This week, we have officially welcomed the start of Summer (on Sunday, June 21), also known as the Summer Solstice, which is the longest day of the year. Let's find out what has been going on elsewhere in the country and around the globe.
Big news in the feminist world was the election of the new NOW president, Terry O'Neill. It was a tight race between O'Neill and opponent Latifa Lyles, who is the current NOW Membership Vice President. O'Neill will be replacing NOW president Kim Gandy, who has served in this position for the last 8 years.
Global Elections
- Egypt - The Egyptian parliament passed a law on Sunday that reserves 64 seats exclusively for women in the lower house of the legislature. This law is geared towards giving Egyptian women a voice in the Egyptian government, following the terms outlined International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), which Egypt has signed.
- Iran - Shirin Ebadi, an Iranian human rights leader, wants the recent presidential election results to be voided and to have a new vote be held. Ebadi is also calling for the release of people who were arrested for challenging to the election results and to end violence against other protesters of the past election.
- The Washington, DC Board of Elections and Ethics rejected a proposed referendum that would have allowed voters to decide whether the District will recognize same-sex marriages performed out-of-state.
- On Wednesday, President Obama signed a presidential memorandum expanding benefits to same-sex partners of federal workers. This would allow civil service employees to take leave to tend to sick partners, add them to a long-term care program, and including the partners of Foreign Service workers in housing assignments and medical evaluations. However, the memorandum has come under some scrutiny for being limited in the benefits that it guarantees.
- Also on Wednesday, The House Appropriations Committee Subcommittee for State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee approved the single largest increase ever in funding for international family planning and reproductive health programs. The subcommittee approved $648 million for these programs. This marks a 40 percent increase in funding over the past two years. The funding includes $588 million for USAID programs and a $60 million contribution to the UN Population Fund.
- South Africa - According to a survey by the Medical Research Foundation (MRC), one in four men in South Africa have admitted to committing rape. There were 1,738 respondents to the survey and almost half claim that they have assaulted more than one individual. The study also found that men who commit violence against women are less likely to use condoms and are twice as likely to be HIV-positive.
- China - A court in the Hubei Province of China ruled this week against penalizing 21-year-old Deng Yujiao, a waitress who fatally stabbed a Communist Party official who was attempting to rape her. Her release was based on the fact that Deng acted in self-defense, surrendered to police, and had limited criminal responsibility due to manic depression.
- Peru - A 16-year-old Peruvian rape survivor filed a petition with the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) against Peru Thursday. The petition alleges that the failure of the Peruvian government to adequately enforce existing laws on abortion led to the anonymous survivor's paralysis.
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