proposed amendments to a draft law on gender violence in Lebanon have sparked demands from civil society organizations that parliament uphold an original draft criminalizing “honor crimes”, marital rape and other abuses.

“The version that we came up with at first was fine,” said Maya al-Ammar, an activist with the organization KAFA, [Enough Violence and Exploitation]. “Now it is not good at all.”

Uganda: 'Women Trafficked into Sex Work'

The growing number of Ugandan women being recruited into forced sex work abroad has led to a government investigation into human trafficking.

Hajah Noraihan, the honorary consul of Uganda in Malaysia, says more than 600 Ugandan women have been trafficked into the sex trade there.

“They are conned into coming to Malaysia for high-paying jobs, which are non-existent,” Noraihan told IRIN. “And when they go there, they are informed that they have to sell their bodies.”

France: 'Un père tente d'immoler sa fille à Paris'

La jeune fille de 23 ans a réussi à échapper à son agresseur qui essayait d'allumer son briquet après l'avoir aspergé d'essence.

Pakistan: 'Senate unanimously passes Domestic Violence Bill'

Pakistan’s Senate on Monday passed a bill that makes violence against women and children an offence carrying jail terms and fines, state media said. The Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Bill was introduced by Senator Nilofar Bakhtiar and passed unanimously by the upper house of the federal parliament, Pakistan Television reported.

Algérie: 'L’Observatoire se dotera bientôt d’une charte Lutte pour la criminalisation des violences à l’égard des femmes'

Lors des travaux, les participantes ont soutenu l’idée selon laquelle l’Ovif œuvrera à la “reconnaissance de toutes les femmes victimes de violence” et à “l’inscription de l’apport de la lutte des femmes dans la construction de la nation algérienne”.

L’Observatoire des violences faites aux femmes (Ovif) va se doter d’une “charte des principes”, qui sera rendue publique prochainement. Réunis vendredi à Alger, pour peaufiner le document, les membres de la nouvelle structure, créée à la suite d’agressions commises à l’encontre des femmes, particulièrement les attaques ciblant pour la seconde fois des travailleuses à Hassi-Messaoud (ville pétrolière du sud du pays), s’assument en tant que “féministes”.

"Creating a counter culture to violence: Women Living Under Muslim Laws (WLUML)"

Acid sprayed on two Afghani school girls on their way to school, a 15 year old Pakistani girl found dead, killed by her brother, a son killing his mother for a suspected affair in Uttar Pradesh, these are just a few of the ‘honour killings’ reported by Women Living Under Muslim Laws (WLUML) in 2011. ‘Violence is Not Our Culture’ campaign coordinated by Women Living Under Muslim Laws seeks to put an end to violence perpetrated in the name of religion and culture in Muslim countries. With the support of the MDG3 Fund WLUML strengthens women’s individual and collective struggles for equality and their rights, in Muslim contexts where women’s lives are shaped, conditioned or governed by laws and customs said to be derived from Islam. The MDG3 Fund is supporting their work specifically in Afghanistan, Indonesia, Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan, Senegal and Sudan.