Good afternoon!
Solidaritas is a fortnightly newsletter about women’s rights, feminism, and gender in Asia and the Pacific, covering the entirety of this huge region: from Afghanistan and Pakistan in the west to Kiribati and Cook Islands in the east.
This issue’s header image is of donkeys in the village of Jomsom, Nepal, from way back in 2011.
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In solidarity,
- Kate
Afghanistan
The world has abandoned Afghanistan, says Hasina Safi, the country’s last women’s affairs minister.
Australia
Australian journalist Cheng Lei has returned to Australia more than three years after being arrested in China, reuniting with her family. Ms Cheng was working as a broadcast journalist at Chinese state-owned media, CGTN, when she was arrested in August 2020, accused of "supplying state secrets overseas" — an allegation she rejects.
Removing a condom during sex without consent will be considered rape and attract a maximum penalty of life in prison under sweeping laws introduced in Queensland.
Cambodia
Microfinance was hailed as a way to change the lives of hundreds of millions of people without access to credit. But then, banks jumped in to get in on the profits. Now, to manage high debt levels, Cambodians are migrating for work, eating less, and even pulling their children out of school.
China
As the divorce rate in China rises, attitudes to separations are changing, with young women now throwing parties to mark the end of married life:
The celebration looked something like a bachelorette party. A big red banner hung on the wall declaring “life is a big stage, so be brave and fly!” Her girlfriends showered her with confetti and gave her bouquets of flowers, as if celebrating a victory.
“If I had known divorce would be so happy, I would have done it a long time ago!” Sushi wrote on social media.
How two women transformed learning in rural China.
A China ‘matchmaker’ accused of putting disabled women ‘up for auction’ to make money has been detained by police, after she advertised women as potential brides and gave descriptions of their mental abilities to help potential grooms make up their minds.
India
As we highlighted last issue, a new law will reserve 33% of seats for women in India’s parliament. But what will it look like and how will it affect women’s participation?
Why do so many Indian women struggle with their body image? It is easy to blame Bollywood and the media for unrealistic expectations of beauty – but there are deeper social factors at work, says Pragya Agarwal.
Despite its expanding economy, India is failing to pull - and keep - women in the workforce.
Japan
Japan’s gender gap has never been wider. Can PM Fumio Kishida close it? Related: Governor of Tokyo, Koike Yuriko, shares her thoughts on gender equality in Japan and how local government policy can make a difference.
A court has ruled it is unconstitutional to require surgery for a change of gender on identity documents.
New Zealand
Despite a swing to the right, young women were among the winners of NZ’s election.
Pakistan
Pakistani authorities resumed issuing identity cards to transgender people, following a four-month pause and an Islamic court’s controversial ruling that gutted a law aimed at protecting trans rights.
Papua New Guinea
Gender-based violence is increasing in PNG, warns Port Moresby’s Governor.
The Philippines
Promised a well-paid job in Dubai, Filipina migrant worker Vergie Tamfungan now lies dead in a mortuary far from home. Her distraught family are desperate for answers:
26 September was another hot and humid day in the mountainous region of Lake Sebu, the Philippines, when Jerson Kues received an unexpected video call from an unknown number. On the line was a woman from Dubai, with news that would tear the father of four’s world apart. His wife, Vergie Tamfungan, was dead. The woman on the call stared back at him, expressionless. Kues had a thousand questions, but she refused to reveal any more information, not even her phone number. Just wait to be contacted for updates, she said, before abruptly ending the call.
Regional
Despite positive rhetoric toward building women’s leadership and political representation in the Pacific, progress has been slow and uneven. New approaches to building gender equal political spaces are necessary, argue Dr Kerryn Baker and Dr Theresa Meki.
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands women are cultural symbols of peace — but this hasn’t translated into decision-making roles:
During the height of “The Tensions” in Solomon Islands — an armed civil conflict from 1998 to 2003 — women were thrust into the role of peace symbol, negotiator, trauma counsellor, and mediator. Women often went in between the two warring sides to negotiate safe trade and movement of people, encouraged militants to give up arms, and led meetings and marches for peace.
However, once the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI) facilitated a government-led peace process in 2003, women leaders were sidelined … In the 20 years since, women and women-led organizations have continued to advocate for an increased role. And while they’ve found some success at the local level, their participation in governance and decision-making has been continually denied.
South Korea
Memories of #MeToo will shape coming generation's worldviews despite ongoing anti-feminist wave, says journalist Jung Ha-won, discussing her new book, Flowers of Fire.
Are workplaces failing South Korean woman? A look at Hyundai Motor and its new ‘pro-women’ policies.
The South Korean government should reconsider the new Protected Birth Bill, which promotes anonymous births and adoption or orphanage care as solutions to unregistered births and unwanted pregnancies, argues Human Rights Watch:
The bill, set for a National Assembly vote on October 25, 2023, fails to address the underlying reasons for unregistered births, including lack of access to safe abortions and sexuality education, inadequate support services for pregnant women and girls, and societal stigma associated with single motherhood.
Thailand
Meet the Thai women reviving ancient recipes for food-lovers in Bangkok.
Tuvalu
Tuvalu has prohibited discrimination on the basis of sex and disability under a new constitution that went into effect this month. There’s a big caveat, though: discrimination is only prohibited if it doesn’t conflict with traditional values.