Feisty Aphrodite Archives
Feisty Shout Out Newscast for Week Ending on 5/6/07
Here is the transcript of our look back at the week’s headlines concerning women’s issues, flavored with a hint of music by independent artists.
Listen to the Podcast
Some of the headlines from this week’s newscast:
Bush Threatens to Veto Hate Crimes Bill
Ex-Generals Criticize Bush For Veto
U.S. Military Handbook Labels Media "A Threat"
Alabama Militia Accused of Plotting to Attack Mexican Immigrants
Vermont Lawmakers Pass Bill Banning Gender Identity Discrimination
U.S. Forces Completes Construction on Wall in Baghdad
Women in Uganda Petition Court to Ban FGM
Oxy Petroleum Accused of Poisoning Indigenous Children Gender
Inequalities In Community Media Urged to be Stopped
Americans Urge FDA to Adopt a Mandatory Ban on Untested, Cloned Food
This week’s news contributors:
- allAfrica.com
- Feisty Aphrodite
- New Vision
- Democracy Now!
- Center for Food Safety
- The Advocate
- GayWired.Com
- The Sex Workers Project at the Urban Justice Center
- Free Speech Radio News
- Isis International-Manila
- Women's ENews
- Feminist Daily News Wire
- BBC News
- Uprising Radio
- Associated Press
On Capitol Hill
Bush Threatens to Veto Hate Crimes Bill
Feisty Aphrodite
Feisty Aphrodite covered a rally this Thursday in Denver entitled "Legislate Against Hate by '08". The rally was just one of many where various organizers from around the country called on Americans to apply pressure on Congress by calling them and demand that they support the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crime Act of 2007 (H.R. 1592). The bill passed through the House of Representatives Thursday in a 237-180 vote. This pressure is especially crucial since the White House released a Statement of Administrative Policy after Thursday's vote that advocated a presidential veto if the bill were to pass through the Congress. The Statement opened with the following paragraph:
The Administration favors strong criminal penalties for violent crime, including crime based on personal characteristics, such as race, color, religion, or national origin. However, the Administration believes that H.R. 1592 is unnecessary and constitutionally questionable. If H.R. 1592 were presented to the President, his senior advisors would recommend that he veto the bill.
Take note that the above statement does not mention either homosexuality or gender identity in what the Administration considers some of the “personal characteristics” they feel so adamant to protect from being targeted. Among the arguments against H.R. 1592 are that it will violate one’s freedom of speech, prohibit the preaching of the gospel (Evangelical) and will allow more cross-dressing in public (I’m not lying, that is really one of the key issues for some influential folks!). The controversy surrounding this bill is that it will provide exclusive repercussions to those who commit a hate crime against someone for being lesbian, gay, transgendered or transsexual - a federal mandate that has yet to pass any President into law. The opposition’s stance is quite clear in that none of them want to lose their right to gay-bash either at the pulpit or on the air; their privilege to advocate homophobia is far more important than those who suffer at the hands of the violent perpetrators who take their message of intolerance one step further.
The Justice Department has reported that 113,000 hate crimes have been reported since 1991, however, the government has also acknowledged that the number of hate crimes actually committed may exceed 15 times that number (that’s 1,695,000 just since 1991). From Guantanamo, police brutality and the Minute Men to sexual predators, conservative talk-show pundits and fanatic Evangelical preachers, the level of hate that is saturating our mainstream culture while becoming socially acceptable is an alarming trend that’s turning ever-more dangerous for anyone part of a minority population in America. This bill may be a significant step towards reversing that trend, both socially and politically. This is Democratic Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin, the first openly lesbian to serve in Congress.
- Rep. Tammy Baldwin: "These characteristics are included in this hate crimes legislation, not because they deserve any special protection, as opponents of this legislation claim, but because of the history of particularly heinous and violent crimes committed against individuals based on such characteristics."
Focus on the Family founder James Dobson called it “insidious legislation." Read the rest of this story here.
Ex-Generals Criticize Bush For Veto
Democracy Now!
President Bush has vetoed a $124 billion war spending bill that would have imposed timelines to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq. This sets up a showdown between Congress and the White House over the future of the Iraq war. Criticism of President Bush's veto has come from an unlikely quarter -- two retired generals who led troops in Iraq. Major General John Batiste said: "The President vetoed our troops and the American people. His stubborn commitment to a failed strategy in Iraq is incomprehensible." Major Gen. Paul Eaton added: "The President of the United States is holding our Soldiers hostage to his ego."
