by Karine Ancellin Saleck
Belgium

“We must celebrate our similarities rather than our differences” -- Nawal Al Sadawi

Nawal Al Sadawi was in Belgium invited by AWSA (Arab Women Solidarity Association) to reflect on Arab women in Europe. Because of her literary fame, Mrs Al Sadawi has had to face numerous difficulties and even dangers in her life. In 1972 she lost her job in the Egyptian government. The magazine, Health, which she had founded and edited for more than three years, was closed down. In 1981, President Sadat put her in prison. She was released one month after his assassination. From 1988 to 1993, her name figured on death lists issued by some fanatical terrorist organizations. She lived in exile for five years. In 2001, she won her case in Cairo court against forceful divorce from her husband (according to Hisba law). In 2004, Al Azhar in Cairo banned her novels, The Fall of the Imam and Al Riwaya. On 15 June 1991, the government issued a decree that closed down the Arab Women's Solidarity Association, over which she presides, and handed over its funds to the association called Women in Islam.

by Glory Mushinge
Zambia

As a philosopher once said: If you treat people like dirt and refuse to acknowledge that they are also human and have rights, you leave them with no choice but to fight back.

by D-L Nelson
- France -

Anyone who says one person can’t make a difference never met Karen Tse. She looks like a college student, but at 43, Tse is a lawyer, a Unitarian minister, a wife and mother. As founder and CEO of International Bridges to Justice (IBJ; www.ibj.org), she travels regularly from Europe to Asia to train public defenders and to create public awareness of legal rights.

by Delphine Zulu
- Zambia -

The prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Zambia among adults aged 15-49 is currently at 16%. For every infected man, three women are infected with the virus.

by Viktorija Plavcak
- Slovenia -

It has been almost two years since Slovenia became a full member of the European Union. On May 5th, 2005 we entered the European Union after years of pain-staking preparations and compliance with the requisite laws and regulations. The euphoria felt within the nation is indescribable.

The union with the former Yugoslavia brought nothing but debt and turned Slovenia into the milk cow for the entire Balkans region. The attack on Slovenia's freedom turned the country into a fierce animal which fought tooth and nail until finally in 1991, its freedom and independence were secured.

Still, being so small, and without real resources, industry or developed agriculture, it was impossible to survive independently, cut off from the rest of the world. It therefore had to join another union, the European Union, where milk and honey are in abundance.

by Glory Mushinge
Zambia

In a developing country like Zambia, one million and five hundred Zambian Kwachas, or roughly three hundred and fifty dollars, is enough to feed a family for 350 days.

So, when Liness Mwale, a 69 year old widow taking care of about four orphans, decided to save almost double that amount of money in order to buy a plot in Lusaka’s Kalale area and build a two-room house, where she could take her family and cut down on the cost of rentals, it was like further reducing the family’s food intake. But Mwale made the choice to live on less than half a dollar for over three years just so she could have a place she could call home.

by Sophie Becker
USA

“The US is one of the best countries in the world for Muslims to live in,” says Hebah Ahmed, who covers herself completely and wears a veil which leaves only her eyes visible. She was born in Texas to Egyptian parents and has an engineering degree. She works actively to spread information about Islam.

by Suad Hamada
Bahrain

What could be more demeaning to women than allowing men to divorce their spouses by sending text messages from their mobile phones?

If such a move materializes, Muslim men could benefit more from modern technology than women as Muslim women would not be allowed this privilege and Islam prohibits them from calling off a marriage without the approval of Sharia judges. Many women who ask for divorce in court end up losing custody of their children and other marriage settlements.

by Susan Mwape
Zambia

Many Zambians active in the Information Communication Technology (ICT) sector have come to appreciate the use of open source software; this is software that can be used in Windows and can be acquired freely or at a very minimal cost.

by Katharine Daniels
Founder and Executive Editor, The WIP
- USA -

• The WIP's editors and women writers have a lot to celebrate as we look back on 2007. •

A colleague of mine in radio news congratulated us this week, saying that The WIP has over delivered on our promise to create quality international news reports from the unique perspectives of women. In our first two weeks, we’ve demonstrated that local stories from around the world are both thought provoking and relevant. We’ve published 34 stories from women across the globe. Each piece is a journey into the life of someone neither one of us knew before—writers like Viktorija Plavcak, who laments the national heritage and identity lost in Slovenia with the adoption of the Euro. Or Glory Mushinge, in Zambia, who denounces the substandard goods and services that have flooded the Zambian market through increased Chinese investment in her economy. In Mumbai, we met Lara Vogel and her discoveries in a society where doctors, out of circumstance, remain loving caregivers and are forced to practice medicine versus the over-reliance on science and machinery we’ve grown accustomed to in the west. In education, Janelle Weiner exposes what is lost in the culture of standardized testing—genuine and meaningful learning experience.

by Natasha Dokovska
Macedonia

In Macedonia, one in three women is the victim of domestic violence, and one in four is the victim of gun violence.

