Maheen was nine years old when she witnessed the death of her elder brother. At the age of 10 she saw the dead body of her neighbour, killed in the crossfire between Kashmiri rebels and Indian security forces, his guts spilled out on the road.

As U.N. Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro once put it, "Women hold the keys to unlocking the barriers to sustainable development."

A three judge panel of the US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco just decided (2-1) that Proposition 8, which bans same-sex marriage in California, violates the Equal Protection Clause of the US Constitution. The Court upheld Judge Vaughn Walker’s 2010 decision to strike down Proposition 8, with Judge Stephen Reinhardt writing, “Although the Constitution permits communities to enact most laws they believe to be desirable, it requires that there be at least a legitimate reason for the passage of a law that treats different people differently…Proposition 8 serves no purpose, and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gay men and lesbians in California.” The case, filed by ProtectMarriage, is expected to be appealed to the US Supreme Court.

The Ninth Circuit judges continued the stay on Judge Walker’s decision while the litigation continues. In other words, lesbian and gay couples will not be allowed to marry until litigation is finished.

FMF Executive Vice President and member of the Board of Equality California Kathy Spillar praising the decision said, “We are thrilled with today’s ruling upholding the right of same-sex couples to marry. As the trial showed, there truly is no substance to the arguments of those who would deny full equality to lesbians and gay men. Same-sex couples should be able to enjoy the same freedom as other Californians to marry the person they love.”

In August 2010, Federal District Judge Vaughn Walker overturned a 6 to 1 ruling by the California Supreme Court in May 2009 that upheld the measure. In 2008, Proposition 8 was passed by voters in an electoral referendum.

Rea Carey, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, exclaimed, “The court’s ruling affirms what millions of people all across the country already know – loving, committed same-sex couples and their families should be able to share in the celebration and responsibilities of marriage. People from every background and every circumstance get this; they understand because being able to marry the one you love and care for your family are shared values that strike at the very core of who we are as a people. Denying loving couples and their families something so fundamental is to deny our common humanity…This is a great day for them, for all Californians, and for all Americans.”

Eleanor Smeal, President of the Feminist Majority Foundation and a longtime advocate for lesbian and gay rights, asserted, “This is a long and winding road but marriage equality, which is winning the hearts and minds of the people, will ultimately prevail in the courts.”

LA Times 2/7/12; The Task Force 2/7/12; Huffington Post 2/7/12; NPR 2/7/12; New York Times 2/7/12

Hector Javier Tecum blogs about the role of women in Guatemalan politics for Americas Quarterly [es]. He argues that the inclusion of women in decision-making positions is still a challenge for the country.

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Bloggings by boz reports that “Josefina Vázquez Mota, a member of Congress and President Calderon's former secretary of education and secretary of social development, won the PAN [National Action Party] primary yesterday and will be their candidate for president.” He goes on to explain why he thinks her victory is “the best case scenario for the PAN.”

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David Bahati, a member of the Ugandan Parliament and one of the leaders of the Family or Fellowship of C Street fame (see Jeff Sharlet’s latest book on C Street), reintroduced an anti-gay bill today. Bahati first introduced the bill in 2009. It called for the death penalty in cases of “aggravated homosexuality,” for engaging in same sex relations with someone who is HIV positive, and life imprisonment for having sex with someone of the same sex.

The Anti-Homosexuality Bill went before the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee in May but was dropped from the Parliament’s agenda following condemnation from the President, the Secretary of State, members of Congress, and human rights groups. Bahati has since indicated that he would be willing to drop the provision of the bill calling for the death penalty.

Homosexuality is illegal in most African countries with the exception of South Africa, which recognizes gay marriage, but even there, anti-gay practices such as “corrective rapes” of lesbians, are commonplace.

The Daily Star 2/7/12; Associated Press 2/7/12; Feminist Daily Newswire 5/13/11

[Cameroon Tribune] Senior staff of the African Business Information Bank held exchanges with female enterprise managers over the week-end. Local small and medium-sized enterprises will soon receive German financial assistance.

The Health and Human Services Committee of the South Dakota state House voted against a bill that would have banned crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) from engaging in false advertising. The law would have prevented CPCs from falsely advertising that they provide abortion services. Lawmakers argued that the law was unnecessary since the state already has laws banning false advertising.

Alisha Sedor of NARAL Pro-Choice South Dakota stated that CPCs “should not be allowed to advertise services that they do not provide.”

Currently, there are an estimated 3,500 CPCs nationwide, most of which are affiliated with one or more national umbrella organizations. CPCs often pose as comprehensive health centers and offer “free” pregnancy tests. Some CPCs coerce and intimidate women out of considering abortion as an option, and do not offer women neutral or comprehensive medical advice. Often CPCs are run by anti-abortion zealots who are not licensed medical professionals.

National Partnership for Women and Families 2/6/12; Feminist Daily Newswire 10/21/12

[Health-e] About 1 in 10 women of reproductive age suffer from a chronic and painful condition known as endometriosis. The disease can impact on the lives of women in a considerably adverse manner.

[Nation] Kenyan distance runner Vivian Cheruiyot was on Monday named the Sportswoman of the Year and Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic named Sportsman of the Year at the annual Laureus ceremony.

[New Vision] We've all heard the expression 'the weaker sex' in reference to women and, unfortunately, many are tempted to take it literally. There are both men and women who believe that women indeed are weak, to their own detriment.

[New Vision] THE national basketball governing body Federation of Uganda Basketball Association has divided the national women's league into two in a bid to increase the level of competition.

[BuaNews] Thohoyandou - With the start of the marula season, hundreds of unemployed Limpopo women have collected wild marula fruits and started making beer to sell to locals and people from as far as Gauteng.

[Heritage] GSM giant Cellcom-Liberia has been announced as title sponsor for Miss Liberia 2011-2012.

[Nairobi Star] A pupil from Narok South District is appealing to the Prime Minister Wife Ida Odinga to assist her raise school fees to enable her join Moi Force Academy-Lanet. Anastasia Chelang' at , a former pupil of Emorijoi Primary School, scored 359 marks in the last's year KCPE exams. Chelang'at said her dreams of joining could be dashed if she doed not get help. "I urge Mrs Ida Odinga who is my role model to assist me to join the school because I am from a poor family," said Chelang'at, who is the third born in a f

[Nairobi Star] To most people, February 6 may have little or no significance, but to me, the International Day for Abandonment of Female Genital Mutilation is an annual reminder of a horrific operation I underwent at the age of just five. It is a reminder of the four days of prolonged labour, and the one-and-a-half days I spent unconscious, after delivering my first child, because, as any woman who has undergone FGM will tell you, giving birth once you have been mutilated is a very dangerous process. It is also a day of

[Daily Observer] The Gambia National Women Under 17 team on Sunday made sure of their passage into the next round of African qualifiers for a place in the World U17 Championship in the Eastern European country of Azerbaijan, despite a 3-1 defeat to Sierra Leone in the second leg of their preliminary round qualifier in Makeni.

[Commonwealth] Moving towards gender equality through economic empowerment of women

[Shabait] Massawa - Health service provided to mothers and pregnant women at Amatere Mother and Childcare Center in Massawa has registered satisfactory outcome, reports indicated.The beneficiaries commended the devotion of professionals at the center.

[Commonwealth] Commonwealth News speaks to four women entrepreneurs who have been sponsored by the Commonwealth Secretariat to showcase their products at Spring Fair International in Birmingham, UK.