Welcome to the 102nd edition of The Pixel Project’s VAW e-News Digest!
Boko Haram has seized 400 women and girls in Nigeria. Sexual violence is endemic in times of military conflict, and in the hospitals in the Democratic Republic of Congo have reported girls as young as 18 months have become victims of rape.
Significant measures against feminicide have occurred this month with Brazil enacting laws that impose stricter penalties against it. Read also about the women in Mexico who are organizing against feminicide.
The documentary ‘India’s Daughter’ has received strong responses from around the world. In this edition we feature four different news stories offering different perspectives of the film and its reception:
- students are defying the ban to watch it in private screenings
- the director defends the documentary
- an Indian woman from Delhi responds after watching it
- the film has been banned in India, but another documentary on rape, ‘Daughters of Mother India’ received a film award
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Best regards,
The Pixel Project Team
General Violence Against Women
WORLD: Twitter updates its policies to address revenge porn
AFRICA: Violence against women rises in Ebola-hit nations
AFGHANISTAN: What President Ashraf Ghani should do to reassure Afghani women
BRAZIL: Brazil enacts law imposing stricter penalties for feminicide
MEXICO: ‘The Other Ayotzinapa’: Organizing against feminicide in Mexico
NIGERIA: Boko Haram seize 400 women and children in new outrage
NEPAL: Activists call for amendments on existing laws on violence against women and girls
TURKEY: In Turkey, not even posters of women are safe from violence
UNITED STATES: In an unprecedented case, ‘revenge porn’ defendant sentenced to 18 years in prison
Domestic Violence
AUSTRALIA: New South Wales state election focus – domestic violence
CHINA: China’s domestic violence victims could benefit from new legal protections
COOKS ISLANDS: New Cooks bill will recognize domestic violence
KYRGYZSTAN: Kyrgyzstan to begin campaign on domestic violence
MEXICO: Domestic violence prevention event a success
TIMOR-LESTE: Timor-Leste’s law on domestic violence is just the beginning
UNITED KINGDOM: Moves to tackle domestic violence and ‘revenge porn’
UNITED STATES: The NFL and domestic violence: nothing has changed
Rape / Sexual Assault
WORLD: Journalists raped for reporting on conflicts – but will not stop speaking out
AUSTRALIA: Rapes, sexual assault, drugs for favours in Nauru detention centre
COLOMBIA: US troops, contractors allegedly sexually abused Colombian girls with impunity
CROATIA: Croatia plans compensation for wartime sexual violence victims
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: Hospital sees rise of rape in young girls as young as 18 months
INDIA: Students defy Presidency University to hold private screening of ‘India’s Daughter’ (Additional reading: ‘India’s Daughter’ filmmaker defends documentary amid criticism and “I am not India’s Daughter” – response from an Indian woman who grew up in Delhi )
MYANMAR: Kokang refugees caught between army, aged warlord and a pipeline to China
VENEZUELA: Venezuelan woman’s 14-year wait for justice after rape and torture
UNITED KINGDOM: William Hague was inspired by Angelina Jolie’s film to act on war rape
Sex and Human Trafficking
WORLD: Doctors not trained to spot sex trafficking victims
AFRICA: Human trafficking: African perspective
ASIA: How Asia and the US can help end human trafficking
CAMBODIA: Sold by their mothers — shining a light on the child sex trade in Cambodia
INDIA: This father-and-daughter team have helped hundreds of sex trade survivors find jobs
IRELAND: Groups accuse Ireland of failing victims of sex trafficking
NETHERLANDS and THE PHILIPPINES: Manila and Amsterdam seal pact to combat human trafficking and child porn
UNITED STATES: Law helps those who escape sex trafficking erase their criminal record
Female Genital Mutilation
BURKINA FASO: This male rapper is trying to stop female genital mutilation
EGYPT: How to end female genital mutilation in Egypt
GAMBIA: Report cites Gambia’s progress in FGM but…
IVORY COAST: Mother jailed for circumcision of daughter in Ivory Coast
SIERRA LEONE: Halting of female genital mutilation amid Ebola fears
SOMALIA: Female genital mutilation in Somalia 2015
TANZANIA: Meet the amazing woman running a safe house for girls fleeing FGM
THAILAND: In Thailand’s Muslim south, authorities turn a blind eye to FGM
UNITED KINGDOM: Laws against female genital mutilation inadvertently ban vaginal piercings
Honour Killing and Forced Marriage
BOTSWANA: Botswana group intervenes to stop teenager’s forced marriage
GHANA: Forced and early marriages increasing in Kintampo and Nkroranza districts
INDIA: Kidnap, rape, and honour killings — on the road with a female reporter in rural India
NIGERIA: Executions, beatings and forced marriage – life as a Boko Haram captive
PAKISTAN: Novelist tackles forced marriage in her novel ‘Written in the Stars’
SYRIA: Refugees of ISIS tell of fears of forced marriage
UNITED KINGDOM: Romani girls as young as 12 are being forced to live in arranged marriages
ZIMBABWE: Child brides take Zimbabwe government to court over marriage laws
Activism
WORLD: FIDH launches an interactive map chronicling violence against women from around the world
WORLD: Ashley Judd condemns violence against women in a powerful essay
WORLD: What a masculinity conference taught me about the state of men
AFRICA: Harnessing football’s appeal to tackle violence against women and girls
CHINA: Detained feminist actvisits in China spark worldwide support, new questions
GUATEMALA: Group ‘Las Poderosas’ uses theatre to confront violence against women
INDIA: ‘Daughters of Mother India’ wins Indian national film award
MEXICO: Irish painter Brian Maguire pays tribute to ‘invisible’ victims of Juarez, Mexico
TURKEY: Photo exhibition raises awareness of violence against women
UNITED STATES: Monument Quilt stitches 400 stories of violence against Native American women