“I was beaten up by my husband for the first time soon after our wedding. I thought that it was normal. Soon after that, his verbal and physical assaults became more and more frequent. During the last 12 years of our marriage, my husband harassed me literally every day and beat both me and my children. On several occasions he chased me out of the house with a gun in his hand. I did not have anywhere to go and did not dare to leave my home. My parents were not able to help, so I had to bear the harassment.”

by Karine Ancellin Saleck
Belgium

Europe's Muslim Feminism Renewal—Part I
Europe's Muslim Feminism Renewal—Part II

Part III of III

European mainstream society has been totally deaf to the claims of its Muslims believers. Muslim feminists bring to life the humanist aspect of the faith (or culture) together, giving it an active twist, and that is the foundation of an answer to people like the French ‘writer’ Houellebec, who calls Islam “the stupidest religion of all,” and all those now engaged in Arab or Muslim hate rhetoric.

Muslim feminists offer some kind of response to the rampant Islamophobia. They lighten the hearts that are burdened with downgrading images of Islam, with deaths of Muslims youths, with the humiliation heaped on even those who are only remotely linked to the religion. They scan the Koran to find quotes that advocate humanism, human rights, and rights of women. They speak of universal rights abducted in Muslim countries by male dominant powers, although they are unambiguously present in the scriptures. Their very appealing new thought is that the opressor is not the religion, but the macho reading that was made of its texts, which is related to the different cultural heritage of each country.

by D-L Nelson
France

Not having any business experience didn’t stop artist-sculptor, Cristina Schønberg, from creating an arts and culture center in the tiny Catalan village of Argelès-sur-mer, France (www.argeles-sur-mer.com) at an age when most women are thinking of retirement.

Her life was always a bit unusual. The fourth of six children, she was born in Argentina, the daughter of free-spirited Danes. The family moved back to Denmark when Cristina turned seven.

by Karine Ancellin Saleck
Belgium

Europe's Muslim Feminist Renewal—Part I

Part II of III

The Islamic Feminist Trend

Women are no longer prepared to offer total submission to paternalistic and colonial models. When scrutinizing the Western women’s liberation model, Asma Lamrabet speaks of new trends in women’s religious liberation, whether in Muslim or European countries.

“A colonialist speech of ‘Orientalist’ type, that categorizes the Muslim women in her grid of ‘eternally submissive’ victim and who cannot match the picture of the liberated modern women. This ‘otherness’ seems to be the dynamic of the universalist vision and which uses a language of paternalistic domination still linked to its colonialist project: we don’t want to liberate the Muslim women to liberate her as an individual, but mostly to value the Western Model and keep this power balance that has enabled us to better dominate the other…between the West imposing its ultimate Liberation Model and the Muslim world’s answer of draw back and rebellious identity, we should be able to find alternatives that are able to transcend these two suicidal strategies…”

by Glory Mushinge
Zambia

The procrastination of government over the enactment of the Freedom of Information Bill (FOIB), which gives the public and journalists free access to public information, has ignited concern, with some members of the judiciary and parliament joining the media in fighting for the bill’s passing.

by Karine Ancellin Saleck
Belgium

Part I of III

In March 2005, Amina Wadud, Professor of Islamic Studies at the Commonwealth University of Virginia, led prayer for a mixed audience of believers in Manhattan, New York. Death threats were sent to her by those parties who saw her actions as heretical.

Can we interpret these signs as an emancipation of the Muslim woman? Is this what is now widely coming to be seen as Muslim feminism?

by Glory Mushinge
Zambia

Africa recently hosted the World Social Forum, which was held in Nairobi, Kenya from the 20th to 25th of January.

Like always, the preparations towards this event, like with many other events like this, carried so much excitement, and a lot of work and money was spent in order to carry out the event successfully.

However, despite whatever expectation one would have had about this, it was no different from past social fora. We heard the same enchantments and themes about problems and issues we have heard about in the past. It was the same people making similar presentations, with new presenters only adding their voices to similar concerns.

by Pilirani Semu-Banda
Malawi

A 15 month-old baby had gone missing in Malawi’s high density township in the country’s commercial capital Blantyre last month, only to be found dead five days later in a pit latrine not very far away from her parents’ house. One would have easily thought that she had accidentally fallen into the dug-out toilet if it had not been that her teeth, nose, and lips were missing and half of her head shaven when her body was hauled out.

