Contents
-
Titi Soentoro, APWLD Regional
Coordinator
|
2006 is a special year for APWLD. APWLD is
celebrating its 20th anniversary. It is also time to take stock of
the 20 years of promoting women’s human rights in the Asia Pacific
region. |
- Taking stock of 20 years of promoting women’s human
rights in Asia Pacific
Virada
Somswasdi, a founding member of APWLD Chair, Women’s Studies Center,
Chiangmai University, Thailand
|
A speech given at the General Assembly of
APWLD, Chiangmai, February 2006 The courtship with APWLD’s mothers
or the women’s movements, so to speak, first took place at Nairobi
NGO Forum on Women, Law and Development held in 1985 in parallel
with the UN Third World Conference on Women and continued to New
Delhi soon after. |
- March 8- International Women’s Day around the
region
reports filed by: judy p
|
The history of March 8 as the International
Women’s Day is rooted on the movement for women’s rights and peace
in the 1910s with women marching on the streets of Europe, Russia
and the US demanding bread and peace. Almost a century later,
women are still marching on the streets with the same
demands. |
- March 20 – 3 years of US led occupation of
Iraq
|
Three years ago, democracy was one of the
reasons given by George W. Bush for invading Iraq. There was none
in Iraq, let the American soldiers bring democracy. The US
invasion was supported by governments which acted against the will
of the majority of their citizens. The people of these governments
such as UK and Australia, and the US too, were in the frontline of
the anti-war movement. The mission to bring democracy to Iraq was
then doomed to fail, as these missionaries did not even uphold it
in their own homeland. |
- The 700th Demonstration
demanding
justice for the survivors of the wartime
sexual
slavery
Heisoo Shin,
Co-Representative, Korean Council for the Women Drafted for Military
Sexual Slavery by Japan
|
On March 15, 2006 the Korean Council for the
Women Drafted for Military Sexual Slavery by
Japan, jointly
with the 10 surviving ‘comfort women’, held the 700th
demonstration in front of the
Japanese Embassy in Seoul, Korea.
The first demonstration was held on January 8, 1992,
and
continued for over 14 years now without failure every
Wednesday at 12 pm. The demand has been
the same for 14 years
—Japan must take legal responsibility for its crimes of sexual
slavery during the
World War
II. |
- Launching of the Women’s Campaign:
Free Our
Sisters! Free Ourselves!
Elisa Tita
Lubi
Founding Vice-Chair, Gabriela Women’s Party
APWLD Program
& Management Committee and Regional
| The first Free Our Sisters! Free Ourselves! Campaign was run
by the GABRIELA Commission on Women’s Human Rights in 1989. Its
goal was the release of Luisa Posa, an activist who fought against
the Marcos dictatorship, and her young daughter, Maywan. They were
both detained in an Iloilo City jail with Maywan as the youngest
political prisoner in the whole country. |
- Women Human Rights DefendersWomen Human Rights
Defenders
Tess Vistro, AMIHAN,
PhillipinesTess Vistro, AMIHAN, Phillipines
|
The increasing attacks against women human
rights defenders (WHRD) at the hands of both state and non-state
actors is an alarming trend in the region which is intricately
entwined with the forces of fundamentalisms as well as
globalisation and increasing militarism. As the political
situation at a national level becomes more volatile and more
repressive in many countries, APWLD has undertaken activities to
promote and protect the rights of WHRDs in specific countries of
our members including: Philippines, Thailand, Nepal, Japan and
Aceh (Indonesia). The objectives of the campaign are to highlight
specific cases from among our members around the region for the
protection of WHRDs at risk and to raise awareness on the specific
vulnerabilities faced by WHRD because of who they are (gender) and
what they do (the contentious issues they work
on). |
- UN Reforms: will it strengthen or
weaken advocacy for women’s
rights?
The Creation of the Human
Rights
CouncilThe Creation of the Human
Rights
Council
| On March 15, 2006 the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution
creating a new Human Rights Council within the UN System. The
Council has replaced the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), the
body that formally set and advanced human rights standards in the
UN. The 47 member Human Rights Council raises the level of human
rights within the UN as it will function as a subsidiary body of
the General Assembly. Members of the Council will be elected by
the General Assembly on May 9 and the Human Rights Council is
expected to begin work on June 19 in Geneva, where it will be
based. The HR Council will meet at least 3 times a year on
specific agenda with the mandate to also convene in response to
emergency situations. |
- Pakistan earthquake survivors need your help and
solidarity
Azra Talat
Sayeed
APWLD
Programme and Management Committee
|
I have just come back from the earthquake
affected areas in Kashmir and NWFP (North Western Frontier
Province). A group of women from Roots for Equity had gone to
evaluate the impact of the earthquake on women in particular, and
to offer solidarity from our side. |
- Trafficking of Women in Japan
Fusae Oshita, National
Network in Solidarity with Migrant Workers, Japan Nalini Singh, APWLD
Programme Officer
|
At the 2005 Labour and Migration Task Force
annual meeting, the members decided to proactively assist APWLD
members who work on the issues of trafficking of women under the
broader themes of migration and forced labour in their advocacy
and campaign efforts. This article is primarily by Fusae Oshita, a
member of National Network in Solidarity with Migrant Workers- a
member of the Labour and Migration Task Force- which has been
working on this issue for a number of years.
|
- The 2005 Hindu Succession Amendment Act - a Step in
the Right Direction for Women in India
- Yamini, Coordinator, Centre for Budget and Governance
Accountability, New Delhi/ APWLD member
|
In September 2005, the Hindu Succession Act
(HSA) of 1956 was amended with the Hindu Succession (Amendment)
Act (HSAA) of 2005, a significant step towards advancing women’s
rights, although Muslim and tribal women are outside the purview
of this law. The tireless efforts of women’s rights activist and
NGOs working on this had a very significant role to play in the
amendment of the discriminatory act. |
- Korean Centre for Women’s Human Rights
Cho
Young-sook is the president of the newly established Center for Women’s
Human Rights (CWHR) in Korea
|
The CWHR was recently established. What is the
purpose for its establishment and what are its
functions? |
- New Publications
- Feminist Legal Theory and Practice Training, Summary Report,
25-29 July, 2005, Jakarta, Indonesia
|
The APWLD’s Women’s Human Rights Programme has
published the Summary Report of the Feminist Legal Theory and
Practice Training, which was conducted in Jakarta, Indonesia from
25-29 July 2005. Feminist Legal Theory and Practice training is
designed to enhance the capacity of national groups to effectively
challenge discriminatory laws and practices in their countries and
promote women’s human rights through using the law. The training
conducted in Jakarta brought together 19 women activists, lawyers
and paralegals from South-East and East Asia. The report is a
useful resource for participants of the training as well as others
interested in using law as a tool for change in their national
context.
|
|
go
top