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Stop Violence Against Women Website:

 

 

 

 

Stop Violence Against Women Website

 

The Violence Against Women Monitor

A publication of Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights

 

December 2007

 

STOPVAW Website News

 

 

International and Regional News

 

National News

 

New Research

and Reports

 

Expert’s Corner: Violence against Women: Do the Governments Care? NGO Country Reports on the State Response

European Women’s Lobby Hosts General Assembly and Seminar on Migrant Women’s Rights

 Armenia

Oxfam Publishes New Book on Gender-based Violence

Expert’s Corner: 2007 16 Days of Activism

 

 

New Independent Body to be Created to Monitor Trafficking in Human Beings in Europe

 Chile

Report on the Use and Impact of Medico-Legal Evidence on Sexual Assault Cases

 

 

 

 

Rape as a Weapon of War

 India

Report Finds Human Trafficking Risk at 2010 Olympics

 

 

 

 

UN Human Rights Council Appoints Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery

 Israel

PBS Airs Special on Child Marriage

 

 

 

 

Council of Europe Releases Domestic Violence Campaign Newsletter

 Kosovo

 

 

 

 

 

Deadline Extended to Apply for Regional Conference on Legal Reform on Domestic Violence

 Montenegro

 

 

 

 

 

Special Rapporteur Urges International Community to Step Up Efforts to Combat Sexual Violence

 Saudi Arabia

 

 

 

 

 

62nd Session of the UN General Assembly on Advancement of Women

 Tajikistan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Thailand

 

 

 

 

 

 

 United Kingdom

 

 

 

 

 

 

 USA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Uzbekistan

 

 

National VAW Monitors who contributed to this month’s newsletter include: Albania, Armenia, Bulgaria, Estonia, Kyrgyzstan and Montenegro.

 

 

 

 

STOPVAW Website News

Expert’s Corner: Violence against Women: Do the Governments Care? NGO Country Reports on the State Response

The VAW Monitoring Program of the Open Society Institute invited the National VAW Monitors of StopVAW (NGOs working in the field of violence against women) to map the situation in their countries on violence against women, with special regard to the state response to it. Twenty country reports have been published and are now available. (More information)

Expert’s Corner: 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence

The 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence Campaign began on November 25. Visit this page to learn about what advocates in Albania, Bulgaria, Estonia, Lithuania, Kyrgyzstan and the USA are doing to commemorate this year’s 16 Days Campaign.  (More information)

 

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International and Regional News

European Women’s Lobby Hosts General Assembly and Seminar on Migrant Women’s Rights

On October 26th and 27th, 2007, the European Women’s Lobby held their annual General Assembly. The seminar focused on engaging NGOs working on behalf of migrant women to mobilize and strengthen their capacity. Also, strategies to advance the rights of migrant women in EU countries as well as on the European level were discussed. (More information)

New Independent Body to be Created to Monitor Trafficking in Human Beings in Europe

A group of ten to fifteen independent experts will form in 2008 the Group of Experts on Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA), a specialised body to oversee the implementation of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (CETS n° 197) in the countries that have ratified it. (More information)

Rape as a Weapon of War

A number of UN officials are highlighting, for Members of the State and Security Council, the recognition of violence against women as a security issue, particularly the use of rape as a weapon of war.  The October Security Council session addressed what progress has been made in implementing Resolution 1325, a resolution which recognizes the role women play in peace and security. (More information)

UN Human Rights Council Appoints Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery

In September 2007, the United Nations’ Human Rights Council resolved to continue the efforts of the Working Group on Contemporary Forms of Slavery. Recognizing that slavery is a pervasive and international problem, the Council has appointed a Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery as the most appropriate mechanism for continuing to address the issue. (More information)

Council of Europe Releases Domestic Violence Campaign Newsletter

Since 2006, the Council of Europe and the Parliamentary Assembly has supported a campaign to combat violence against women and has released its October edition newsletter (More information)

Deadline Extended to Apply for Regional Conference on Legal Reform on Domestic Violence

The Bulgarian Gender Research Foundation and Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights, with the support of the Oak Foundation and the Open Society Institute’s Human Rights and Governance Program are pleased to announce that the Regional Conference on Legal Reform on Domestic Violence will take place in Sofia, Bulgaria on February 12 – 14, 2008. (More information)

Special Rapporteur Urges International Community to Step Up Efforts to Combat Sexual Violence

