Asia

"At the demonstration today in Kafr a-Dik, I noticed looks and finger-pointing from the shabab (nickname for young Palestinians ) that made me feel some uncomfortable" wrote an Israeli leftist activist recently, referring to a West Bank protest last month.

Nearly 1,000 women and girls in Pakistan were victims of honour killings during 2011, a human rights group said.

At least 943 women were killed last year by their fathers, husbands or brothers for allegedly damaging their family name. Ninety-three of those killed were minors.

A two-day women conference with different political views from state was held between 18-19th March. The meeting was facilitated by Centre for Dialogue and Reconciliation (CDR).

KABUL: Women members of an Afghan government council charged with seeking reconciliation with the Taliban have been sidelined from main consultations and are trying to forge a united voice within the council, one of the members said.

The 70-member High Peace Council, which has been struggling to carve out a role in the negotiations since the assassination of its chief, Burhanuddin Rabbani, last year, has nine women.

KATHMANDU: Minister of State for Information and Communication Sarita Kumari Saha has said the new constitution should ensure women's rights so as to establish equitable and inclusive society.

Hundreds of people protested on Sunday to demand a law allowing Lebanese women to transfer nationality to their family and to criminalize violence against women, the National News Agency reported.

The protesters marched from Beirut's Barbir area and headed toward the Grand Serail in Downtown Beirut, the report said.

Dubai: Despite obstacles facing women in many regions of the world, over 130 female students from 30 countries were urged to help bring about change by simply showing the willingness to engage and champion causes.

A variety of speakers held up examples for students on the concluding day of the Dubai Women's College's (DWC) Insight Dubai Conference last week on how to bring about change.

Durga´s tale

Nepal has always inspired travellers and writers in search of adventure and spirituality.

But for the Nepalese, the country's recent history carries more pain than romanticism. Durga Devi Sharma would agree.

Her house is a shrine to the Hindu deities which she believes saved her life 10 years ago.

As the Arab Spring is reshaping social and political structures across the Middle East region, a Nobel Peace Prize-winning activist from Yemen has said that women will acquire more influence in political and social landscapes in return for their great efforts in bringing down the authoritarian regimes.

Arbitrary arrests. Administrative detention. Abductions. Enforced disappearances. Torture. Rape. Beatings. Interrogation centers. Detention camps. Secret prisons. Unprovoked attacks on peaceful protesters. No right of free movement. Censorship of Information. Discrimination. Intimidation. Humiliation. Military-enforced curfew. Property destruction. Mass graves. Gang rapes. Ethnic cleansing. Occupation.