By Flora Charner, CNN Brazilian President Michel Temer has sparked a wave of anger following a speech to mark International Women’s Day, with his references to women’s domestic roles drawing accusations of sexism on social media. Wednesday’s speech began cordially enough, with compliments to female representatives of the Senate and Lower House, who were present at the event at the Planato presidential palace. He highlighted the importance of women’s struggles in Brazil, from gaining equal voting rights to fighting femicide. He also compared the country’s successes to others who still treat women as “second class citizens,” and praised his wife Marcela and other women in his life for everything they do “in the house, in the home and for their children.” While these comments may have led to some tepid applause and barely noticeable eye rolls, it was his praise of women’s “economic contributions” that left both men and women…

Pakistani activists on Monday said two transgender women were beaten to death by police after being arrested in Saudi Arabia along with more than 30 other members of the community. Saudi media reported last week that police had raided a party where men were dressed as women and wearing make-up and arrested around 35 people, but the outlets did not use the word transgender, nor say anyone had been killed. Farzana Riaz, a leader of campaign group Trans Action Pakistan, told a news conference that sources in the transgender community in Saudi Arabia had told her the two Pakistani women were packed in sacks by police and then beaten to death with sticks. The Saudi Interior Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Also, the Pakistani Interior Ministry was not immediately available for comment and so the deaths could not be independently verified. “We are deeply saddened…

By: Viola Zhou “Ultra-high net worth individuals can adopt equality policies in their firms and invest in women-friendly businesses”- UBS The super-rich have many tools at their disposal to make the world a more equal place for men and women, according to a study by UBS Wealth Management. Ultra-high net worth individuals can contribute to gender equality by investing in women-friendly firms, supporting charity projects and lobbying for policy changes, the report says. Wealthy business owners are also encouraged to adopt gender-equality policies in their own companies, which could include hiring more female managers and providing childcare support. The report, titled Gender-Lens Wealth, was published ahead of Wednesday’s International Women’s Day to explore ways in which the worlds most privileged can improve the lives of women and girls. Men and women might not reach equality for another 83 years on the basis of current efforts to close the gender gap,…

By: James Karuhanga Regional lawmakers concluded debates and passed the EAC Gender Equality and Development Bill, 2016, which many have described as the “best present women can get on International Women’s Day. This came up as the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA), sitting in Kigali, again debated the Bill that makes provision for gender equality, protection and development in many aspects of the EAC’s integration agenda. After its second reading earlier this week, the Bill went for the third and final reading on 8 March 2017 in commemoration of the International Women’s Day Celebration. “I think if the Bill is passed, then it will be the best Women’s Day gift. It will be a major milestone, a historic breakthrough,” Elizabeth Ampairwe, coordinator for women and girls’ empowerment at the Eastern African Sub-Regional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women (EASSI), had told The New Times earlier in the week.…

Senior US lawmakers have condemned the suspected distribution of nude photographs of female Marines to military personnel and veterans via a social media network that promotes sexual violence, and called on the Marine Corps to fully investigate. The Marine Corps Times, an independent newspaper focusing on issues involving the service, published an internal Marine Corps communications document with talking points about the issue, describing the social media network as a closed Facebook group with about 30,000 members. The network solicited nude photos of female service members, some of whom had their name, rank and duty station listed, the newspaper reported. A Marine Corps spokesman told the newspaper that military officials are uncertain how many military personnel could be involved. The chairman of the US House of Representatives Armed Services Committee, Republican Mac Thornberry of Texas, and the panel’s senior Democrat, Adam Smith of Washington State, separately called for a…

Dr. Tulia Ackson The Deputy Speaker of the Tanzania National Assembly, Dr. Tulia Ackson has urged the public to join efforts in the battle against violence on women. She particularly condemned Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) widely practiced against girls because it is contrary to human rights. She said the government had taken various measures to combat such practices. Even the parliament had passed a law to check the act of female circumcision in the country. Dr. Ackson made the remarks in Dar es Salaam on recently, when she was a guest of honor during a seminar working to end FGM. The seminar was organized by Italian Embassy at their residency. Various people including a delegation of European Union (EU) in Tanzania and Miss Tanzania 2016/2017 Diana Lukumay attended the seminar. “I know it is very difficult to fight this battle of violence against women and girls – in particular the…

By Maher Sattar and Ellen Barry Bangladesh’s Parliament recently softened its landmark law against underage marriage, a move that human rights activists say could roll back the country’s decades-long campaign to curtail teenage pregnancy and maternal and infant mortality. A new provision in the Child Marriage Restraint Act, which dates to 1929, allows girls under the age of 18 to marry in some circumstances. The change was met with praise from Islamist groups, which said it fell more in line with traditional religious practices. Bangladesh has one of the world’s highest rates of child marriage, but it has been gradually dropping under steady pressure from the government. In 2000, 65 percent of girls were married before age 18, and 38 percent were married before 15, according to UNICEF. Now those rates have dropped to 52 percent and 18 percent. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and other government officials have argued that…