Is this a tipping point? Protests in UK and Australia calling for end to gender violence

A tide of anger sweeps across the English-speaking world as women in Australia and the UK take to the streets to demand an end to gender violence. Annette Young talks to Tabitha Morton, the deputy leader of the UK's Women's Equality Party as to whether this massive outcry is set to become a tipping point.

Also a ban on girls singing in public imposed by Afghanistan's government is overturned. This after a social media campaign called #IamMySong has women sharing videos of themselves belting out their favourite tunes.

Plus we meet South Africa's first female helicopter pilot who's established a foundation to train hundreds of young women in aviation.

Turkey quits landmark Istanbul Convention protecting women from violence

Issued on: 20/03/2021 - 

Women protest against Turkey's withdrawal from Istanbul Convention, an international accord designed to protect women, in Ankara on March 20, 2021. © AFP - Adem Altan

Text by: NEWS WIRES|

Video by: Sanam SHANTYAE

Thousands protested in Turkey on Saturday calling for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to reverse his decision to withdraw from the world's first binding treaty to prevent and combat violence against women.

Erdogan’s overnight decree annulling Turkey’s ratification of the Istanbul Convention is a blow to women’s rights advocates, who say the agreement is crucial to combating domestic violence. Hundreds of women gathered in Istanbul to protest against the move on Saturday.

The Council of Europe's Secretary General, Marija Pejčinović Burić, called the decision "devastating."

“This move is a huge setback to these efforts and all the more deplorable because it compromises the protection of women in Turkey, across Europe and beyond,” she said.


04:17

The Istanbul Convention states that men and women have equal rights and obliges state authorities to take steps to prevent gender-based violence against women, protect victims and prosecute perpetrators.


Some officials from Erdogan’s Islam-oriented party had advocated for a review of the agreement, arguing it is inconsistent with Turkey's conservative values by encouraging divorce and undermining the traditional family unit.

Critics also claim the treaty promotes homosexuality through the use of categories like gender, sexual orientation and gender identity. They see that as a threat to Turkish families. Hate speech has been on the rise in Turkey, including the interior minister who described LGBT people as “perverts” in a tweet. Erdogan has rejected their existence altogether.

Women’s groups and their allies who have been protesting to keep the convention intact immediately called for demonstrations across the country Saturday under the slogan “Withdraw the decision, implement the treaty.” They said their years-long struggle would not be erased in one night.

Rights groups say violence against and killing of women is on the rise in Turkey but the interior minister called that a “complete lie” on Saturday.

77 women killed since start of the year

A total of 77 women have been killed since the start of the year, according to the We Will Stop Femicide Platform. Some 409 women were killed in 2020, with dozens found dead under suspicious circumstances, according to the group.

Numerous women's rights groups slammed the decision. Advocacy group Women's Coalition Turkey said the withdrawal from a human rights agreement was a first in Turkey. “It is clear that this decision will further encourage the murderers of women, harassers, rapists,” their statement said.

Turkey's justice minister said the government was committed to combating violence against women.

“We continue to protect our people's honor, the family and our social fabric with determination," Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul tweeted.

Erdogan has repeatedly stressed the “holiness” of the family and called on women to have three children. His communications director, Fahrettin Altun, said the government's motto was ‘Powerful Families, Powerful Society."

Many women suffer physical or sexual violence at the hands of their husbands or partners, but up-to-date official statistics are unavailable. The Istanbul Convention requires states to collect data.

Hundreds of women and allies gathered in Istanbul, wearing masks and holding banners. Their demonstration has so far been allowed but the area was surrounded by police and a coronavirus curfew begins in the evening.

They shouted pro-LGBT slogans and called for Erdogan's resignation. They cheered as a woman speaking through a megaphone said, “You cannot close up millions of women in their homes. You cannot erase them from the streets and the squares.”

Turkey was the first country to sign the Council of Europe’s “Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence” at a committee of ministers meeting in Istanbul in 2011. The law came into force in 2014 and Turkey's constitution says international agreements have the force of law.

Some lawyers claimed Saturday that the treaty is still active, arguing the president cannot withdraw from it without the approval of parliament, which ratified the Istanbul Convention in 2012.

But Erdogan gained sweeping powers with his re-election in 2018, setting in motion Turkey changing from a parliamentary system of government to an executive presidency.

The justice minister wrote on Twitter that while parliament approves treaties which the executive branch puts into effect, the executive also has the authority to withdraw from them.

Women lawmakers from Turkey’s main opposition party said they will not recognize the decree and called it another “coup” on parliament, which had unanimously accepted the treaty, and a usurpation of the rights of 42 million women.

