by Arife Kazimova & Nushabe Fatullayeva, Radio Free Europe, Czech Republic - Azerbaijan says girls can't wear the hijab to school. So many girls are staying home. Will secular Baku lose its battle with the growing ranks of religious Muslims?

by Alexis Adele, IPS, Italy - For three days, 25-year-old Ousmane Traoré attended the private clinic in the populous district of Abobo, north of Abidjan. Suffering from gunshot wounds to the head and abdomen as a result of the Ivorian opposition demonstrations, he was forced to leave the main hospital in Treichville, south of Abidjan, due to a lack of assistance.

by Laura Flanders, Grit TV, USA - The LGBT movement has become too focused on appeasing, and remains centered around the needs and wishes of white middle-class men--at the expense of women and people of color, and poor people around the country.

by Marina Adshade, Globe & Mail, Canada - If monogamy is the best arrangement for those who can afford additional spouses, why does this institution need to be enshrined in the law?

by Victoria Pedrosa, Al Jazeera, Qatar - A dialogue with the recently released Burmese dissident about democracy, conflict, and the need for reconciliation.

by Martha Tagle, France 24, France - Marisela Escobedo was holding a vigil for her murdered daughter in front of the state governor’s office in Chihuahua City last Thursday when a man drove up and shot her in the head.

by Medea Benjamin, Common Dreams, USA - We can work together to help young people--gay and straight--find careers that won't kill them, maim them, destroy them psychologically, or cause them to do harm to others.

by Cathrin Schaer, Spiegel, Germany - Germany's Christmas markets are famous throughout the world, and every December thousands of visitors head to towns where traditional baubles and decorations are made. But the old-fashioned image of Advent tourism may be about to change.

by Doroteya Nicolova, The Sofia Echo, Bulgaria - Most women heading for Ukraine come from western Europe and the Americas – only they can usually afford the fees. But a growing number, like Nencheva, are middle-class professionals from the Balkans for whom the cost is still a huge sacrifice.

by Rebecca Solnit, Tom Dispatch, USA - Huge areas of our lives are based on gift economies, barter, mutual aid, and giving without hope of return (principles that have little or nothing to do with competition, selfishness, or scarcity economics).

by Olivia Chung, Asia Times, Hong Kong - With Beijing deeply concerned with maintaining "social stability" and the danger posed by high inflation, the government has said repeatedly it would give priority to "stabilizing the general price level" by using a combination of monetary policy.

by Ragini Nayak, The Hindu, India - The fear of violence restricts a woman's autonomy, curtails her mobility and her ability to work and participate in social activities.

by Yojana Sharma, SciDev Net, UK - The Pan-African University is expected to offer advanced graduate training and postgraduate research opportunities for "the cream of the crop" of African students.

by Siham Ali, Magharebia, Morocco - Despite government efforts to tackle the issue, graft remains rampant across Morocco, with even the government officials openly admitting the extent of the problem.

by Mona Eltahawy, Toronto Star, Canada - HarassMap not only offers women a way to take action — send a text message, write a tweet — in the face of a situation of paralyzing violation, it replies with information about services available such as counseling, legal aid, and ECWR’s guide on how to file a police report.

by Michelle Chen, In These Times, USA - Last week a diverse group of nonviolent protesters across Georgia stood up for their rights, calling for decent wages, better social services and respect for their civil liberties.

by Deborah Walter, Mmegi Online, South Africa - According to a United Nations survey of 69 countries, South Africa has one of the highest firearm related homicide rates in the world, second only to Columbia.

by Brooke Lewis and Mom Kunthear, Phnom Penh Post, Cambodia - Midwives on Motos is about how to access women and men who are really underserved with family planning services and sexual reproductive health services.

by Ellen Snortland, Pasadena Weekly, USA - If Altadena can tap its rural roots, other communities can too.

by Olivia Salazar Winspear, France 24, France - The UN said on Sunday that it has received hundreds of abduction reports and that more than 50 people have been killed in the past three days amid mounting evidence of "massive violations of human rights" since Ivory Coast’s disputed Nov. 28 vote.

by Melanie Peters and Thabiso Thakali, IOL, South Africa - With just 12 days to go desperate Zimbabweans are battling to get their papers in order ahead of the December 31 deadline, or face deportation