...Legal or Not, Abortion Rates Compare ROME, Oct. 11 — A comprehensive global study of abortion has concluded that abortion rates are similar in countries where it is legal and those where it is not, suggesting that outlawing the procedure does little to deter women seeking it. Moreover, the researchers found that abortion was safe in countries where it was legal, but dangerous in countries where it was outlawed and performed clandestinely. Globally, abortion accounts for 13 percent of women’s deaths during pregnancy and childbirth, and there are 31 abortions for every 100 live births, the study said. The results of the study, a collaboration between scientists from the World Health Organization in Geneva and the Guttmacher Institute in New York, a reproductive rights group, are being published Friday in the journal Lancet. “We now have a global picture of induced abortion in the world, covering both countries where it is legal and countries where laws are very restrictive,” Dr. Paul Van Look, director of the W.H.O. Department of Reproductive Health and Research, said in a telephone interview. “What we see is that the law does not influence a woman’s decision to have an abortion. If there’s an unplanned pregnancy, it does not matter if the law is restrictive or liberal.” But the legal status of abortion did greatly affect the dangers involved, the researchers said. “Generally, where abortion is legal it will be provided in a safe manner,” Dr. Van Look said. “And the opposite...
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...Culture of SOUTH AFRICA http://www.everyculture.com/Sa-Th/South-Africa.html ORIENTATION Identification. South Africa is the only nation-state named after its geographic location; there was a general agreement not to change the name after the establishment of a constitutional nonracial democracy in 1994. The country came into being through the 1910 Act of Union that united two British colonies and two independent republics into the Union of South Africa. After the establishment of the first colonial outpost of the Dutch East India Company at Cape Town in 1652, South Africa became a society officially divided into colonizer and native, white and nonwhite, citizen and subject, employed and indentured, free and slave. The result was a fragmented national identity symbolized and implemented by the white minority government's policy of racial separation. Economic status has paralleled political and social segregation and inequality, with the black African, mixed-race ("Coloured"), and Indian and Pakistani ("Asian") population groups experiencing dispossession and a lack of legal rights. Since the first nonracial elections in 1994, the ruling African National Congress (ANC) has attempted to overcome this legacy and create unified national loyalties on the basis of equal legal status and an equitable allocation of resources. Location and Geography. South Africa has an area of 472,281 square miles (1,223,208 square kilometers). It lies at the southern end of...
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...analysis of apartheid on womens lives in s.a Strategists in the National Party invented apartheid as a means to cement their control over the economic and social system. Initially, aim of the apartheid was to maintain white domination while extending racial separation. Starting in the 60's, a plan of ``Grand Apartheid'' was executed, emphasizing territorial separation and police repression. With the enactment of apartheid laws in 1948, racial discrimination was institutionalized. Race laws touched every aspect of social life, including a prohibition of marriage between non-whites and whites, and the sanctioning of ``white-only'' jobs. In 1950, the Population Registration Act required that all South Africans be racially classified into one of three categories: white, black (African), or colored (of mixed decent). The coloured category included major subgroups of Indians and Asians. Classification into these categories was based on appearance, social acceptance, and descent. THE EFFECT OF APARTHEID ON WOMEN IN RURAL AREAS African women in South Africa, being both black and female, suffered a triple oppression. As Africans—which for the most part defines their class position—they had to contend with the restrictive and repressive apartheid legislation, which ensures alien control over all facets of their lives. In addition, as women, they had to contend with the fact that they are regarded as dependants and as inferior to men; as such, they are even further discriminated against...
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...1. In November of 2008, California voters approved Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment outlawing same-sex marriage, thereby overturning the state Supreme Court decision that gave gay couples the right to wed. 2. The federal government accords 1,138 benefits and responsibilities based on marital status, not on civil union status. A few of those benefits are unpaid leave to care for an ill spouse, social security survivor benefits and spousal benefits, and the right not to testify against one’s spouse, among others. 3. The District of Columbia and 47 states have anti-hate crime laws, however only 24 states and the District of Columbia include sexual orientation in their legislation. 4. As of November 2012, 9 states have made same-sex marriage legal: Massachusetts, New York, Vermont, Maine, Maryland, Connecticut, Iowa, Washington, and New Hampshire, plus Washington D.C. 5. In July 2009, the Senate approved the Matthew Shepard Act, which outlaws hate crimes based on both sexual orientation and gender identity. 6. The Employment Nondiscrimination Act first accepted by congress in 2007 is the act that prohibits discrimination of sexual orientation in the workplace, specifically during hiring. 7. In the U.S., 75 percent of students have no state laws to protect them from harassment and discrimination in school based on their sexual orientation. In public high schools, 97 percent of students report regularly hearing homophobic remarks from their peers. 8. Of the estimated...