(AP)

Turkey quits Istanbul Convention on violence against women

Protests erupted in Turkey after President Erdogan decided to pull out of the landmark international convention which aims to protect women from violence


Erdogan's move prompted an outcry from activists

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has triggered nationwide protests for withdrawing Turkey from an international agreement to prevent violence against women.

The decision comes amid increasing calls in Turkey to combat domestic violence as femicide rates rise.

Turkish officials argue that national regulations are enough to ensure protection against gendered violence.

"The guarantee of women's rights are the current regulations in our bylaws, primarily our Constitution. Our judicial system is dynamic and strong enough to implement new regulations as needed," Family, Labour and Social Policies Minister Zehra Zumrut Selcuk said on Twitter.

How are women's rights groups responding today?

Women's rights activists reacted with dismay and called for street marches.

"I’m utterly appalled to learn that tonight Turkish government has officially announced they are withdrawing from Istanbul Convention. This in a country where three women are killed daily and femicide is a huge crisis," prominent Turkish author Elif Shafak wrote on Twitter.

Reporting from a rally in Istanbul, DW's Julia Hahn said many women responded to the decision with "anger and outrage."

Last year, senior politicians in Erdogan's conservative party, the AKP, "started arguing that this convention encourages immoral lifestyles like homosexuality. They were met with massive protests by women at the time," Hahn said.

But now "Erdogan has bowed in to pressure from hardliners in his coalition," Hahn continued, noting that the Turkish president is trying to use this issue "to re-energize his voter base amidst a period of economic downturn," she said.

Watch video 03:02 DW’s Julia Hahn reports from protest rally in Istanbul

As thousands rally across the nation today, organizers are expecting more protests in the next days and weeks to come, she added.

"Since even conservative women are in favor of the convention, there must be some kind of political rational from President Erdogan to come up with this decision at this time," reported Hahn

What is the Istanbul Convention?

The 2011 agreement, commonly referred to as the Istanbul Convention, was drafted by the Council of Europe in the Turkish city in 2011. It is a legal framework seeking to protect women and promote gender equality through legislation, education and spreading awareness.

According to the accord, signatories had to "take the necessary legislative and other measures to adopt and implement state-wide effective, comprehensive and coordinated policies encompassing all relevant measures" to prevent violence against women.

The convention was signed by 45 European countries, plus the EU as an institution.

Some conservatives in Turkey say the deal threatens family structures and promotes homosexuality, citing its principle of non-discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation.

What is the situation for women in Turkey?

Women's rights groups had said Turkish authorities were not applying the legal norms of the Istanbul Convention nor providing the intended assistance and protective measures for women.

Watch video 05:00 Turkey: Violence against women

Activists also said the pullout was pushing Ankara further from aligning with the European Union's values, which Turkey remains a candidate to join.

At least 38% of women in Turkey are subject to domestic violence, according to the World Health Organization. The 'We Will Stop Femicide' platform reported 300 femicides in Turkey in 2020.

Hundreds of thousands of women had downloaded a smartphone app that Turkey created for them to report domestic violence, according to a Reuters report.

mb/dj (dpa, Reuters)

Turkey's Erdogan quits European treaty on violence against women

3/19/2021

ANKARA (Reuters) - President Tayyip Erdogan pulled Turkey out of an international accord designed to protect women, the country's official gazette said on Saturday, despite calls from campaigners who see the pact as key to combating rising domestic violence.

© Reuters/PRESIDENTIAL PRESS OFFICE 

Turkish President Erdogan talks to media after the Friday prayers in Istanbul

The Council of Europe accord, forged in Istanbul, pledged to prevent, prosecute and eliminate domestic violence and promote equality. Turkey, which signed the accord in 2011, saw a rise in femicides last year.

No reason was provided for the withdrawal, but officials in Erdogan's ruling AK Party had said last year the government was considering pulling out amid a row over how to curb growing violence against women.

"The guarantee of women's rights are the current regulations in our bylaws, primarily our Constitution. Our judicial system is dynamic and strong enough to implement new regulations as needed," Family, Labour and Social Policies Minister Zehra Zumrut said on Twitter, without providing a reason for the move.

Many conservatives in Turkey say the pact undermines family structures, encouraging violence. They are also hostile to the principle of gender equality in the Istanbul Convention and see it as promoting homosexuality, given its principle of non-discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation.

Critics of the withdrawal from the pact have said it would put Turkey further out of step with the values of the European Union, which it remains a candidate to join. They argue the deal, and legislation approved in its wake, need to be implemented more stringently.