Bush Administration Claims It Has Right to Conduct Warrantless Surveillance
Democracy Now!
The New York Times reports senior Bush administration officials told Congress on Tuesday that they could not pledge that the administration would continue to seek warrants from a secret court for a domestic wiretapping program, as it agreed to do in January. Senior officials - including the new director of national intelligence Michael McConnell - said they believed that the president still had the authority to once again order the N.S.A. to conduct surveillance inside the country without warrants.
U.S. House of Representatives Approves a Resolution to Address Unsolved Murders of 2,000 Women and Girls in Guatemala
by Alison Bowen
Women's ENews
The House has approved a nonbinding resolution May 1 to address the unsolved murders of more than 2,000 women and girls in Guatemala since 2001. The measure, authored by Rep. Hilda L. Solis, D-Calif., condemns the murders and encourages the government of Guatemala to recognize domestic violence as a crime and respond by investigating these crimes. It also asks the secretary of state to develop a plan to address the growing problem of violence against women in Latin America.
Congressional Briefing Addresses Obstetric Fistula
Feminist Daily News Wire
A congressional briefing Thursday examined the effects of obstetric fistula, a hole in the birth canal suffered by young women who lack emergency obstetric care during prolonged labor. Particularly in developing nations, women who endure obstetric fistula are often ostracized due to their incontinence, odor, infertility, and inability to perform the duties expected of them in their community. Approximately 130,000 new cases develop every year, Dr. Steve Arrowsmith, vice president for International Program Development at the Worldwide Fistula Fund, said during the briefing.
Obstetric fistula is a reflection of poverty and the lack of maternal health care and family planning in some of the poorest countries. Cases in the developed world are now virtually nonexistent because mothers are typically older and are attended by skilled medical professionals during the birthing process. Efforts are currently underway not only to train, but also to retain, skilled surgeons in African countries. Additionally, facilities and healthcare providers in developing countries lack much-needed funding and resources. President Bush has withheld funding for the past five years from the United Nations Population Fund, a major player in the fight to eradicate fistula. Read the rest of this story here.
House Passes Pro-Union Legislation
Uprising Radio
The United States Senate is currently discussing a labor bill that is being considered the most important piece of legislation by union officials this year. The bill, called the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), would streamline the process of unionization by instituting a card check system whereby employees interested in unionizing would simply need to sign a card stating so. Once more than 50% of employees turn in cards, they are allowed to organize. Recently an extensive report by Human Rights Watch on Walmart Corporation revealed that “relentless exploitation of weak US labor laws thwarts union formation and violates the rights of its US workers” in Walmart. Under the current terms of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), employees must allow the NLRB to conduct an election among employees in order to unionize. Advocates of the bill state that it will decrease employers’ ability to intimidate their workers into voting against unionization. In March, the House Passed the Employee Free Choice Act but President Bush has threatened to veto the bill if it passes the Senate. Listen to the rest of this story here.
Case Against Rumsfeld Dropped
Cinnamon Nippard
Free Speech Radio News
Germany’s Federal Prosecutor quashed a lawsuit filed in that country charging Donald Rumsfeld and other high-ranking US officials with torture and war crimes. The case was filed on behalf of 12 Iraqi citizens detained at Abu Ghraib, and one Saudi citizen still held at Guantánamo Bay who say that they were severely beaten, deprived of sleep and food, sexually abused, stripped, hooded, exposed to extreme temperatures, and frightened with dogs. Under Germany's Universal Jurisdiction law, people can be charged for war crimes and crimes against humanity, regardless of where such crimes were committed. Some say the Federal Prosecutor's ruling to drop the case against Rumsfeld and others is a result of political pressure from the US. Listen to the rest of this story here.
Sen. Obama Placed Under Secret Service Protection
Democracy Now!
Democratic presidential hopeful Senator Barack Obama has been put under the protection of the United States Secret Service.The Associated Press reported the decision was made in part because racist messages have been posted on white supremacist Web sites. It is the earliest time in an election cycle that the Secret Service has ever placed a presidential candidate under its protection. The New York Times reports that the Rev. Jesse Jackson also drew early Secret Service protection because of violent threats during his campaigns for president in 1984 and 1988.
Other State News
Alabama Militia Accused of Plotting to Attack Mexican Immigrants
Democracy Now!
