Families Across Borders | law, policy, news and views
“Free Will” and Forced Marriages in Pakistan, Afghanistan
Interesting piece in yesterday’s N.Y. Times by Meghan Davidson Ladly: “Love and Free Will Challenge Traditional Pakistani Family Ties” (NYT Sept. 5, 2012). Also on the subject of marriage, consent, and protection for young women, see the piece by Graham Bowley several weeks ago: “Wed and Trotured at 13, Afghan Girl Finds Rare Justice” (NY Times [...]
Test for Violence Against Women Law in Afghanistan
Alissa J. Rubin and Rod Nordland have reported in the New York Times on the arrest of four men for an acid attack committed against the wife and three daughters of a man who had refused a marriage proposal for one of the daughters. See “Four Afghan Men Held in Acid Attack on Family” (NYT 12-9-11). [...]
New Rule of Succession for British Royal Family
The rules have changed for Britain’s royal family, with the unanimous approval by the Commonwealth countries of changes to the Bill of Rights 1688; the Coronation Oath Act 1688; the Act of Settlement 1701; and the Royal Marriages Act 1772. The new law places daughters and sons on an equal footing with respect to inheriting [...]
Debating Surrogacy in India
Surrogate Mothers in India are the subject of this story posted (with video) on the PBS Religion and Ethics Newsweekly (Sept. 30, 2011). The same subject is tackled in Made in India (2010), a feature-length documentary film by Rebecca Haimowitz & Vaishali Sinha. New legislation has been pending in India that would regulate commercial surrogacy. See Nilanjana [...]
French Feminism after L’Affaire Strauss-Kahn
Elaine Sciolino has this very interesting analysis of “Fault Lines in France on Women” (NYT July 14, 2011) to mark Bastille Day.
Sex-selective abortions in India
This study, published in The Lancet, concludes that “Selective abortion of girls, especially for pregnancies after a firstborn girl, has increased substantially in India.” The authors sought to explain increasingly large differences between the census numbers of young girls and boys reported in 1991 (4.2 million), 2001 (6 million) and 2011 (7.1 million). Based on their investigation, [...]
Resolution attacks genital cutting and other gender-based persecution
House Joint Resolution 12, currently pending in the U.S. Congress, denounces “the practices of female genital mutilation, domestic violence, `honor’ killings, acid burnings, dowry deaths, and other gender-based persecutions” and expresses the sense of Congress that “participation, protection, recognition, and equality of women is crucial to achieving a just, moral and peaceful society.” The [...]
Burqua Ban takes effect in France
After long debate, legislation went into effect today in France prohibiting individuals from wearing clothing intended to hide the face in places such as streets, markets, public transportation, government buildings and shops. Here’s U.S. coverage from the New York Times by Alan Cowell, and the Associated Press (in the Washington Post). For French perspectives, see the coverage inLe Monde (in English) [...]
Afghan Women’s Shelters at Risk
Women’s advocates are objecting to indications that the Afghan government is moving to take control of women’s shelters that are now funded by international organizations, private donors, and other governments. Recent news stories on the issue include Alissa J. Rubin, Afghan Proposal Would Clamp Down on Women’s Shelters (NY Times Feb. 10, 2011); Rod Nordland, Afghan [...]
Abortion, Ireland and the ECHR
The recent decision of the European Court of Human Rights in A, B, and C v. Ireland concluded that Ireland’s strict laws limiting abortion fell within the “margin of appreciation” allowed under the European Convention on Human Rights. One of the plaintiffs prevailed in her claim, which focused on the exception within the statute for [...]