Turkey is not the first country to move towards ditching the accord. Poland's highest court scrutinised the pact after a cabinet member said Warsaw should quit the treaty which the nationalist government considers too liberal.

Erdogan has condemned violence against women, including saying this month that his government would work to eradicate violence against women. But critics say his government has not done enough to prevent femicides and domestic violence.

Turkey does not keep official statistics on femicide. World Health Organization data has shown 38% of women in Turkey are subject to violence from a partner in their lifetime, compared to about 25% in Europe.

Ankara has taken measures such as tagging individuals known to resort to violence and creating a smartphone app for women to alert police, which has been downloaded hundreds of thousands of times.

Erdogan's decision comes after he unveiled judicial reforms this month that he said would improve rights and freedoms, and help meet EU standards. Turkey has been a candidate to join the bloc since 2005, but access talks have been halted over policy differences and Ankara's record on human rights.

(Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Jane Wardell and William Mallard)

Senegalese youth inspired to work the land thanks to reality TV show

By: Nathalie GEORGES| Éric BERGERON

19 min

In a few weeks, the second season of the immensely popular reality TV show “Ferme Factory” (Farm Factory) will air across Senegal. But in contrast to the glitter and glamour usually associated with such shows, Ferme Factory is far from that: For four months, 20 contestants compete to get their hands as dirty as possible, facing various farming challenges, including both sowing and plowing. The winner is awarded with his or her very own farm, along with three years of agricultural training.

Aside from the entertainment value, the show is part of the government’s push to popularise the agriculture sector among the country’s youths, encouraging them to work the land rather than replacing the countryside with the city, or set out on the dangerous route of illegal migration.

Documentary by Arte

 Nowruz, the Persian New Year marking the start of spring, has been celebrated for millennia in West Asia, the Caucasus, the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin and South Asia. But in a pandemic year, a group of Franco-Iranians have taken the celebrations online, using technology to mark an ancient festival.

VIDEO Persian New Year 'Nowruz' festivities go online - France 24

Transfer of Stasi records agency closes a chapter of East German history

The Stasi Records Agency is a legacy of the peaceful revolution in the GDR. Now its name is disappearing, but its spirit is to live on elsewhere.

The Stasi Records Agency stored the secret service files from communist East Germany

This 
number is impressive enough, if not downright colossal: Since 1991, Germany's Stasi records agency received some 7,353,885 requests for access to the files of the Ministry for State Security (MfS) in former East Germany.

Almost half of these (46%) came from people who wanted to find out what the German Democratic Republic's (GDR) secret police, popularly known asthe "Stasi," knew about them personally: Their private lives, their political views, possible escape plans. All this and much more is contained in the informants' reports, which totaled 111 kilometers (68 miles) of files over the course of 40 years in the GDR.

During the peaceful revolution of 1989/90, East German civil rights activists prevented this Stasi legacy from being destroyed. And despite strong reservations in the West, it was thanks to their tireless commitment that the files were opened. A new office was created for this purpose in reunified Germany, with a name that was anything but catchy: the Federal Commissioner for the Records of the State Security Service of the former German Democratic Republic. Colloquially, it became known as the Stasi Records Agency.

Watch video 03:45 Germany: Looking back on Stasi surveillance

Anniversaries triggered greater interest

Now its head, Roland Jahn, has presented his final report in Berlin. The 15th "activity report" marks the end of an era: in early summer the agency will disappear and the files will be moved to the federal archives, 31 years after they were saved — a decision made by parliament last November after years of discussion.

Jahn revealed that there were 23,686 requests for file inspection in 2020, significantly undercutting the previous year's figure (35,554). But the comparatively high number for 2019 may also have been due to the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. The same phenomenon was observed on the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Wall. It seems that stronger media coverage of this historic event triggers a desire among many people to take a closer look at their own past.

The Stasi often played a painful role in many lives. "Some need a long time to deal with their biographies," said Roland Jahn. Among the applications, he said, 20% are now from relatives of deceased people seeking to confront the lives of their parents and grandparents in divided Germany.

Watch video 03:00 Recalling the occupation of the Berlin Stasi office

Requests from all over the world

The fact that the Stasi was and is far more than a purely East German issue can be seen from other figures. For example, well over 400,000 applications to inspect files came from western German states; more than 12%. The statistics also reflect a worldwide interest in the Stasi files: a good 21,000 requests come from 100 countries. The Stasi Records Agency has no information about who is behind them, though clearly many could be from former East Germans who emigrated.