In Alabama, federal authorities have revealed they have broken up a militia plot to attack a group of Mexicans living in a small town north of Birmingham. Last week six members of the Alabama Free Militia were arrested in a series of raids. The Birmingham News reported police uncovered truckloads of explosives and weapons, including 130 grenades, an improvised rocket launcher and 2,500 rounds of ammunition. The six men appeared in court on Tuesday. Despite the violent plot, police did not accuse the men of terrorism. Instead police charged them with conspiracy to make a firearm, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The Anti-Defamation League said the weapons seizure was the largest in the South in years.
Florida Back to Paper Ballots
Mitch Perry
Free Speech Radio News
Florida voted to replace touch-screen voting machines installed in 15 counties after the disputed 2000 presidential election. The move is considered the biggest rejection yet of electronic voting, which Florida Supervisors of Elections throughout the State embraced in the aftermath of the 2000 President election, which was rife with various voting problems. Advocates had been fighting for years to get a paper trail for such machines, with little or no luck. What it took to change the course of fate was Florida's new Republican Governor, Charlie Crist, who announced in January that he was allocating over 30 Million dollars in his first proposed budget to make the conversion from electronic to optical scan style of voting.
Organization to Open Domestic Violence Shelter for Native American Women
by Alison Bowen
Women's ENews
Cangleska Inc., an organization devoted to protecting Native American women from domestic violence, opened a new $1.25 million shelter May 4. The shelter, which will house 36 women and children, sits on a new nine-acre complex on the Pine Ridge reservation in Kyle, S.D. May 4 also marked the 10-year anniversary of the opening of Cangleska's first women's shelter on the Oglala Sioux reservation.
Kent State Massacre Tape: 'Get Set! Point! Fire!'
Democracy Now!
Survivors of the 1970 massacre at Kent State are calling on officials to reinvestigate what happened on May 4 1970 when the National Guard shot four students dead at an anti-war rally. On Tuesday, one of the survivors – Alan Canfora – released an audio tape from the day of the shootings. Canfora said by closely listening you can hear a National Guard officer issue the command "Right Here, Get Set! Point! Fire!" Following the command, the sounds of shots being fired can be heard. The FBI has never determined whether an order to shoot was given. Eight members of the National Guard were acquitted of federal civil rights charges four years after the shootings. Canfora said the reel-to-reel audio recording was made by a student on campus.
Investigations Into L.A.P.D. Behavior at May Day Rally
Thandisizwe Chimurenga
Free Speech Radio News
Three investigations have been opened into the conduct of Los Angeles Police at a peaceful rally for immigration reform held on May first in the city's MacArthur park. Organizers of the Los Angeles National Day of Action for Immigration Reform had a legal permit to occupy MacArthur Park until 9:00 pm, but police descended on the park around 6 pm, claiming that a small group of demonstrators had thrown rocks and plastic bottles at police officers on nearby Alvarado Street. Officers in full riot gear rushed at the gathering, indiscriminately firing tear gas, rubber bullets, and foam-tipped plastic cartridges into the crowds, which included elderly people, children, and journalists. Several people who were not able to leave the area fast enough were clubbed with riot batons. The investigations that are already underway include a departmental review of tactics, an internal affairs investigation into the behavior of the officers and commanders on the scene, and an independent review by the investigative arm of the Police Commission, which sets policy for the Police Department. A request for the Los Angeles County District Attorney to launch an independent investigation into the officers' actions was also made by the California Assembly Speaker of the House Fabian Nunez, who represents district where MacArthur Park is located.
To watch video footage capturing the police brutality click here.
LGBTI
State Legislature passes domestic partnership measure
by Rachel La Corte
The Associated Press
The Washington state House has passed Senate Bill 5336 that would create domestic partnerships for same-sex couples, and the measure now heads to Gov. Chris Gregoire, who is expected to sign it into law. The bill, which passed the Senate last month, passed the House on Tuesday on a 63-35 vote.
The bill would create a domestic partnership registry with the state, and would provide enhanced rights for same-sex couples, including hospital visitation right, the ability to authorize autopsies and organ donations and inheritance rights when there is no will. To be registered, couples would have to share a home, not be married or in a domestic relationship with someone else, and be at least 18. Read the rest of this story here.
