The Pixel Project VAW e-News Digest: Edition 7

Welcome to the 7th edition of The Pixel Project’s VAW e-News Digest! As usual, we bring you the latest and most relevant news concerning violence against women around the world from the past two weeks.

In this edition we pay special attention to Shariah, or the system of Islamic law. Simply defined, Shariah is a legal system through which Muslims are guided in their walk of life and faith, so that a Muslim’s behaviour will remain exemplary and honourable.

However, the Shariah system in many countries has often worked to the detriment of women. As such, whenever Shariah laws are practised and applied, the world, especially women’s rights groups, take notice.

In Malaysia, the Shariah system has gained a stronger foothold with the first Shariah-compliant caning of three young women who were involved in either extramarital or premarital sex.

Advocates of the caning state that Islamic caning is benevolent — the person caned is fully clothed and the cane itself is thin and not meant to cause injury. Opponents of the punishment are uncomfortable with it on many levels, including the grounds for moral policing that it opens as well as its potential abuse. In a twist, the women who were caned publicly stated that it was an opportunity for them to repent of their sins and that they were deserving of their punishment.

There are many issues to be dealt with in this one matter. To what extent does religious freedom also translate to the right to discriminate, or in this case, to inflict violence upon another person – particularly a woman? If the women involved consent to the practices, should it be accepted? Are ‘benevolent’ forms of Shariah punishment acceptable, or would permitting their existence open a community to the slippery slope that leads to more controversial punishments such as stoning for adultery?

At the same time, we are happy to report that dialogue concerning violence against women related to religion is going on around the world – it’s important to recognize that things such as honour killings, female genital mutilation, and forced marriages which are frequently associated to Islam are in fact cultural and not Islamic practices.

We also report the good news that South Africa, a country that has long struggled with violence particularly against women, will be running a 5-year campaign to tackle violence against women.

Think of ways that you too can help to combat violence against women. Small gestures can mean a great deal. If you have any news concerning violence against women from the Internet or from your local community, we’d like to hear it. You can send any news related to violence against women that you’d like to see in forthcoming editions of The Pixel Project’s VAW e-News Digest to our archivist, Catalina Rembuyan, at catalina@thepixelproject.com.

In the meantime, enjoy our 7th edition of the e-News Digest and feel free to share it around! If you prefer to get breaking VAW news from us in real time, follow us on Twitter (http://twitter.com/PixelProject).

The Pixel Project – it’s time to stop violence against women, together.

With best regards,

The Pixel Project Team

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General Violence Against Women News

UNIFEM organizes discussion forum on philanthropy and women’s welfare

Canada: ‘Half the Sky’ gets cross-country screening

Malaysia: Malaysian women who were caned said the punishment was ‘good for them’

Malaysia: International conference on caning to be held

Malaysia: A more compassionate approach needed instead of caning, women likely to be first targeted by moral police

Kenya: Beaten, tortured, but undaunted – how violence is used to intimidate political dissenters

Pakistan: Films can help combat violence against women