Yakin Erturk, Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, said her report addressed how culture-based discourses and paradigms had been used to justify violence against women, thus confining the problem to a cultural realm. (More information)

62nd Session of the UN General Assembly on Advancement of Women

On October 15 2007, the Third Committee began discussions under items 63a ‘Advancement of Women’ and 63b ‘Implementation of the outcome of the Fourth World Conference on Women and of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly’. (More information)

 

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National News

 Armenia

·          Armenian Parliament Passes Act on Human Trafficking (More information)

·          Vital Voices of Eurasia: A Leadership Summit for Women & Girls (More information)

·          For the First Time a Woman May Become a Deputy Speaker of Armenian Parliament (More information)

·          A Female Candidate in Armenia Must Be Three Times Smarter Than a Male Candidate (More information)

·          Armenian Parliament Set To Ratify Convention on Political Rights of Women (More information)

 Chile

·          Chilean March Against Femicide Scheduled For 22 November 2007 (More information)

 India

·          Report Calls for Investigation of Police Sexual Assault in India (More information)

 Israel

·          Sex Trafficking in Israel (More information)

 Kosovo

·          Kosova Fails to Stem Rise in Human Trafficking (More information)

·          Judicial Handling of Trafficking Cases in Kosovo a Concern, says OSCE Official (More information)

 Montenegro

·          New Publication: "On the Road to the EU” (More information)

·          Government and NGO Sector Signed the Memorandum on Cooperation for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings (More information)

 Saudi Arabia

·          Saudi Rape Victim Ordered to Undergo 200 Lashes (More information)

 Tajikistan

·          Work, Family Life Keep Tajik Girls from School (More information)

 Thailand

·          Thailand Drafts More Comprehensive Bill on Trafficking (More information)

 United Kingdom

·          Female Genital Mutilation a Risk for Some Girls in Great Britain (More information)

 USA

·          Landmark I-VAWA Legislation Introduced in U.S. Congress (More information)

 Uzbekistan

·          Uzbekistan Warns UN against Using Human Rights to "Interfere in Internal Affairs" (More information)

 

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New Research and Reports

Oxfam Publishes New Book on Gender-based Violence

Oxfam International has published a new book entitled Gender-Based Violence as part of its series "Working in Gender and Development." (More information)

Report on the Use and Impact of Medico-Legal Evidence on Sexual Assault Cases

The Sexual Violence Research Initiative in collaboration with the World Health Organization recently released a report entitled “The Uses and Impacts of Medico-Legal Evidence in Sexual Assault Cases: A Global Review.” (More information)

Report Finds Human Trafficking Risk at 2010 Olympics

A report by a leading counter-human trafficking organization warns that traffickers may seek to exploit the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver as a business opportunity (More information)

PBS Airs Special on Child Marriage

On 12 October 2007, the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) premiered “Child Brides: Stolen Lives,” a program produced by PBS’ newsmagazine NOW. (More information)

 

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Subscribe to The VAW Monitor

The VAW Monitor is a free, monthly newsletter sent out on the first of each month. Printable versions of The VAW Monitor are also available on the website at http://www.stopvaw.org/The_VAW_Monitor.html.

 

To subscribe to The VAW Monitor, please fill out the form provided at http://www.stopvaw.org/The_VAW_Monitor.html.

 

 

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About STOPVAW

 

The Stop Violence Against Women website (STOPVAW) is a forum for information, advocacy and change.  Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights developed this website as a tool for the promotion of women's human rights in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and the the former Soviet Union (FSU), Mongolia, and the U.N. Protectorate of Kosovo.  STOPVAW was developed with support from and in consultation with the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and the Open Society Institute's Network Women's Program. This site addresses violence against women as one of the most pervasive human rights abuses worldwide. STOPVAW provides women's rights advocates with information and advocacy tools focused on ending the most endemic forms of violence against women in the region, including domestic violence, sexual assault, sexual harassment and trafficking in persons.

 

Current staff members of Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights involved with the development of STOPVAW include Angela Bortel, Mary Ellingen, Mary Ellison, Mary Hunt, Rosalyn Park, Robin Phillips, and Cheryl Thomas. Current interns and volunteers include Tracy Baumgardt, Karen Bridges, Alex Douglas, Evangeline Simmons, Lily Troia, and Alycia Wright.

 

For more information about STOPVAW, please contact the Website Administrator at stopvaw@mnadvocates.org.

 

 

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