Vermont Lawmakers Pass Bill Banning Gender Identity Discrimination
The Advocate
The Vermont legislature has approved a bill that would ban discrimination on the basis of gender identity and expression. The bill, if signed into law by Gov. Jim Douglas, would go into effect July 1. Douglas has indicated that he will sign this bill, despite vetoing a similar bill last year. If passed, Vermont will be one of a handful of states that ban discrimination based on gender identity and expression.
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force has worked for the past several years with Vermont TransAction and Vermont state representative Bill Lippert to get this measure passed. "Transgender people are among the most vulnerable to acts of bigotry," said task force executive director Matt Foreman. "We urge Governor Douglas to swiftly sign this measure into law. Only then will transgender Vermonters finally crack the dehumanizing and untenable barrier of second-class citizenship and the pervasive discrimination it encompasses."
The bill would ban discrimination in employment, housing, credit, public accommodations, and other areas.
Poland: Ban of Warsaw Gay Pride in 2005 Violated Euro Human Rights – Court Rules
Gay-Wired.Com
The then Mayor of Warsaw, Lech Kaczynski, who is now President of Poland, violated three Articles of the European Convention of Human Rights when he banned Warsaw Gay Pride in 2005, the European Court of Human Rights ruled Thursday morning. The seven judges, including Judge Lech Garlicki from Poland, ruled unanimously that there had been: a violation of Article 11 (freedom of association and assembly) of the European Convention on Human Rights; a violation of Article 13 (right to an effective remedy) of the Convention; and a violation of Article 14 (prohibition of discrimination).
The case was taken to Strasbourg by the Foundation for Equality and five of its members –Tomasz Bczkowski, Robert Biedro, Krzysztof Kliszczyski, Inga Kostrzewa and Tomasz Szypua, who are also members of non-governmental organizations that campaign on behalf gay men and women. They complained that their right to peaceful assembly had been breached by the way in which the domestic authorities had applied relevant domestic law to their case. They also complained that they had not had at their disposal any procedure which would have allowed them to obtain a final decision before the date of the planned demonstrations. And they further alleged that they had been treated in a discriminatory manner in that they had been refused permission to organize certain demonstrations whereas other organizers had obtained permission. Read the rest of this story here.
International News
Conservative Nicolas Sarkozy has won the hotly-contested French presidential election
BBC News
Nicolas Sarkozy is estimated to have won 53% of the French vote, compared with 47% for socialist Segolene Royal. The turnout was the highest for more than two decades, at about 85%. Sarkozy, 52, the son of a Hungarian immigrant, takes over from the 74-year-old Jacques Chirac, who has been in power for 12 years. Royal is the first woman ever to have made it to the second round of a French presidential election.
Conceding defeat - the third in a row for France's Socialist Party - she thanked 17 million French people for their votes, saying she could measure their sadness and their pain. "I gave it all my efforts, and will continue," she told supporters. "Something has risen up that will not stop." More than 3,000 police have been deployed in Paris and its multi-ethnic suburbs. Riot police have fired tear gas at demonstrators protesting in central Paris at Sarkozy's victory. According to the French news agency AFP, a few hundred stone-throwing rioters charged the police in the Place de la Bastille, where 5,000 supporters of Segolene Royal had earlier gathered to hear the results. Read the rest of this story here.
U.S. Forces Completes Construction on Wall in Baghdad
Democracy Now!
In Baghdad, U.S. forces have completed construction of a concrete wall around the Baghdad district of Adhamiya despite protests from the Iraqi prime minister and local residents. The United States is defending a plan to construct a 12-foot-high concrete wall through parts of Baghdad to divide Sunni and Shiite neighborhoods. According to the Washington Post, the U.S. is walling off at least 10 neighborhoods despite opposition from Iraqi leaders. Last Sunday Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki ordered the construction of the controversial walls to be halted but the U.S. military has given no indication it plans to change course. U.S. forces are also planning to use biometric technology to track residents in Baghdad. Troops are compiling a neighborhood census by recording the fingerprints and eye patterns of residents to monitor who goes in and out.
Is Iraq’s Crude Oil Being Stolen?
Uprising Radio
It has been estimated that hundreds of thousands of barrels of crude oil are unaccounted for in Iraq daily. The Al Basra Oil Terminal and the Khawr Al Amaya Oil Terminal, despite being heavily guarded, continue to operate without an oil metering system. When properly functioning, meters measure how much crude oil flows in and out of such terminals. However, in the four years of U.S. occupation, meters have not been repaired, leading to speculations about black market operations and smuggling. Iraq’s proven oil reserves, estimated to be 115 billion barrels, are the third largest in the world. Listen to the rest of this story here.