Three weeks after the incident in Blantyre, a 28-year-old man cut off his wife’s private parts while she was lying in bed with him. Police investigations revealed that prior to the incident, the man had asked his wife for a piece of her private parts to mix with some traditional medicine, to then prepare charms to help him get rich, but that the wife refused.

by Esther Nakkazi
Uganda

Upon taking office in January, Ban Ki-Moon, the new UN Secretary General, announced that he would appoint a woman as the second in command at the UN Secretariat. That his appointment turned out to be East African activist, a woman, and someone outside of the UN system, was a pleasant surprise.

by Sarah Hurd
USA

With the onset of March, Women’s History Month, I wonder how many people still don’t know. “Don’t know what?” you may ask. Answer: All the countless contributions women have made to get us to where we are today—or in other words, all the ways women have made history.

I certainly did not know growing up. In fact, I was clueless and I’m a 30-something woman with a staunch feminist mother. But really why would I?

by Louise Belfrage
News Editor, The WIP
- Argentina -

Dec. 26 - As we approach the new year, we thought it appropriate to revisit our editors' thoughts as we prepared to launch The WIP in March 2007. - Ed.

• Tango in Bueno Aires, Argentina. Photograph by Zabara Alexander. •

I had just moved from Stockholm to Buenos Aires, intending to set up a life in one of the world’s most exciting cities. I was also looking for a way to start my own business, not knowing the least of where to start. At this transitory stage, it so happened that my best friend, Nina, had gotten me in touch with Katharine Daniels. Nothing surprises me anymore—life works its magic and all one has to do is follow along with it. Without hesitation.

Kate asked me if I’d be interested to work on a brave new project, The WIP, and edit international news written by women—for all readers. What an astonishing woman, I thought. She’s on to something fundamental.

by Aralena Malone-Leroy
France

In June 2007, at the precise moment when thousands of tourists will be meandering down the Champs Elysées, contemplating the statues of philosophers lining the façade of the Hôtel de Ville, or strolling hand-in-hand along the curving paths of the Buttes de Chaumont, the mayor of Paris will offer tourists and citizens alike another reason to fall in love with the City of Lights: the deployment of 260 Wi-Fi hotspots dispersed across Paris, providing free internet access to all those equipped with a laptop. For those who prefer to surf the net in the great urban outdoors, approximately 138 plein air sites will be available; the remaining 128 hotspots will be deployed in municipal buildings throughout the capital (libraries, community centers, city halls), should the weather dictate otherwise.

by Delphine Zulu
- Zambia -

This year, MORE than 4,000,000 Zambian people, especially in rural areas, will be affected by hunger and will need immediate attention from the Government to save them from starvation. Severe flooding in six major Provinces heavily populated by farmers has threatened food security in the country.

by Suad Hamada
Bahrain

Women come as second or third priority to the Parliament in Bahrain as MPs consider them to be weak voters. This is the case even though 148,000 women participated in the parliamentary and municipal election in 2006 from a total of 295,000 voters. MPs and election candidates don’t take them seriously as they believe that they are influenced by their male relatives.

by Sarah McGowan
Features & Photo Editor, The WIP
- USA -

Dec. 27 - As we approach the new year, we thought it appropriate to revisit our editors' thoughts as we prepared to launch in March 2007. - Ed.

I don’t believe in accidents; I think that everything happens for a reason. So when Kate told me about a project she had brewing called, The WIP, I felt the familiar twinge of serendipity. The hair on the back of my neck even stood on end.

I had just moved to Los Angeles, leaving behind a very fulfilling career teaching social justice to thousands of San Diego county teenagers. With more than a little wistfulness, I set out in search of an outlet for my creativity, but specifically to do some writing. When Kate began describing The WIP, I immediately registered that this was an amazing opportunity to blend two interests that had previously competed for my exclusive devotion. I knew then that I was in the right place at the right time and I volunteered without hesitation.

by Glory Mushinge
Zambia

While most Zambian people, especially local business owners, have continuously condemned Chinese investors for exploiting the country’s market by selling sub-standard goods and services, as well as monopolizing Zambian business with goods that are supposed to be sold by the indigenous people, The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) thinks the country needs to do its homework to solve the problem.

By Lara Vogel
USA

Though meant as a break from the hectic pace of my eight-month trip around the world, it had been an intense few weeks. Leaving Europe and Northern Africa behind, I spent July in Mumbai exploring its hospitals to help decide if I had what it takes to head toward medical school back home.

by Pilirani Semu-Banda
Malawi

Last Christmas Eve, just days before Hilary Clinton announced her intentions to run for the US presidency, a woman parliamentarian in Malawi, Loveness Gondwe, also indicated her intentions to run in the 2009 presidential elections in her small southern African country.

by Halima Abdallah Kisule
Kampala, Uganda

Kenya, however, may not be a safe haven for the warriors as a similar disarmament exercise is taking place. Both Kenya and Uganda maintain liaison officers in each other’s countries.

