International Women’s Day celebrates women’s achievements throughout history and across nations.  The theme, ‘Make It Happen’, seeks to recognise the social, political and economic advancements of women, while highlighting areas that still need to be addressed. Its aim is to raise awareness locally and to engage with women and families in the Teesside area and offer […]

BANGKOK— In 2009, Malaysia’s National Fatwa Committee, the nation’s top Islamic council, required all Muslim women in the country to undergo female genital mutilation, otherwise known as female circumcision. A recent study indicated that nearly all Muslim women in the country have had the procedure. But now the United Nations is working with the Committee […]

When Rachel Williams’ husband first hit her she convinced herself it was a one-off, she was to blame, he loved her and it wouldn’t happen again. It did happen again and continued to happen for 18 years until, in 2011, Darren Williams burst into the hairdressers where she worked and blasted her in the legs […]

Campaigners for a law to protect women from violence and domestic abuse are threatening to withdraw their support unless the Welsh Government makes changes to the bill. Wales Violence Against Women Action (WVAWA) wants the bill to include provision for a specially trained teacher in every school in Wales to deal with issues such as sexual […]

Forced marriage, defined as marriage that takes place without the full and free consent of one or both parties, occurs primarily among young women and girls from immigrant communities. A 2011 survey by Tahirih, the first to be conducted on forced marriage in the United States, reported as many as 3,000 cases of known or suspected […]

NO ARRESTS have been made in Lancashire under forced marriage laws since new legislation was introduced last summer – prompting fears the powers are not being used. Forcing somebody to get married against their will was made a criminal offence in June and the move was welcomed by campaigners, who said the law would empower […]

Two of the North East’s Police and Crime Commissioners have spoken about their support for raising awareness of International Day of Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation. Cleveland Police and Crime Commissioner, Barry Coppinger, and Durham Police and Crime Commissioner, Ron Hogg, have pledged their support and have made a commitment in the long term […]

Sometimes it takes a glimpse into a dark reality in order to spark positive change. In a video produced by advocacy group Safe Hands for Mothers, young men were asked if they knew what female genital mutilation, or FGM, is, and none of them did. The men then watched clips from a documentary that showed […]

Zimbabwe-born British national was arrested as she boarded a flight from London to Ghana via Amsterdam with an eight-year-old girl A 42-year-old woman has been arrested for conspiracy to commit female genital mutilation by officers carrying out an FGM awareness operation with colleagues from the Border Force at Heathrow airport. The Zimbabwe-born British national was […]