U.S. Sends 4,000 More Troops Into Baghdad
Democracy Now!
In Iraq, nearly 4,000 more U.S. soldiers have arrived in Baghdad in an attempt to stabilize the city. Despite the so-called surge, another 85 Iraqis died on Wednesday. The heavily fortified Green Zone came under mortar and rocket attacks for days at a time last week. Wednesday night four Filipino contractors working for the U.S government were killed in a rocket attack inside the Green Zone.
Over 100,000 Protest in Israel Against Olmert
Democracy Now!
In Israel over 100,000 people took to the streets of Tel Aviv on Thursday demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert over his handling of the Lebanon war. Meanwhile the Labor party is threatening to withdraw from Olmert's government. Labour is the largest partner in Olmert's coalition government and its withdrawal could force new elections.
Somalia Installs CIA-Linked Warlord As Mayor of Mogadishu
Democracy Now!
In Somalia, the U.S.-backed transitional government has installed one of the country's most feared and ruthless warlords as the new mayor of Mogadishu -- Mohamed Dhere. According to the Associated Press, Dhere has long cooperated with the CIA.
Abducted Girls Returned in Uganda
Joyce Namutebi
New Vision (Kampala)
A total of 1,000 abducted girls have returned from captivity by the Lord's Resistance Army, according to the latest UNICEF report. "Of the nearly 25,000 children estimated to have been abducted since the late 1980s, 7,500 are girls and 1,000 of whom returned from LRA captivity having conceived and produced children," the 2007 UNICEF humanitarian situation report stated. Children and women, who constitute 80 percent of the internally displaced persons, have been direct targets of attacks, sexual violence and abductions. Read the rest of this story here.
Women in Uganda Petition Court to Ban FGM
All Africa
Women's rights activists in Uganda have petitioned the Constitutional Court demanding that female genital mutilation (FGM), practised by several communities in the east of the country, be declared illegal. "We are seeking a court declaration that the practice is unconstitutional; it is cruel, inhuman and degrading," said Dora Byamukama, a member of the East Africa Legislative Assembly and one of the campaigners against FGM in Uganda.
The activists, who have formed a group known as Law and Advocacy for Women in Uganda, earlier in April succeeded in having the Constitutional Court abrogate the country's law on adultery on the grounds that it made marital infidelity an offence only when committed by women while seemingly condoning it when men were involved. The organization recently helped abolish a discriminatory adultery law. Read the rest of this story here.
Venezuela Seizes Control of Privately-Held Oil Projects
Democracy Now!
In Venezuela, President Hugo Chavez marked May Day by seizing control of the country's remaining privately-held oil projects including what might be the world's richest oil fields, the Orinoco Belt. President Chavez made the announcement before thousands of supporters. He said the move was part of an effort to reclaim country"s resources for the people of Venezuela.
- Hugo Chavez: "Today's ceremony on May 1 is a historic act. And it's going to permit us to intercede with force and weight in the new history that we are building every day. Today, we put an end to a perverse cycle that was opened here more than 10 years ago."
The international oil companies ConocoPhillips, Chevron, Exxon Mobil, BP and Total agreed to the transfer of operational control. Venezuela is allowing the private oil companies to remain in the country, but the state oil company has become the majority stakeholder in every project.
Hugo Chavez also announced a 20% raise to the country's minimum wage. At the same time, Chavez said that Venezuela will withdraw from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
Bolivia Moves to Nationalize Energy Resources
Democracy Now!
The Bolivian government has moved a step closer to nationalizing its energy resources. On Wednesday, Bolivian president Evo Morales met with representatives from 12 different oil and gas companies to sign new contracts turning over production to the state.
Oxy Petroleum Accused of Poisoning Indigenous Children
Uprising Radio
A report released last week accuses the LA-based oil corporation, Occidental Petroleum of deliberately allowing environmental pollution of indigenous communities in the Peruvian Amazon. The corporation has been drilling for oil in the Amazon region for decades. The report was published by Earth Rights International (ERI), Racimos de Ungurahui, and Amazon Watch (AW). It was released to coincide with Occidental’s annual general meeting at the Fairmont Hotel in Santa Monica. The report’s main finding is that indigenous children from five Achuar communities in the Corrientes River basin of the Peruvian Amazon have unusually high concentrations of lead and cadmium in their blood - at levels known to cause developmental problems. The report’s authors contend that the corporation deliberately ignored industry standards and employed out-of-date practices for 30 years which has now led to this level of poisoning. Listen to the rest of this story here.