Sudan, which is a big source of guns, is not yet on board. That is why Uganda’s Minister of Defense plans to meet his Sudanese counterpart soon to address the issue of Toposa who cross the border to raid in Uganda. The two ministers will also talk about the gun market inside Sudan.

by Sharon Njobo
Zimbabwe

Sibongile Ncube wakes up earlier than usual today. She has a busy day ahead of her.

This 35 year-old mother of four looks way older than Oprah’s 50 years. Her husband is cycling to the industrial site one hour away as his earnings can’t afford him the luxury of a bus or taxi commute. Her two primary school children have only have thin cornmeal porridge for breakfast. She waves goodbye at them saddened, as she knows she may not see them for another day or two.

by Laramie Glen
- USA -

Miss Delirium Tremens traipses on-stage. Her skin is white, her hair black, her lips red. Covered only by two scarlet feather fans, she begins a coy dance to music that is dedicated to the art of the tease. First she turns towards the audience, one fan in front of her, the other behind. She does a twirl and now her back is to the audience, only this time the fans seem to be wings on her back. You still see nothing but a glimpse of her pale skin through the feathers. As the song continues, she has yet to reveal anything from her neck to her knees.

By Esther Nakkazi
Uganda

The number of pregnant women in Uganda accessing Nevirapine, the drug that stops mothers from passing HIV to their newborn babies, is rapidly growing with all districts in the country now offering the service.

Health officials say by the end of last year all 74 districts in the country were offering Prevention of Mother-To-Child HIV Transmission (PMTCT) services at III and IV level Health Centre (HC) facilities, compared to only 50 districts that were offering them in 2005.

By Halima Abdallah Kisule
Kampala, Uganda

The ongoing disarmament process in Karamoja has taken a nasty turn as Karachunas (warriors) are engaging the Uganda Peoples Defence Forces (UPDF) soldiers in battle, escalating an already bad security situation in the region.

For a long time, the warriors furthered illegal gun trafficking with weapons sourced from Sudan and Kenya. They also engaged in cattle rustling, looting, ambushes, and the killings and raping of women within and outside Karamoja, ultimately sending thousands of people in the neighboring areas within Uganda into displacement for the past 20 years.

By Claire A. Williams, USA

Because I over-think everything, when I see something particularly sad, it can sometimes take me forever to keep it from flashing through my mind at random, unwelcome moments. I still remember the dog ears I saw in Nicaragua so riddled with ticks that I thought they were sand, and the mother screaming and hitting her child in the parking lot of a Nevada McDonald’s over a decade ago.

By Imelda V. Abaño, Philippines

Philippines --- HIV/AIDS, like other life-threatening illnesses, can open a path of reflection for many, redeeming them from living in dread of death, allowing them to relish, instead, each day as a gift of life. For some, in serving others, their lives take on a new sense of worth.

This is the story of Frika Chia Iskandar, 24, a young vibrant woman from Jakarta, Indonesia. Diagnosed with HIV at age 18, Frika declared, “I am the new face of AIDS, a young Asian woman. I was born when AIDS was discovered.”

by Viktorija Plavcak
- Slovenia -

Some thirty years ago, in a socialist system, we went out to the woods to pick the first snowdrops, to search highs and lows under the snow blanket covering the soft, mossy grounds. We picked and picked until our hands could not carry any more. Our hearts were filled with joy, knowing that our mothers' eyes would light up and glow, that they would gently stroke our heads after we presented them with the first heralds of spring, as we liked to call them. And we all knew that there would be no absolution for those who had forgotten this ever so important event.

by Janelle Weiner
- USA -

Johnny realized late in his high school career he needed to make a change or face the fate of not graduating with his class. After cutting school regularly his first two years, he decided he didn’t want to struggle like his mother and father, both of whom never graduated.

Once he made that decision, his behavior changed.

“I started coming to school a lot and not getting into fights,” he said. “Stayed away from the bad behavior and drugs.” Johnny’s turnaround is exactly what every teacher and administrator in the Sacramento public school Johnny attends wants to see.

However, Johnny has a major hurdle remaining: the California High School Exit Exam. (CAHSEE). He has failed it four times.

by Katharine Daniels
Founder and Executive Editor, The WIP
USA

Today is not only a celebration of International Women’s Day, but for us it is also a celebration of a great year of discovery, insight, growth, and development.

The WIP is official today. Our first day online.

International Women's Day was developed in response to the centuries-old struggle women faced to participate in society on equal footing with men. Similarly, The WIP was created to balance the under-representation of women in media and is a platform for women writers to expand their base and reach the general public. The WIP is a place for women writers to tackle the same broad political and social issues as our male counterparts. Our mission is to provide quality news from the unique perspectives of women, accessible worldwide and free to our readers.