Face-covering prohibitions in Europe are typically passed on the basis of three arguments: security, women’s rights and secularism. Rational as they may seem, these arguments do not stand up to scrutiny.
As a political instrument of power projection and status, nuclear weapons carry a peculiarly masculine symbolism. In the 1980s, Greenham women were at the forefront of challenging masculine ideologies of defence and security. We need to seize the initiative and again become the agents of security
" We’re not interested in making war safe for women… There are many substitutes for oil, but I can't think of a single substitute for a peace woman." Cora Weiss
"If we’ve done as much with as little resources as women have, think what we could do with more. Women are the energy of the future… its up to women to show what women’s leadership in the UN can do." Charlotte Bunch
On October 17th thousands of Congolese women, led by Olive Lembe Kabila marched to end impunity for sexual violence against women. Rape survivors joined the march, many of them from their hospital beds, defying a culture that shames victims rather than perpetrators
Earlier this year the Philippines became the first country in Asia to launch a National Action Plan to implement SRC1325, and in a bold move, the control of small arms was made a key part of the strategy
By relying on the secular state as the answer to the religious right and entrusting the Left with the protection of women's rights, feminists in Latin America may have overlooked the root causes of attraction to the religious right: the state's failure to deliver social services to all
What are the implications for women's reproductive rights of the strong legacy of Catholicism acting as a marker of Polish nationhood and identity?
Ghanaian feminist theologian Mercy Amba Oduyoye speaks to Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah about religion, patriarchy and reinterpreting the Bible from a feminist perspective
Where does feminism fit in our narrative of African experience? What is the vision of Africa’s ‘lionesses’- feminist thinkers and doers? Jessica Horn reflects on the opening of the third African Feminist Forum
NATO's continued 'mission creep' demands a degree of militarization that masculinizes and deforms everyday life. The forthcoming NATO Summit in Lisbon will launch a new Strategic Concept. Cynthia Cockburn says we need to be alert
Just as borders, once drawn, become subject to militant patrol, so are the lives and bodies of women once they are marked by religious tensions. The need to address the nexus between religion, gender and conflict is becoming vital to peacebuilding