Senator Pia Cayetano left the campaign trail in the Philippines momentarily to preside a special meeting of parliamentarians at the United Nations and to take part in another meeting with American legislators in Washington, DC.

Cayetano was elected President of the Coordinating Committee of Women Parliamentarians of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), the highest position ever achieved by a Filipino in the 119-year-old IPU, considered as the United Nations of parliamentarians around the world.

Indian lawmakers approved a historic bill Tuesday that would set aside one-third of all legislative seats for women, a move aimed at overturning six decades of male-dominated decision-making in this country.

The bill, which drew fierce opposition before its passage in the upper house of parliament, would guarantee seats for women in the national legislature and all state assemblies in the world's largest democracy, where women have been largely kept on the sidelines of the legislative process.

Women in the Asia-Pacific region have little economic and political power, impacting economic growth prospects of developing nations, the United Nations said in a report released Monday.

According to the UN Asia-Pacific Human Development Report to mark International Women’s Day, the region ranked near the worst in the world on issues such as protecting women from violence or upholding their rights to property.

“The key message [of the report] is that to meet any development goals that a society sets, you need the full participation and involvement of women,” Helen Clark, head of the UN Development Program (UNDP), said.

Hundreds of civil society activists from scores of different organisations working for the empowerment of women gathered together at The Mall on Sunday to hold a rally in connection with International Women’s Day, which is being observed around the world today (Monday).
Parliamentarians Shakeela Rasheed, Sajida Mir and Amna Buttar also participated in the rally and assured the gathering that they would continue their struggle for the empowerment of women in politics. Bushra Khaliq of Women Workers Help Line and Shazia Khan from Awami Jmahori Forum also spoke on the occasion.

Parliament appears set to create history as the Rajya Sabha takes up the Women's Reservation Bill today with Congress, BJP and Left parties joining hands in favour of the measure and divisions emerging among the opponents.
The Upper House has an effective strength of 233 and the voice of the opponents has been dented with Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar springing a surprise by suddenly turning a champion of the Bill.

The Minister of Women, Children, Youth and People with Disabilities, has called for an end to the projection of negative and degrading images of women in the media.

Noluthando Mayende-Sibiya was speaking at the United Nations' Session on the 15 Year Global Review of the Beijing Declaration in New York. The declaration calls upon the media to refrain from presenting women as inferior beings and exploiting them as sexual objects and commodities.

"The election of a woman president in Costa Rica is a step forward for women in the region's political arena, and a qualitative advance in terms of political democratisation," political analyst José Dávila Membreño told IPS.

Chinchilla, of the governing National Liberation Party (PLN), became the third woman president to be democratically elected in Central America, after Presidents Mireya Moscoso in Panama (1999-2004) and Violeta Chamorro in Nicaragua (1990-1997).

"Women have been discriminated against, with a view that they should stay at home and that they are not fit for public responsibilities. But this attitude is gradually being overcome, because women have shown that when they occupy public office, the quality of politics can improve," said the political scientist.