Anger at bus firm's veil ruling
BBC News
A bus company in Edinburgh, England has sparked anger over rules requiring drivers to ask Muslim women wearing the veil to show their faces. Religious groups and unions said the rules introduced by Lothian Buses to catch potential fare cheats were unnecessary. Passengers have been told to lift their veils or produce a passport or driving licence when boarding. The company said the rules brought them into line with airport security. The orders were introduced in February in an attempt to stop travellers using other people's passes. Veiled Ridacard pass holders who refuse a driver's request to show their faces would have to pay for a full fare ticket. Read the rest of this story here.
Australian outcry over women jibe
BBC News
An Australian senator has caused a storm of protest for describing a female politician as "deliberately barren" and therefore unfit to govern. Bill Heffernan said Labor Party deputy leader Julia Gillard did not understand the public because she had no children. He has since apologised for the "inappropriate" comments, first made last year but repeated again this week. Heffernan first questioned Gillard's childlessness last year, when he queried whether the deputy Labor leader could fully understand her voters because she did not have her own family. In Wednesday's edition of The Bulletin magazine, he voiced similar remarks. "If you're a leader, you've got to understand your community," the 64-year-old senator said. "One of the great understandings in a community is family and the relationship between mum, dad and a bucket of nappies," he added.
Gillard, 45, dismissed Heffernan's views as old-fashioned. "The reality is that modern women know all about modern women's choices. Mr Heffernan is a man stuck in the past," she told reporters. Read the rest of this story here.
New Report Links Labour, Debt Impacts to Women
Isis International-Manila
Published by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the “Global Employment Trends for Women Brief 2007” examines whether women have found enough decent and productive jobs to really enable them to use their potential in the labour market and achieve economic independence.
According to the report, the number of women participating in labour markets—either in work or looking actively for work—is at its highest point in 2006 as nearly half of the world’s workers are women. However, more women than ever before are either unemployed, stuck in low productivity jobs in agriculture and services, or receiving less money for doing the same jobs as men. Furthermore, the report revealed that even though young women are more likely to be able to read and write than 10 years ago, access to basic education and higher education levels are still far from equal in most regions. About 60% of school drop-outs are girls, as they often have to leave school to help in their households or get jobs to augment the family income. The study also underscores how preventing girls from finishing even basic education hinders their chances to determine their own future. Read the rest of this story here.
Media News
U.S. Continues to Hold Journalists Without Charge
Democracy Now!
The United States came under some criticism on World Press Freedom Day for continuing to jail two Muslim journalists without charge. The Pulitzer Prize winning Associated Press photographer Bilal Hussein has been held in a U.S. prison in Iraq for the past 13 months. Meanwhile the U.S. has been detaining the Al Jazeera camerman Sami al-Haj at Guantnanamo since June 2002.
U.S. Military Handbook Labels Media "A Threat"
Democracy Now!
A new U.S. military handbook officially states that soldiers should view the media as a threat alongside Al Qaeda, computer hackers, drug cartels, warlords and militias. The handbook was published by the Army's 1st Information Operations Command. The Army has also placed new restrictions on the use of blogs and private emails by soldiers. Soldiers sending emails or posting items on blogs must now first clear the content with a superior officer. Many believe the rules will likely result in the end of all military blogging.
Indian Journalists Resist News Agency’ Corporate Take Over
Vinod K. Jose
Free Speech Radio News
United News of India (UNI), is the country’s premier news agency – and its corporate takeover by a media giant is being challenged in court. More than 1,000 UNI journalists are opposing the takeover – and since the planned takeover was announced eight months ago, journalists haven’t missed a day, holding demonstrations in front of their own offices. Listen to the rest of this story here.
Gender Inequalities In Community Media Urged to be Stopped
Isis International-Manila
Mavic Cabrera-Balleza of the World Association of the Community Radio Broadcasters–Women’s International Network (AMARC–WIN) and the International Women’s Tribune Centre (IWTC) highlighted community media’s role in promoting women’s issues, and called for the immediate elimination of gender inequalities that continues to exist today in community media.
