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Tackling violence against women in India - day 2

Yesterday was day 2 of my visit to India on the theme of violence against women, and I spent the day meeting people in some of the poorest areas of Madhya Pradesh. It was an incredibly informative and inspiring day, …

Tackling violence against women and girls in India

Since 2010 I’ve served as the UK’s first ministerial champion for tackling violence against women and girls (VAWG) overseas, and developing this role has kept me quite busy. From the UN to the UAE, I’ve compared notes with ministers, officials …

The changing face of Female Genital Mutilation in Kenya

Children in class in one of the schools in Kuria on the Kenyan-Tanzanian border where FGM is rampant. Picture: Judy Kosgei

I called her today, the phone rang twice and she picked it up the third time. Like always the conversation started with: “How are you?” The 44-year-old calmly answered my call. “I am well, just calling to say hi,” I reply …

Violence against women is the most tolerated violation of human rights that exists in the world today - it needs to stop

Picture: Tearfund, DRC

As the world celebrates Human Rights Day, Rachel Jewkes, Director of the What Works to Prevent Violence Global Programme, and Director of the South African Medical Research Council’s Gender and Health Research Unit unveils 18 innovations that are working to …

Violence against women and girls: change is in the air

The minister being questioned on air by the youth radio presenters. Picture: Julia Smith/DFID

If you were to ask me for a country that has undergone real change in the last quarter of a century, I would be hard pushed to think of a greater example than South Africa. I’ve been to South Africa …

Random acts of violence: women and girls take the hit

A young Somali woman hides herself behind a curtain. Picture: Sven Torfinn/Panos

When I was travelling in Kenya recently, I had a graphic reminder that gender-based violence and HIV is right there in front of us in many African countries; we just don’t all notice it all the time. I went through …

Ending child marriage in Bangladesh: girls not brides

Young Bangladeshi girls holding text books. Picture:GMB Akash/Panos

Imagine your life if you were married at 15, against your will, to an abusive husband. It’s the same for almost all the women you know. Your education came to an abrupt end once you were married, and you’re not …