Welcome to the 61st edition of The Pixel Project’s VAW e-News Digest.
This fortnight, India passes new laws related to violence against women, imposing harsher punishments for crimes involving sexual violence. We highlight several articles that explain the new laws and some of the changes that it provides to the existing legal framework for women in India.
In the United States, attention was drawn to the rape in Steubenville High and the media coverage in response to it. Many felt that the media fell into a pattern of perpetuating rape culture. Responses by the public to the media reaction to the rape case show growing awareness about rape culture. Among these responses is a brief video filmed by a university student that has gained more than a million views on Youtube.
In other news:
- Rescuing a victim of trafficking in the USA may now be a simple as sending a text message. The Polaris Project has implemented a text message service. Victims, survivors, and others wishing to connect with the national human trafficking hotline can send a text to “BeFree” or 233733.
- Malala Yousafzai, the 15-year-old Nobel Laureate, is back in school in England and her foundation has made its first grant to a girls’ school in Pakistan to help keep the 40 female students in school and away from child marriage and forced domestic labour.
- International Anti-Street Harassment Week kicks off today (7 April) and runs until 14 April 2013. Our partner Stop Street Harassment will be holding events including tweet-a-thons, demonstrations and other activist events throughout the week.
Every contribution matters. If you have any news you’d like to share about violence against women, please email The Pixel Project at info@thepixelproject.net. If you prefer to receive up-to-the-minute news concerning violence against women, follow us on Twitter. It’s time to stop violence against women together.
Best regards
The Pixel Project Team
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General Violence Against Women News
- UNITED NATIONS – International women in film & arts gather at UN to stop violence against women
- CANADA – Parliament to probe issues of violence against women in First Nation communities, faces cynicism
- ECUADOR – Naming femicide to fight violence against women
- EGYPT – Examining media coverage of violence against women in Egypt
- EGYPT – Women historically have been battling tyranny and violence in Egypt for centuries
- INDIA – JWT sacks employees involved in controversial sexist advertisements featuring women bound and gagged in the boot of a vehicle
- SUDAN – Empoower the women of the world’s younges nation – south sudan
- SYRIA – Syria’s unseen crisis: displaced women face rape, poverty, insecurity
- UNITED STATES – Pushing for an international version of VAWA
- ZAMBIA – Push for prevention, end of violence against women and girls
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Domestic Violence
- WORLD – Peace One Day – Reducing Domestic Violence Coalition – Google hangout
- CROATIA – Domestic violence survivor takes a picture of herself every day for a year, part of a viral campaign to raise awareness on domestic violence
- GHANA – Investigate the physical attack and death threat against Nazli Bala – activist on the issue of domestic violence and sexual violence war crimes
- INDIA – Cops crack whip against domestic violence
- LEBANON – Here’s what domestic violence awareness ads look like in the Middle East
- NIGERIA – “Woman, you are not a victim.”
- PAPUA NEW GUINEA – Advocate blames the media over domestic violence deaths
- UNITED KINGDOM – False allegations of rape and domestic violence are few and far between
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Rape / Sexual Assault
- WORLD – Angelina Jolie and William Hague unite to end rape in war
- CONGO – Congo receives 180 million pounds boost to health system to tackle warzone rape
- INDIA – India’s Parliament clears tough rape law
- INDIA – What India’s anti-rape bill actually says
- SOUTH AFRICA – Once called the ‘world’s rape capital’, South Africa is running out of rape kits
- SYRIA – Why is the US media ignoring rape in Syria?
- UGANDA – Marital rape bill splits Ugandans
- UNITED STATES – Rape in Steubenville shows the bond between jock culture and rape culture
- ZIMBABWE – South African authorities to investigate campaign of politically motivated mass rape in Zimbabwe
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Human/Sex Trafficking
- WORLD – The shame of sex trafficking (part 6 of a series)
- CANADA – Human traffickers target aboriginal girls and women
- PHILIPPINES – Zero-tolerance on sex trafficking not preventing US military from visiting brothels
- SOUTH KOREA / ASIA PACIFIC – MTV’s Korean drama to raise awareness on human trafficking
- SWEDEN – Why the game’s up for Sweden’s sex trade
- SWITZERLAND – Trafficked women and girls suffer under “critical risks” says IOM
- UNITED STATES – Polaris Project, a human trafficking hotline accepts text messages.
- UNITED STATES – Largest hotel companies work to prevent human trafficking
- UNITED STATES – Sex trafficking survivor shares her story
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Female Genital Mutilation
- EGYPT – The ongoing battle for the female body (on the topic of female circumcision in Egypt)
- EUROPE – Artists come together to end female genital mutilation across the globe
- GAMBIA – Change in attitude could see Gambia free from FGM by 2020
- INDONESIA – Indonesia ignores UN ban on female circumcision, denying that it is mutilation
- KENYA – The girl who demanded school
- MALTA – Female genital mutilation not officially addressed
- NIGERIA – Appeal to traditional rulers to wade into female genital mutilation menace
- UNITED KINGDOM – FGM: The UK must act now
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Forced Marriage/Honour Killing
- WORLD – Interview with photographer who documented child brides / forced marriages
- AUSTRIA – A refuge for brides from forced marriages
- FRANCE – France moves to tackle forced marriage
- PAKISTAN- Human Rights Commission says honour killings on the rise
- SCOTLAND – New support for action on forced marriages
- SWITZERLAND – Swiss to toughen stance on forced marriages
- UNITED KINGDOM – Forced Marriage and Honour Killing
- UNITED KINGDOM – Education pack to help women in forced marriages draws international attention
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Activism
- WORLD -Artwork projects showcasing women between peace and war
- WORLD – Oxfam statement: Ending violence against women – now the real work starts
- WORLD – Anglican Communion of Churches raises need to train laity and clergy to prevent violence
- CANADA – Rick Ross Show Protested in Ottawa over Sexual Assault-Insinuating Lyrics
- INDIA: Engineering students create electrified rape underwear
- NEPAL – Nepali Congress throws its weight behind the Occupy Baluwatar campaigners (who have been protesting issues of violence against women)
- NIGERIA – Raising Her Voice project launches in Nigeria
- UNITED STATES – Students from the University of Oregon create anti-rape video in response to media coverage about the Steubenville trial, gets 1.3 million views