“For more than three decades now, the global women’s movement has confronted two key issues in the media: the negative and stereotypical portrayal of women in the media and the lack of women’s representation and participation in decision-making positions within media organisations,” said Cabrera-Balleza during her talk in a panel at an international media conference. This panel discussion examined not only how gender inequalities in community media can be stopped but how to effectively use this type of media as a tool in promoting women’s decision-making roles and political participation.
According to Cabrera-Balleza, “of all the media, it is in radio where women and women’s issues are most underrepresented.” This was based on the findings of the 2005 Global Media Monitoring Project (GMMP) coordinated by the World Association for Christian Communications and the “Mirror on the Media, Who Talk on Talk Shows” conducted by Gender Links and the Gender and Media Network in Southern Africa (GEMSA) in 2006. Cabrera-Balleza also cited that the results of the AMARC–WIN Asia-Pacific and Isis International-Manila survey of 23 community radio stations in the Asia-Pacific region which revealed that although community radio stations have programmes by and for women, women remain to be the minority in decision-making positions. Furthermore, women are also stereotyped in community media as they are assigned to do administrative work and very few are involved in technical production. Read the rest of this story here.
Reproductive Rights
Court Abortion Ban Ignites Activism in States
by Allison Stevens
Washington Bureau Chief
Women’s ENews
In the two weeks since the Supreme Court upheld a controversial abortion ban that has no health exception, state lawmakers have pushed anti-choice legislation in Michigan, Louisiana, Iowa, North Dakota, Georgia and North Carolina. And that is only the beginning, say reproductive rights advocates who are also watching Alabama, Missouri, South Carolina and Texas. New York is so far the only state to follow up on the Supreme Court's decision with a new bill to strengthen access to abortion.
The decision "has given anti-choice state lawmakers the green light to open the flood gates and launch additional attacks on safe, legal abortion," Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, said in a statement. Read the rest of this story here.
Ireland's High Court to Hear Case Over Teen's Right to Abortion
Feminist Daily News Wire
A 17-year-old Irish girl petitioned Ireland's High Court yesterday for the right to travel to England to obtain an abortion, which remains illegal in Ireland even in cases of rape, incest, and severe fetal anomalies. The girl, known in the media as "Miss D," has been in the custody of Ireland's Health Services Executive (HSE) since February after being removed from her mother's care due to incidents of abuse. Four months pregnant, Miss D -- who had planned to carry her pregnancy to term -- discovered in April that the fetus is afflicted with a rare brain defect and has no chance of survival, but the HSE won't allow her to leave the country to seek an abortion. The fetus' condition, called anencephaly, prevents sections of the brain and skull from forming and is always fatal; babies born with anencephaly are generally blind, deaf, and unconscious, and can only survive a maximum of three days outside the womb.
According to the Irish Examiner, Miss D's Senior Counsel Eoghan Fitzsimons told the court, "She's being denied rights guaranteed to every citizen because she is under 18 and subject to a care order. It is discrimination of the highest order." Ireland, a predominately Catholic country, currently has some of the strictest abortion regulations in Europe. Read the rest of this story here.
World Bank Approves Family Planning Policy Without Changes
Feminist Daily News Wire
The World Bank approved a new policy on Health, Nutrition, and Population that preserves language on family planning. The approval comes after Whitney Debeviose, the US representative to the World Bank's board, proposed to alter language that referred to family planning. Debeviose wanted "reproductive health services" to be replaced with "age appropriate access to sexual and reproductive healthcare," which would have added major restrictions on young women's ability to access reproductive health services in developing countries. Representatives from several European countries objected to the proposals, demanding that the World Bank reaffirm its commitment to family planning as part of its greater strategy to reduce global poverty. Read the rest of this story here.
Advocates Criticize Moralistic Policy the Randall Tobias Enforced
The Sex Workers Project at the Urban Justice Center
Randall Tobias retired from his position as Director of U. S. Foreign Assistance and Administrator for the U. S. Agency for International Development (USAID) after being implicated in a prostitution scandal. The irony is that Tobias was the chief enforcer and mouthpiece of the Anti-Prostitution Pledge, which requires USAID grantees, among others, to denounce prostitutes-the very people whom they are trying to empower and serve. As advocates for the health and human rights of sex workers, we are not interested in Randall Tobias' personal life. However, the recent revelations about his connections to an escort agency that operated in Washington DC provide an opportunity to reflect on the ineffective and morality-driven policies that he enforced.
