About the Authors: Elizabeth Timberlake serves as Political Officer on the Afghanistan Desk and covers women's issues and human rights. Saba Ghori serves as South and Central Asia Specialist and Violence Against Women Advisor for the Secretary's Office of Global Women's Issues, and covers the countries of South and Central Asia, including Afghanistan.
Women are essential to progress and stability in Afghanistan. This is a critical point that is addressed in depth by the U.S. government's revised Afghanistan and Pakistan Regional Stabilization Strategy. This strategy incorporates women into every aspect of our programs and engagement. more »
About the Author: Kristin M. Kane is a Public Diplomacy Officer in the Bureau of International Organization (IO) Affairs. She is attending CSW as part of the USUN-New York Press and Public Diplomacy team.
When I walked into Conference Room 4 of the Secretariat at the United Nations, I knew right away that this was not going to be a typical UN panel discussion. Seated at the head of the table was a woman with short-cropped, platinum blonde hair in a bright red shirt with bold white letters spelling "HIV Positive." She was singer Annie Lennox, formerly of the Eurythmics. The moderator, UNAIDS Executive Director, Mr. Michel Sidibe, opened up the session on a "Call for Action on Women, Girls, Gender, Equality, and HIV" by showing Annie… more »
About the Author: Kristin M. Kane is a Public Diplomacy Officer for the Bureau of International Organization (IO) Affairs. She is attending CSW as part of the USUN-New York Press and Public Diplomacy team.
After the recent pounding of snow on New York City, at Monday's opening of the 2010 Commission on the Status of Women, or CSW, the sun was shining, the sky was bright, and the first day of March almost felt like the first day of a new season. Indeed, women who had come from around the world for the annual CSW meeting and side events arrived at the United Nations headquarters dressed in colorful clothing and wearing confident and contagious smiles, eager to take on the challenges… more »
Secretary Clinton today announced the 10 winners of this year's International Women of Courage (IWOC) award. On March 10, Secretary Clinton will present the awards to the honorees at the Department of State.
The awardees are: Shukria Asil (Afghanistan), Col. Shafiqa Quraishi (Afghanistan), Androula Henriques (Cyprus), Sonia Pierre (Dominican Republic), Shadi Sadr (Iran), Ann Njogu (Kenya), Dr. Lee Ae-ran (Republic of Korea), Jansila Majeed (Sri Lanka), Sister Marie Claude Naddaf (Syria), and Jestina Mukoko (Zimbabwe).
The annual International Women of Courage Award was started in March 2007 to recognize women around the globe who have shown exceptional courage and leadership in advocating for women's rights and advancement. This is the only award within the Department of State that pays tribute to outstanding women leaders worldwide. It recognizes the courage… more »
About the Author: Nicole Peacock serves as the Public Outreach Officer in the Bureau of African Affairs.
For thousands of girls across Africa, the onset of puberty means a difficult choice: risk the humiliation that comes with not having adequate hygiene supplies; or miss school each month. In this context, a program that supplies sanitary pads can make a world of difference to young women's educational success.
Working as a public affairs specialist in the Bureau of Africa Affairs at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, I heard that the lack of access to sanitary pads was a barrier to girls' education, and decided to do something about it. I created the “Once a Month” campaign, and began to solicit donations of hygiene supplies. We received contributions from a variety of donors and shipped them to the U.S. Embassy in Lusaka,… more »
No matter what country women around the world live in, no matter what religion they are, how much money they earn, or what age they are, they have at least one thing in common: They are potential victims of violence. Violence against women is endemic around the globe.
Violence can affect girls and women at every point in their lives, from sex-selective abortion and infanticide, to inadequate healthcare and nutrition given to girls, to genital mutilation, child marriage, rape as a weapon of war,… more »
About the Author: Saba Ghori serves as South and Central Asia Specialist and Violence Against Women Advisor for the Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues, and covers the countries of South and Central Asia, including Afghanistan.
Understandably, much of the discussion about Afghanistan’s future focuses on security and military issues – on the surge, and on the international community and the Afghan military working together to defeat the Taliban. These issues are critically important. But the United States also has a civilian strategy in place that focuses on economic and social development, good governance, rule of law, and human rights. Afghan women are central to each of these goals.
About the Author: Irene Marr serves as a Foreign Affairs Officer for the Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues, and covers Western Hemisphere countries, including Haiti.
It is hard to believe that the people of Haiti are being tested yet again – an earthquake so powerful it is being called the worst crisis the country has ever faced. Haiti certainly is no stranger to crisis; little over a year ago it was hit by multiple hurricanes. Storms ravaged the city of Port-au-Prince, displacing 150,000 people from their homes. Ranking… more »
About the Author: Ambassador-at-Large Melanne Verveer serves as director of the Secretary's Office of Global Women's Issues.
Fifteen years ago, representatives from 179 nations came together at the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in Cairo and agreed that, by the year 2015, all governments would make access to reproductive health care and family planning services a basic right. They agreed that governments would dramatically reduce maternal, infant, and child mortality, and ensure that girls and women have access to education.
Fifteen years ago, at this forum, the world first made the connections explicit between women's health, the quality of women's lives, and human progress and development. … more »
About the Author: Ruth Bennett serves as the Public Affairs Advisor for the Secretary's Office of Global Women’s Issues (S/GWI).
Like many offices in the State Department, we use the last two weeks of the year to review where we’ve been and map out where we’re heading. This year, it’s an easy assessment to make. January 2009, we didn’t exist. December 2009, so many people are talking – and, yes, sometimes arguing, but at least talking about and carefully… more »
DipNote is the official blog of the U.S. Department of State —a place to share stories, discuss experiences, and inspire new ideas on the important foreign policy issues of the day. more »
like it ! Excellent tool for women to protect ourselves !!
more »
Gary in Washington DC writes:
I agree that men and boys play critical roles in addressing the violence against women, and the government and NPOs should keep educating males to respect…
more »
John in Indonesia writes:
live in harmony in our family, no violence at all, positive thinking, hoping that our neighbour will see and copy us.
more »
May 24: Secretary Clinton and Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Michael Posner will release the 2011 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices at 10:30 a.m. more »
May 23: The State Department, through its office of the U.S.-Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI), is pleased to announce $1.5 million in funding to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to support open governance and political participation in the Middle East and North Africa. more »
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