“I like being a police officer because it was always a dream of mine. When we were little we saw it as a far-fetched dream; the country was in civil war; women could not join these institutions, but as soon as the opportunity arose, I took it”, says 35-year old Noemi Cerritos from Santa María de Usulután in El Salvador.

Whoever captures the majority of the women's vote in any election, is guaranteed the right exercise power in a democratic state. What then must be done to be accorded such a vote by women? Women are never persuaded by promises alone but by substantive deeds which yield tangible results.

The Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security, which will analyze women's contributions to peace-building and train future leaders in the process, officially launched Wednesday with a commemorative ceremony in Lohrfink Auditorium.

Caritas, Honorata, Annonciata… To look at their faces now you'd never know that each of these women has a harrowing tale of life in a war zone, which they share in a remarkable new book. Anna Saunders introduces their stories.

Legislators in India should substantially amend or replace the new criminal law on violence against women in the forthcoming budget session of the parliament, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said today. On February 3, 2013, Indian President Pranab Mukherjee signed the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance 2013, amending criminal laws, over protests from human rights and women's rights groups across the country.

Sitting with a group of parents and their children on the porch of Profamil's headquarters, Mariola Dhema recounted vividly the day her three-year old daughter was raped by a 10 and a four-year old boys. Shifting on her chair and visibly uncomfortable, Dhema said the older boy pinned her daughter down while the other one jumped on top of her, leaving her bruised and bloodied.

Four women human rights defenders from northern Colombia have been threatened in an email sent to one of them, Jackeline Rojas Castañeda. Her two bodyguards were also threatened.

Daisy Khan, an activist for Muslim women's rights, has a list – 10 practices related to women that are often carried out in the name of Islam. They include domestic violence, honor killings, child marriage, female genital mutilation and more. Her Muslim Women's Shura Council of 40 members meets online with the aim of building the religious case that these practices are actually the result of misinterpretations of the Koran.

An African high-level ministerial meeting on ending violence against women and girls was held in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa to prepare a common position for Africa during the 57th Session of the UN Commission on The Status of Women-CSW.

The women of Sierra Leone have benefitted enormously from the establishment of the Special Court in Sierra Leone as testified by the Inspector General of the Sierra Leone Police at the official closing ceremony of the Special Court in Freetown, on 06 February 2013.