The proponents of the Anti-Prostitution Pledge claim that it will help in the fight against HIV/AIDS. However, sex workers are not the source of the HIV problem-instead, they are a key part of the solution. When they are empowered and their rights are protected, sex workers are able to insist on condom use and take on the role of sexual health educators and prevention advocates. It is difficult, if not impossible, for sex workers to mobilize when they are being demonized. The real human impact of the Anti-Prostitution Pledge is that people around the world are being denied the healthcare, rights, and services that they deserve:
* Brazil rejected approximately $40 million in USAID money
because signing the Pledge would interfere with its successful
anti-HIV/AIDS program;
* A class that taught English to sex workers in Cambodia had to
seek other funding as a result of this policy;
* In Bangladesh, 16 drop-in centers lost funding when the agency
that supported them signed the Pledge-the sex workers affected by this
describe it as having lost their home, their family, and their sense of
community and safety; and
* Organizations in India that work to empower and organize sex
workers in India have been falsely accused of trafficking the very women
that they are helping.
Organizations are so fearful of the political backlash stemming from the Anti-Prostitution Pledge that many are going further than the Pledge may even require, because they do not understand what kinds of programs are banned. For examples, some groups have dismissed sex workers, claiming that they can no longer keep them on staff, and other groups have distanced themselves from sex workers' groups with whom they had previously worked and supported.
The real hypocrisy here is that people who need healthcare and services, and who need their rights to be protected, are being denounced by those whose stated mission is to help them.
The Network of Sex Work Projects has produced a 13-minute video about the effects of the pledge. Watch Taking the Pledge here.
The Sex Workers Project at the Urban Justice Center provides legal services, legal training, documentation, and policy advocacy for sex workers in New York City. For more information, please visit our website.
Health
Research Finds Ratio of Women to Men with MS Has Reached 4:1
by Alison Bowen
Women's ENews
About 50 percent more women per decade than men have been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis since 1940, Medical News Today reported April 30. The ratio of women to men with MS is about 4 to 1, according to the North American Research Committee on Multiple Sclerosis, compared to 2 to 1 in 1940. Researchers are unable to study the hike and suggest more research is needed.
Americans Urge FDA to Adopt a Mandatory Ban on Untested, Cloned Food
Center for Food Safety
A coalition of consumer, environmental and animal welfare organizations announced the submission of more than 130,000 comments to the Food and Drug Administration from consumers who oppose the Agency's proposed plan to introduce food from cloned animals into the U.S. food supply.
Thursday was the last day of a public comment period that began in January in response to FDA's proposal to allow products from cloned animals in the food supply unlabeled. Members of the meat and dairy industries, and several nonprofit organizations urged the Agency to take time to consider comments from the widest possible sample of Americans in consideration of the untested nature of cloning technology.
Recent public opinion polls show the majority of the American public does not want milk or meat from cloned animals in their food. A December 2006 poll by the Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology found that nearly two-thirds of U.S. consumers were uncomfortable with animal cloning. The comments submitted strongly reinforce this national sentiment.
Another controversial aspect of FDA's plan is that labeling of any kind on meat or milk products from clones or their offspring would not be required. This would rob Americans of their right to choose what they eat and feed their families. Read the rest of this story here.
Environmental
Endangering the Endangered Species Act
Uprising Radio
A group of concerned scientists have written a letter of protest to the Bush administration regarding its new interpretation of the Endangered Species Act. Signed by 38 environmental ethics specialists and wildlife biologists, the letter takes issue with a recent re-definition of “endangered species.” Under the new definition and interpretation put forth by Interior Department Solicitor David Bernhardt, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would respond only to species, “at risk of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range.” Signatories to the letter caution that such a distinction would effectively relieve the agency of many of its protective responsibilities. David Bernhardt has also interpreted the term, “range,” to mean where a species currently lives and not their previous habitat. Such re-definitions “will have real and profoundly detrimental impacts on the conservation of many species and the habitat upon which they depend,” according to the scientists. The interpretations are being rationalized on the grounds that they would allow the focus of limited resources on species that are newly defined as being truly endangered and threatened. The Bush administration has granted fewer species endangered status than any previous administration since the Endangered Species Act became law in 1973. Listen to the rest of this story here.