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...popular themes of debates. The Human Development Report, (1995) posits that the number of women is greater than or equal to that of men, in today's society, yet females are still considered as a minority segment of the population. As a measure to redress gender inequalities, approaches by feminist movements, such as Women in Development (WID), were crafted but not much was achieved. Later, it was Women and Development (WAD) and lastly Gender and Development (GAD). It seems deep-rooted gender inequality still exists globally, despite substantial national and international measures that have been taken towards gender equality. This essay deliberates on the assertion that, “Gender equality is debatable: what is undebatable is the attempt to make it universally applicable.” The writer agrees to a greater extent that gender equality is a controversial issue basing on the multiplicity of societies that it is applied to. The fact that there is no universal culture, universal religion or universal ideology makes the whole issue arguable, ence, the need to degenderise gender. Definition of Key Terms Keating, (2004:9) defines gender as, “the social meanings given to being either a man or a woman in a given society and the expectations held as to the character, attitude and likely behaviour of men and women.” "Gender refers to the cultural, socially-constructed differences between women and men and girls and boys. It refers to the way a society encourages and...
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...OVERVIEW OF WOMEN DEVELOPMENT 2.1. Introduction The previous chapter (Chapter 1) gave the problem and background of this research. Chapter two will begin by reviewing available literature on studies done on the topic. This chapter will provide a substantially better insight into the dimensions and complexity of the problem and how others have contributed to the topic. A variety of sources will be used to review literature, including research reports, dissertations, government publications and theses; accessed through journals, textbooks and internet. The chapter will end by giving an overview of approaches that paves the way for a clearer understanding of the research problem and identifies the knowledge gap this study seeks to fill. Women in Development (WID), Women and Development (WAD) and Gender and Development (GAD) approach will be discussed in relation to women access to land in Zimbabwe. 2.2. Customary law and land question For many people, customary law is the most important law in their lives, controlling areas of their lives like their marriages, their property, and their right to inherit. Due to customary law in Zimbabwe like in many other African countries with patriarchal systems, women can only access land through marriage or other male relatives. According to Ghosh (2010) customary law refers to African traditions which have become an intrinsic part of the accepted and expected conduct in Zimbabwean black communities. This law defines roles which women should...
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...Ethics of AIDS Vaccines Administration without Knowledge of Long-Term Side Effects? I. Introduction (Jessica and Chrystal) A. Why this topic is important? i. AIDS is a pandemic ii. B. Implications i. AIDS vaccine could potentially save billions of lives ii. . C. Objectives of the assignment. i. Identify a health care ethical issue ii. Present facts in an outline format. iii. Describe the pros and cons of the issue including an analysis. iv. Follow APA 6th formatting. II. Literature Review A. Review of the key articles on this topic (5 per team member). i. HIV/AIDS- Ethical/Legal Issues (Arora & Arora, 2009). This article … ii. AIDS Vaccines and Reproductive Immunology (Bourinbaiar, Jirathitikal, Silin, Nian-Qing & Abulafia-Lapid, 2007). This article… iii. Correlates of negative intent to receive an AIDS vaccine: an exploratory study (Crosby, Holtgrave, Bryant, & Frew, 2004). iv. AIDS Care (AIDS CARE), Dhalla S; Nelson KE; Singer J; Poole G. (2009). This article describe how developing an HIV vaccines may contribute to participants better follow-ups and may improve the patient’s knowledge and education regarding HIV/AIDS. v. Development of an AIDS vaccine: perspective from the South African AIDS Vaccine Initiative. British Medical Journal. This Article mentioned...
