Feminism & Gender

The 21st century has inherited the unfinished agenda of globalising democracy in a more vibrant form. In many instances there is a feeling of unease about the achievement of representative democracy because of the ongoing tendency of democratic nations to exclude or marginalise large sections of society. After 65 years of freedom and democracy India’s democratic structures continue to be restricted by their patriarchal foundations and women still fail to enjoy full and equal citizenship right across the country.

What is the situation with regard to the rights of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, trans* and inter* (LGBTI) worldwide? The Director of the German Institute for Human Rights, Prof. Dr. Beate Rudolf in an interview with Caroline Ausserer.

Article seven of the Lebanese Constitution guarantees equality of rights, obligations and duties to all citizens. But women in Lebanon are still far away from having the same rights. This article explains how family, sect, and the government conspiring against the participation of women in the public sphere.

2012 was a special year in terms of publicity of LGBTI community and LGBTI movement in all three South Caucasian countries. Several important steps have been made towards raising acute issues about sexual identity, differences/diversity and social constructs in Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia.

In this interview Dr. C. Kek Pung, founder and president of the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights talks about the main problems in Cambodia: land grabbing, poverty, trafficking and corruption. Even the EU has not taken any action to prevent injustices of the system and is still importing Cambodian "blood sugar".

Quotas are a necessary prerequisite for full equal political and economic participation, a powerful tool to overcome the glass ceilings, experienced by so many skilled women over decades now.

Women's soccer is slowly gaining ground in parts the Lebanese society. The sport is not only empowering young women, but also helps building bridges between the different religions and sects in the country. But it's still a long way to go until it will be recognized by the media and be accepted by society as a whole.

To write a text about Lepa Mladjenovic in singular, be it in first or third person, is very difficult. Her description would best be assembled from a myriad of voices of the women whom she addressed, supported, encouraged, spurred to speak out, to return to themselves and their deepest emotions.

Lepa Mlađenović is the winner of the Heinrich Böll Foundation’s Anne Klein Women’s Award. The award ceremony will take place in Berlin on 1 March 2013. The prize money is 10.000 €.

Exactly 11 years ago, the United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 1325 on Women and peace and security. This groundbreaking document calls for representation of women in peace negotiations and increased protection of women and children against violence in conflict situations. In Israel, our parter organization Itach-Maaki is working for the national implementation of the resolution.

The international project „Transrespect versus Transphobia Worldwide“ researches the human rights situation of trans people worldwide. On October 5th, the research team and representatives presented some first results to a wider public audience. We present the recording of the panel discussion.

Human rights of Lesbians, gays, bisexual, transgender and intersexual persons (LGBTI) need to be promoted in developing countries and transformation countries just like everywhere else. However, only nine of 16,500 German foundations and organizations support those efforts. Compared with other groups whose human rights are threatened or restricted, they receive far too little political or financial support.

Modernity predicted that religion would retreat into a private zone of worship and practice. However, recent decades have seen religion become increasingly salient on the political stage worldwide. This politicized religion impinges on women’s rights in problematic ways.

After strong criticism voiced by Afghan human rights and civil society organizations, the Ministry of Justice has modified the draft law on how to celebrate weddings in Afghanistan. The result is disappointing: The changes are merely technical and do not address the common concern of too much interference in people’s private affairs.

Never will women’s rights be sacrificed in talks with the Taliban and never will the Afghan government close women shelters. These are the promises President Karzai made to his people in the middle of a heated debate on women’s rights in Afghanistan. These are two major commitments. Judging by the overall political trends in the country, it might not be easy to stick to them.

For the Canadian women the opening match of the World Cup against Germany is – for the time being – the highlight of an unprecedented boom in women’s soccer. 

The World Cup victory of the US women’s team in 1999 triggered a virtual soccer boom among children. Today girls play soccer in the US - in the media, however, the sport has made a disappearance act.

“Gender policy, feminist analyses, and feminist discourses have held a firm place in the Heinrich Böll Foundation since its very beginning. Along with ecology and democracy, they are a key focus of our work in Germany and abroad […].”, as Barbara Unmüßig, President of the Heinrich-Böll-Foundation says.

In this publication, the Heinrich Böll Foundation presents some of its experiences, both setbacks and successes. It is just a small sample of HBS' work all over the world.  HBS is very much aware that its political and financial contributions are often only part of a larger network; yet its work does make a difference – for more gender justice.

Migration is a strategy to adapt to climate change, yet there are significant differences between men and women. Jenny Jungehülsing has conducted a case study in southern Mexico to put a gender focus on the discussion on migration and climate change.