Asia

At 4am, Abdul Malek and his pregnant wife were in a rented car heading to Boost Hospital in Lashkargah, capital of southern Helmand Province.

The couple decided to leave their home in the Sangeen District as early as possible to avoid roadblocks by pro-government forces or being seen by anti-government forces.

Joe Ratnam, a spokesman for the US Tamil Political Action Council (USTPAC), said, "USTPAC endorses and supports Secretary Clintons speech at the UN Security Council on September 30 on the new Resolution 1888".

USTPAC joins the world community in celebrating the International Women�s Day on March 8th, but on a sad note, wishes to highlight the continued suffering of Tamil women in North-East Sri Lanka.

The insecurity plaguing Baghdad and other Iraqi cities has a distinct and debilitating impact on the daily lives of women and girls, preventing them from participating in public life at a crucial time in their country's history, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today.

Sixteen years after Burma's military regime reached a ceasefire deal with the country's second largest rebel group, the Kachin Independence Organisation, the KIO and the 10,000 soldiers it says belong to its armed wing are preparing for war.

A soldier stands guard last month at a Kachin Independence Army outpost overlooking the Pajau plains near the rebel capital of Laiza, northern Kachin State. Photo: Mizzima/Thomas Maung Shwe

Unnoticed by many, Kazakhstan now ranks ahead of some of its EU partners according to the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report for 2010. Kazakhstan is in 41st place with Slovenia in 42nd, France in 46th, Italy in 74th and Hungary in 79th.

A local NGO has said it would distribute 5,000 books designed to increase awareness of laws and services related to rights for women and children in a bid to improve gender equality and reduce domestic violence.

Danielle Moore and Kristen Paonessa knew they wanted to do a cubicle-free international co-op that enabled them to apply their skills, and fulfill their passion for empowering women. But they didn't know that their experience working for the Harpswell Foundation in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, would, in turn, empower them.

Across emerging Asia, women are striving for progress. More and more women in this region are gaining access to information and education, the two most crucial factors toward greater empowerment.

But at the same time, large numbers of women continue to suffer from discrimination, violence and cultural devaluation across the continent.

Palestinian women leaders called for re-evaluating the role of the UN in the Palestine cause and its ability to abide by the essence of its charter that stipulates among other things saving generations from wars and maintain world peace and security.