But despite its imminent end, the Stasi Records Agency was for many a success story that has been admired around the world, serving as a model for many countries in Eastern Europe, as well as in Latin America and the Middle East, for how to confront past dictatorships. Once files are opened, perpetrators are often found and prosecuted. In some cases, victims find evidence of how their careers were obstructed for political reasons, and then financial reparations may be possible.

Roland Jahn, Marianne Birthler and Joachim Gauck were the heads of the Stasi archive
Check for Stasi past still possible

This will not change after the integration of this unique institution into the Federal Archives. Although it will lose its independence, the files will remain accessible, for the many victims of the GDR system as well as for researchers and journalists. It will also remain possible to research the past of state officials for potential Stasi ties until 2030, thanks to a legal amendment made in 2019.

Such spectacular revelations about Stasi history are now rare. This was of course different in the first decade of the agency, under the leadership of GDR civil rights activist, and future German President Joachim Gauck.

Some critics, such as the former press spokesman of the office, Christian Booss, consider the incorporation into the federal archives a mistake. "Stasi research was effectively wound up," the historian told DW, adding that claims to the contrary are a "labeling fraud."

He considers it a serious problem that the computer-assisted reconstruction of torn Stasi files is, as he puts it, "de facto dead."

Booss now heads the "Citizens' Committee January 15," an association that has set itself the goal of reappraising and preserving the former Stasi headquarters in Berlin.

Roland Jahn, however, believes that the "visibility of the Stasi Records Agency with its exemplary international function will remain even after its integration into the federal archive."

Jahn's term of office ends on June 17, a date chosen with care: It marks the anniversary of the popular uprising in the GDR in 1953, which was put down with the support of Soviet soldiers. The second revolution in divided Germany in 1989/90 was successful. It led to the end of the communist dictatorship and ultimately to Germany's reunification.

This article has been translated from German.

Myanmar: Protesters defy rising death toll

Fresh bloodshed was reported in Myanmar as protesters returned to the streets to march against the military junta.


Protesters have used barricades to slow down security forces

Opponents of the Myanmar junta came out onto the streets across Myanmar on Saturday as they maintained their defiance of the military coup and the ensuing violent crackdown.

At least one person was killed overnight in the northern ruby-mining town of Mogok when security forces opened fire.

"One [person] died on the spot last night while two others are in critical condition in the hospital," a rescue worker told AFP news agency.

Photos shared on Twitter showed students and residents gathering on Saturday morning in the town of Bago, northeast of Yangon.

Previously, the AFP news agency reported that the military was forcing civilians to dismantle the makeshift barricades of bamboo, brick, and burning tires in the country's biggest city of of Yangon. The civilians were forced to work at gunpoint, according to the report.

More than 230 people have died since the beginning of the coup on February 1.
Growing pressure from Asian neighbors

Asian countries have joined others in condemning the coup and calling for an end to the violence. On Friday night Malaysia backed a call by Indonesia President Joko Widodo for an urgent meeting by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

"We in Malaysia, and the larger ASEAN community, cannot afford to see our brotherly nation of Myanmar become so destabilized at the hands of a selected few, who seek to promote their own vested interests," Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said

Watch video 04:44 Myanmar's war on the media

The Philippines and Singapore also called for action against the coup which ousted elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi. 

Global condemnation

Condemnation and pressure from outside of Myanmar has continued to grow. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres repeated his condemnation of the military's violence on Friday, calling for a "firm, unified international response."

The coup was also formally condemned by the US House of Representatives.

U.S. Embassy Burma

@USEmbassyBurma

We welcome the work of the UN to collect evidence of human rights violations committed in Myanmar since the military coup. It is important that evidence is recorded so that those responsible can face justice and be held to account. More on IIMM: http://bit.ly/3c2Fmvz

9:16 PM · Mar 19, 2021

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The US Embassy in Yangon said in a tweet on Saturday that it welcomed "the work of the UN to collect evidence of human rights violations committed in Myanmar since the military coup. It is important that evidence is recorded so that those responsible can face justice and be held to account."

Myanmar: Protesters defy rising death toll | News | DW | 20.03.2021

#ABOLISHMONARCHY

Thai police clash with protesters near king's palace

Protesters in Bangkok broke through a barricade of shipping containers near the royal palace while calling for reforms to the monarchy.



At least 11 people were injured after police in Bangkok deployed water cannon, tear gas and rubber bullets

Thai police used water cannon and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd gathered near the King's Palace in Bangkok on Saturday. At least 11 people were hurt during the clashes, the city's Erawan Emergency Medical Centre said.