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...AIDS LEGAL Network Q A Publication of the AIDS Legal Network • September/November 2008 Patrick Eba One size punishes all… A critical appraisal of the criminalisation of HIV transmission Lauded by lawmakers as an expression of their strong will to ‘fight AIDS’, HIV-specific laws have become a ubiquitous feature of the legal response to HIV in sub-Saharan Africa1 As of 1st December 2008, twenty countries in ECOWAS Parliament, the West African Health Organisation sub-Saharan Africa had adopted HIV-specific laws.2 (WAHO), the Center for Studies and Research on HIV-specific laws or ‘omnibus HIV laws’, as they are Population for Development (CERPOD), the Network of sometimes ironically referred to, are legislative provisions Parliamentarians in Chad for Population and Development that regulate, in a single document, several aspects of HIV and the USAID West African Regional Programme.3 and The stated objective of these HIV-specific laws, as communication; HIV testing, prevention treatment, care provided under several of their preambulary provisions, and support; HIV-related research; and the protection of is to and AIDS, including HIV-related education people living with HIV. The emergence of HIV-specific …ensure that every person living with HIV or laws in sub-Saharan Africa can be traced to the adoption presumed to be living with HIV enjoys the full of the Model Law on STI/HIV/AIDS for West...
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...Robinson, 1997). Polygyny has been defined as “the marriage of a man to two or more women at the same time” (Moorehead, 1991: 311), or the “practice of plural marriage” (Altman and Ginat, 1996: 3). The term polygamy has also been used synonymously with polygyny, although it could also be used to encompass polyandry (Welch and Glick, 1981). Polyandry refers to the marriage of one woman to two or more husbands, while polygynandry contemplates a situation in which two or more women are simultaneously married to two or more men (Al-Krenawi, Graham, and Slonim-Nevo, 2002). Polygynandry has also been used to refer to group marriage (Anon., 2004). The term informal polygamy has been used to describe relationships characterized by the simultaneous existence of a legal marriage of one man to one woman and an affair with a second woman that has become a stable feature of the family structure (Rivett and Street, 1993). In contrast, polyamory refers to “group marriage” or the existence of one or more sexual 27 28 • Multi-Bonding: Polygamy, Polygyny, Polyamory relationships inside or outside of marriage (Munson and Stelboum, 1999). The incidence of polygamy, used here to refer to bonded relationships between one man and multiple women or one woman and multiple men entered into in a legal or religious context, has been shown to vary across cultures. Researchers have found that in Africa, the incidence of polygamy...
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...male counterparts. In many nations women face a numerous amount of barriers to health. Poverty has well documented effects on health outcomes and over 70 percent of the 1.3 billion people living in poverty are women. When women are malnourished it creates a vicious cycle from her being unhealthy to her child being unhealthy and this continues as she has more children or her children have children. If a woman lives in a low income country that has an undeveloped health care system she may lack the access she needs to proper care as well. Women also often suffer a lack of independence that keeps them from being able to make their own health decisions even if they understand what needs to be done for their health. They often lack the control to make decisions when it comes to their sexual life. Often a woman’s legal status leaves her unable to take ownership of land or to divorce an abusive husband or to have control over who she marries. This lack of status contributes to the high poverty rates faced by women. Violence against women is a major cause of long term physical, mental and sexual health problems for women. To be born a woman, especially in a developing nation, increases the risk of a less healthy life. Women on average live longer lives than men, but across the board are living less healthy lives than men. The World Health Organization has made progress towards achieving the millennium goal of gender equality and empowerment for women. One major component of this process...
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...During the late 1800s and early 1900s, European countries raced to gain colonies in Africa, completely disregarding the existing cultures in this land and instead dividing it up in artificial borders based on who wanted what resource from where. These colonies were usually set up to benefit Europeans and had conflict after colonization ("Decolonization" 7). One of the lands colonized the British was called Nigeria, and this area of Africa was home to the Igbo tribe. British colonization of Nigeria catalyzed changes in the political, social, and educational structure of the Igbo community. The gender roles present in the family life of people in the Igbo tribe of Nigeria changed dramatically due to British colonization. According to Aje-Ori...
