Single Women Cry Foul as China Doubles Down on Egg Freezing Ban, Accusing Authorities of Gender Bias and Forcing Women into Marriage
South China Morning Post, China, 2/28/2021
China’s National Health Commission has claimed medical risks and ethical issues are behind its recent ban on single women freezing their eggs. The commission’s stance has come under fire from Chinese internet users, who described the ban as discriminatory and said it deprived women of their right to have children later in life. In China, assisted reproductive technology is largely used to help married women with fertility issues. Medical regulations deny single women access to treatments for in vitro fertilisation and egg freezing offered by Chinese hospitals and agencies. However, single men are legally entitled to freeze their sperm for use at a later date.
Women Run Fewer than 13% of India's MSMEs; Inaccessibility of Credit, Govt Schemes and Now COVID are Key Hurdles
Firstpost - New Delhi, India, 2/27/2021
According to a report by the Initiative for What Works to Advance Women and Girls in the Economy (IWWAGE), a gender research and advocacy organisation, only seven of 100 entrepreneurs in India are women and of them, nearly half (49.9% percent) get into business out of necessity rather than aspiration. Globally, India ranks third among countries reporting gender gaps in business. Only 33 percent of the early-stage entrepreneurs in India are women, as per 'Financial inclusion for woman-owned Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in India', an August 2019 report by the International Finance Corporation (IFC). India also ranks 70th among 77 countries covered in the Female Entrepreneurship Index, as per the IWWAGE report.
Chinese Court Backs Publication of Textbook Calling Homosexuality ‘Psychological Disorder’
Reuters - Hong Kong, China, 2/26/2021
A court in China’s eastern Jiangsu province recently ruled in favour of a publisher who described homosexuality as a “psychological disorder” in a book on mental health education for university students. The court ruling claimed the description resulted from “perceptual differences” and was not a factual error. Homosexuality was decategorised as a mental disorder by the Chinese Psychiatric Association in 2001. XiXi (pseudonym), who filed the case against Jinan University Press, expressed disappointment over the judgment which was passed without a trial. Peng Yanzi, the Director of LGBT Rights Advocacy, China said the judgment was damaging to the LGBTQIA+ community.
Egypt Launches Closing Gender Gap Accelerator's Action Plan in Partnership with WEF, Private Sector
Egypt Today - Cairo, Egypt, 2/25/2021
Egypt's Ministry of International Cooperation with the National Council for Women, World Economic Forum and the Private Sector has launched the ‘Closing the gender gap accelerator’ action plan. The launch comes within the state’s continued efforts to close the gender gap and in celebration of the forthcoming International Women’s Day on March 8, 2021. By this launch, Egypt became the first country in Africa, Middle East and North Africa to launch this accelerator, which is a public-private collaboration model supported by the World Economic Forum. The Ministry of International Cooperation noted in a statement that the accelerator aims to address current gender gaps and reshape gender parity for the future.
Women Inch Towards Equal Legal Rights Despite Covid-19 Risks, World Bank Says
Reuters, 2/24/2021
Women gained legal rights in nearly 30 countries in 2020 despite disruption due to COVID-19, but governments must do more to ease the disproportionate burden shouldered by women during the pandemic, the World Bank said on February 24, 2021. The World Bank said in the annual ‘Women, business and the law’ report that a total of 27 countries reformed laws or regulations to give women more economic equality in 2019-20. Around 40 countries brought in extra benefit or leave policies to help employees balance their jobs with the extra childcare needs created by coronavirus restrictions. However, such measures were “few and far between” and women on average still have only about three quarters of the rights granted to men, according to the report.
Pakistan - Sobia Khan Becomes First Transgender Member of DRC
MENAFN - Peshawar, Pakistan, 2/23/2021
For the first time, a transgender person has been appointed a member of Dispute Resolution Council (DRC) by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Police. Sobia Khan has been appointed representative of all transgender persons in Peshawar and she will be assisted by other members of the DRC. Sobia Khan, who is culture secretary for transgender persons in KP, said incidents of violence against transgender persons are common and even though cases are filed against people who engage in the violence, they usually remain unpunished. She said that she would now personally listen to the grievances of transgender persons and try to resolve their problems.
‘Covid-19 Crisis Has a Woman’s Face’: UN Chief Spotlights Discrimination during Pandemic
Hindustan Times, Geneva, 2/22/2021
While opening the 46th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on February 22, 2021, UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres highlighted the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Guterres said the COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated entrenched discrimination against women and girls, and women have suffered higher job losses than men and pushed into poverty by greater numbers. He added, “This is on top of already fragile socio-economic conditions due to lower incomes, the wage gap, and a lifetime of less access to opportunities, resources and protections”.
Saudi Women Can Join Military in Latest Widening of Rights
Bloomberg, Saudi Arabia, 2/21/2021
Women in Saudi Arabia can now take up arms and enter the military, the latest profession to open up to women recruits. According to the Saudi Arabia based news channel Arabia News, women can now be employed as soldiers, lance corporals, corporals, sergeants, and staff sergeants. The expansion of job roles and rights has come even as women activists have been targeted in a crackdown on dissent. The plan to allow women into the military was first announced in 2019, the same year the kingdom said it would allow women to leave the country without permission from a male relative, a major step toward ending a restrictive guardianship system that has been heavily criticized at home and abroad.
Mexico City Ban on Plastic Raises Tampon Concerns for Women
NBC News - Mexico City, Mexico, 2/19/2021
Mexico City has recently banned plastic products including tampons with plastic applicators in a push for a greener agenda. Women’s groups, however, said the city’s ban on the applicators is an attack on human rights and creates a phenomenon of ‘menstrual poverty’ because organic products, like organic tampons or silicone menstrual cups, are more expensive and often hard to find. Menstrual activist Sally Santiago said that although the measure sounds progressive and well-intentioned with an environmental commitment, it neglects the needs of women. Mexico City Environment Minister Marina Robles acknowledged the backlash to the ban on plastic tampon applicators, saying dialogue with women about the new law should stay open.
Cyberabad Police to Have ‘Transgender Desk’
The Hindu, India, 2/19/2021
The Cyberabad police have decided to set up a ‘Transgender Desk’ at the Cyberabad Commissionerate. The issue to have a dedicated desk was raised by around 150 transgender persons during an interaction with the police commissioner VC Sajjanar and other senior officers. Representatives of the transgender community shared their problems about the structural and societal violence that they are subjected to every day. Responding to their concerns, VC Sajjanar announced that a ‘transgender desk’ will be set up, which will address the grievances of transgender persons and also assured that he will take their issues to the government.
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