Asia

The Solomon Islands government defied and agreement signed with the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (United Nations CEDAW) when they refuse to allow women 10 temporary seats in parliament.

The former Cambodian Khmer Rouge prison chief Duch, who was convicted of crimes against humanity, will appeal against his sentence, his lawyer has said.

Duch, 67, whose full name is Kaing Guek Eav, was sentenced to 35 years in prison by a UN-backed court on Monday.

He was found guilty of overseeing the torture and execution of thousands of people at the notorious Tuol Sleng prison in Phnom Penh.

Mohamed Mostafaei was detained in Turkey because of passport problems but can apply for asylum if he wants to, the agency said. He disappeared from view late last month after being summoned for questioning in Tehran. Amnesty International accused the Iranian authorities of harassing him. Though the stoning penalty was lifted, she may still be executed by hanging.

Two Malaysian women have been cleared to hear the same cases as their male colleagues in Sharia court.

According to the Christian Science Monitor (CSM), they will join the bench on August 2 and will serve on lower courts in the capital, Kuala Lumpur and the city of Putrajaya.

For 490 years the liquid continent of Oceania has been called by the name that Ferdinand Magellan gave it, the Pacific Ocean (Mar Pacifico) because of its apparent stillness. World class navigator he may have been, but I believe history has proven that he was a bad judge of character. Or perhaps he was not aware of the adage that 'still waters run deep'.

A new political party that will represent the views of Solomon Islands' women is in the making.

Founder and leader of the Peace, Oneness and Prosperity Party for Solomon Islands Delmah Nori says from past experience, women have always found it difficult to join existing parties.

She says the few women who were accepted into male dominated parties were voice-less and unfairly represented.

Participants here at a seminar on Monday called upon the government to fulfill its obligations under the UN resolution 1325 to ensure protection of rights of women during conflicts and wars.

HRH Princess Basma on Sunday highlighted the importance of education in conflict resolution and the UN University for Peace's (UPEACE) efforts in promoting a “global culture of cooperation”.

Reproductive health and women's rights advocates urged Congress Monday to pass a law allowing "safe and legal abortion," citing a new report that described a “human rights crisis" of maternal deaths, injuries, and illnesses arising from unsafe abortions in the Philippines.

Some advocates at last week's International AIDS Conference greeted news of the results of an HIV gel coolly, saying more was needed than a "medicalized" response to an epidemic that travels a social pathway of infringed women's rights.