More than 1,000 demonstrators had gathered to demand the release of protest leaders, whose mass trial on charges of sedition and insulting the monarchy began this week.

"The police officers will remain in the area until peace and order has truly been restored," police spokesperson Krissana Pattanacharoen said.

At least five protesters have been arrested.

How did the protest turn violent?

The rally was mostly peaceful, although some protesters threw firecrackers and allegedly used slingshots to fire objects at the police, authorities said.

The organizers also said they planned to fly paper planes with messages over the palace walls. However, tensions escalated when protesters broke through a barricade of shipping containers. The police police erected the wall, which was two-container tall, on a historic field in front of the palace to keep the marchers from getting close to the palace.

Hundreds of police in riot gear and shields advanced to push people away from the palace area.

Once protesters were able to get through, they threw Molotov cocktails at police who retaliated with water cannon jets and rubber bullets.

Why have protesters returned to the streets?

The fresh protests also took place after parliament this week failed to pass a bill to rewrite the military-backed constitution, one of the protesters' main demands.

The protest movement is also calling for the reform of the monarchy — including the abolition of draconian royal defamation laws.

Watch video 02:48 Thai king is a headache for Germany

The laws shield the ultra-powerful King Maha Vajiralongkorn and his family from libel, but rights groups say their broad use means anything perceived as criticism can land a person in jail for up to 15 years per charge.

Since the movement kicked off in July, with thousands of students taking part, more than 60 people have been charged under the lese majeste law.

"We're demanding real democracy and not a government that says it is elected but comes from the army,” said a man who gave his name as Kung. "The world has changed and we want the same kind of monarchy as in Western countries.”

The youth movement has posed the biggest challenge so far to Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who critics say has manipulated the law to keep himself in power in the years following the 2014 military coup.

Watch video 01:57 Bangkok's Khaosan Road: Hanging on until tourists return

mm/dj (AFP, dpa, Reuters)

Iceland halts air travel following volcanic eruption

A volcano in southwest Iceland has erupted — as anticipated following thousands of smaller earthquakes in the area in recent weeks.

Watch video 01:31 Volcano erupts near Iceland's capital

A long-dormant volcano in southwest Iceland erupted on Friday some 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the capital Reykjavik, the Icelandic Meteorological Office said.

Local media reported that both inbound and outgoing air traffic had been halted from Keflavik International Airport, the country's largest, servicing the capital.

The eruption followed thousands of smaller earthquakes in the area in recent weeks, with officials bracing for an eruption as a result.

Watch video 00:45 Seismologist talks to DW about Iceland volcano eruption

'Color code red'

The Meteorological Office reported the fissure caused by the eruption near the Fagradals Mountain was around 500 meters (roughly 1,640 feet) long, declaring "flight color code is red but very little turbulence is seen on seismometers."

A seismograph showed the eruption started at 8:45 p.m. local time.

The lava appeared to "flow slowly," the Meteorological Office added as they shared an aerial view video of the eruption on Facebook.

Authorities urged people to avoid the eruption site.

"We ask people to stay calm and not under any circumstances go close to the eruption site or on Reykjanesbraut. First responders need to be able to drive freely to assess the situation. Scientists are working on assessing the eruption," police said.

Iceland's Minister of Justice Aslaug Arna Sigurbjornsdottir shared an image of the eruption showing a night sky glowing bright red.

 

Two flights were inbound to the Keflavik International Airport.

A Coast Guard helicopter was sent to the scene to investigate the volcanic eruption.

The Icelandic Police Department said it expected volcanic gas pollution to extend as far as the southern coast of the Ölfus municipality, where at least 2,000 people live, almost 50 kilometers away from Reykjavik.

Authorities added that the pollution might continue through the night, urging people to stay indoors and keep windows shut.

An expected eruption

Iceland's Southern Peninsula and its Krysuvik volcanic system, a largely uninhabited zone that includes Mount Keilir, had recorded at least 40,000 tremors as hefty as magnitude 5.7 since February 24.

Experts had said prior to the eruption that they expected a lava-based outpouring, nothing reminiscent of the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull volcano, which generated a massive ash cloud, notoriously disrupting around 900,000 flights across Europe over a period of several weeks.

The region is known to experience effusive eruptions, where lava flows out of the ground, rather than explosive ones, in which ash clouds burst high into the sky. The latter are far more problematic for air travel, with the ash capable of damaging jet engines and affecting visibility.

The Krysuvik volcanic system has been inactive for almost 900 years, according to the Meteorological Office. The southern Reykjanes peninsula last witnessed an eruption 781 years ago.

fb/msh (AFP, dpa, Reuters)