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...degree (cf. Robinson, 1997). Polygyny has been defined as “the marriage of a man to two or more women at the same time” (Moorehead, 1991: 311), or the “practice of plural marriage” (Altman and Ginat, 1996: 3). The term polygamy has also been used synonymously with polygyny, although it could also be used to encompass polyandry (Welch and Glick, 1981). Polyandry refers to the marriage of one woman to two or more husbands, while polygynandry contemplates a situation in which two or more women are simultaneously married to two or more men (Al-Krenawi, Graham, and Slonim-Nevo, 2002). Polygynandry has also been used to refer to group marriage (Anon., 2004). The term informal polygamy has been used to describe relationships characterized by the simultaneous existence of a legal marriage of one man to one woman and an affair with a second woman that has become a stable feature of the family structure (Rivett and Street, 1993). In contrast, polyamory refers to “group marriage” or the existence of one or more sexual 27 28 • Multi-Bonding: Polygamy, Polygyny, Polyamory relationships inside or outside of marriage (Munson and Stelboum, 1999). The incidence of polygamy, used here to refer to bonded relationships between one man and multiple women or one woman and multiple men entered into in a legal or religious context, has been shown to vary across cultures. Researchers have found that in Africa, the incidence of polygamy tends to be higher in the...
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...Status of Women in Botswana Linda Ruzzo Status of Women in Botswana Botswana government leaders began with a vision in 1997, their vision was to make the country a better place to live for its citizens. The government has proposed equalization between genders. This will be a challenge since the majority of citizens are Tswana and their culture is to have women be subordinate. This is in relationship to job, inheritance, sexual behavior, abortions, and sexual harassment (Mookodi, Ntshebe, & Taylor, 2004). Culture Over 75% of the population is Tswana, their culture makes a clear division between public-political and the private-domestic world. Women are largely responsible for child care and taking care of the home (Mookodi et al., 2004). Women hold a significant proportion of the electorate; but they hold only 9 of the 40 parliamentary seats ("MDG," 2010). This is possibly why 46% of the households now are headed by women and women are presently choosing not to marry ("MDG," 2010). This is the world’s highest ratio of female headed households. At this time 33.1% of women live below the poverty level ("MDG," 2010, p. 34). Healthcare Botswana has the second largest rate in HIV within its borders and in its pregnant women at 38% ("MDG," 2010). In 2009 the estimate still stood at over 300,000 adults living with HIV, or twenty-five percent of its population over the age of fifteen years old. The high rate of HIV in pregnant women is caused by three central...
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...Marriage Practices Michelle Moses ANT 101 Prof. Larissa Begley November 28, 2013 Marriage Practices Decades ago, what was known as the traditional wedding would be between one man and one woman. Today, traditional and other marriage practices have changed tremendously. When it comes to marriage, all cultures respect and honors its own marriage practice. Many marriage practices may be confusing and misunderstood from an outsider but will always be sacred within his/her tribe. In today’s society, we tend to self-judge another’s culture marriage practices because it is not the traditional marriage that we were brought believing. Even though we have become narrow-minded towards other forms of marriage and have come to believe that any other way wrong, marriage practices will always be performed differently. While some cultures believe in arranged marriages and same sex marriages, other cultures believe in multiple marriage partners which is known as polygamy. In some types of culture, all three of these marriage practices are accepted. Because of this, we should research farther into various cultures and find out what the reason is behind performing the different martial practices that they do because marriage will still continue in several different ways. Even though traditions might be similar to a particular point, the meaning and the marriage practices behind them are very different. When we do not have the power to choose who we want our future mate to be...
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...RIGHTS OF WOMEN AND PEACE BUILDING IN AFRICA Protocol refers to an international agreement that adds to an existing international instrument. Ratification refers to a formal action under international law that makes a state a party to particular treaty and indicates a state’s consent to be bound by the treaty The African union protocol is an African law made by Africans for Africans and it does among other things call for: * An end to all forms of violence against women in all its forms and in all situations * It promotes the use of corrective measures (Affirmative action) for women’s equal participation and representation. In elected and appointive offices * It clearly provides for the reproductive health rights of women and girls * It provides for remedies for any woman whose rights and freedoms are violated and denied * It also entitles her to seek and obtain redress through accessible government and non governmental agencies mechanisms and services Defending women’s human rights is often seen by state authorities, and even by communities, as a challenge to culture, tradition and a way of life. Through their work, many directly or indirectly challenge social stereotypes regarding the proper role and status of women. As a result, women activists not only face repression by governments, but also by their families and other community members. Ongoing armed conflicts on the continent place women at even further risk of violence. Courageous women civil...
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