http://www.ippf.org/en© 2008 IPPFInternational Planned Parenthood Federationen-GBhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Female+Condoms+HIV+Prevention+Will+New+Version+Be+Hit+or+Dud.htmFri, 30 Jul 2010 11:36:02 GMT{79FB6DC3-F593-440F-93BF-FB35176BB26A} Will a new version of the female condom catch on? Officials in HIV-ravaged Washington, D.C., certainly hope so. They've launched a citywide campaign to get women and their partners to think about giving the new and improved disease- and unwanted pregnancy buster a try. The original version was...GenderHIV/AIDShttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/140+Million+Girls+Women+Suffer+the+Consequences+of+FGM+Globally.htmFri, 30 Jul 2010 11:31:10 GMT{F3FB68F3-C96B-4557-8505-A3DA16915AB1} Dr Isatou Touray, the executive director of Gamcotrap, has disclosed that the World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that between 100-140 million girls and women worldwide are currently living with the consequences of female genital mutilation (FGM). Dr Touray made the disclosure while delivering...GenderMedicalhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/UK+medics+report+shortage+of+trained+rape+experts.htmFri, 30 Jul 2010 11:24:46 GMT{CB32FD88-9071-42BC-A771-15AB501E601E} The provision of fully trained sexual offence examiners varies across the UK, the British Medical Association (BMA) has warned. Dr Richard Lewis, Welsh secretary of the BMA, said that around 120,000 rapes take place each year in England and Wales, but that there were only 2,000 convictions last...GenderMedicalhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Is+monogamy+the+root+of+all+equality.htmFri, 30 Jul 2010 11:21:20 GMT{922D49EF-042E-4DFF-A2EA-F663FAA278C0} Does polygamy between consenting adults harm anyone else? The question has been raised in Canada, where polygamy has been illegal since the nineteenth century, but the supreme court in British Columbia is going to have to decide whether this law is unconstitutional. Doesn't it infringe the right...Genderhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Iran+to+pay+for+new+babies+to+boost+population.htmWed, 28 Jul 2010 09:54:40 GMT{4931FC51-D4F6-416D-A252-9005E3182281} Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has inaugurated a new policy to encourage population growth, dismissing Iran's decades of internationally-acclaimed family planning as ungodly and a Western import. The new government initiative will pay families for every new child and deposit money into the...Accesshttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Every+penny+we+give+in+aid+to+Africa+must+be+made+to+count.htmWed, 28 Jul 2010 09:47:45 GMT{D1896897-4B01-4833-A2D0-ACA733E69488} The point of aid is to make aid redundant. So said Gordon Brown on his return to the political arena at the weekend. Speaking at a meeting of the African Union in Kampala, the former prime minister insisted that western donors shoul d keep the promises they have made to the world's poor but understand...Accesshttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Family+planning+push+for+nations.htmWed, 28 Jul 2010 09:35:25 GMT{B6A7D6CF-ED33-457A-B274-FBC84A09D6AA} A UK government drive aims to increase access to contraception and safe abortion in developing countries. International development secretary Andrew Mitchell is now launching a consultation on the issue. The department's programme budget is ring-fenced from cuts - but Mr Mitchell said it therefore...AbortionAccessAdvocacy/CampaignGenderhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/African+leaders+review+womens+health.htmMon, 26 Jul 2010 09:48:16 GMT{DA9E1DEA-5068-4256-8D9C-1DC32B90B8C0} Leaders gathered to renew the Maputo Plan of Action on maternal health at the 15th African Union Summit this past Sunday afternoon in Kampala. Created by African ministers and heads of state in 2006, the Maputo Plan is one of the world’s most progressive frameworks for sexual and reproductive health...Accesshttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Malaysia+Teens+engage+in+sex+due+to+porn.htmMon, 26 Jul 2010 09:41:49 GMT{47716E37-EE6D-482F-8C64-6029B0B6BEAB} Parents, be careful. It may not be Justin Bieber’s latest music video that your children are watching on the Internet. The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has received 202 complaints for obscene content on Malaysian websites and personal blogs as of June 16 this year. The...AccessAdolescentshttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Pakistan+Concern+voiced+over+pregnancy+related+deaths.htmMon, 26 Jul 2010 09:31:36 GMT{890D11F2-0CEB-4BAB-97A7-26A0BFA993AD} Expressing concern over growing number of deaths of women in pregnancy-related complications, speakers at a seminar here Sunday stressed the need for taking practical measures to improve the situation. The seminar was arranged by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Pakistan (SOGP)...Advocacy/Campaignhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Ghana+Ignorance+on+abortion+law+means+death.htmMon, 26 Jul 2010 09:24:36 GMT{1688603C-2B21-405A-86F7-880E31CE875C} Unsafe abortions account for more than one in 10 women who die in pregnancy in Ghana, according to new research by the US-based Guttmacher Institute, with ignorance of the law and inadequate facilities partly to blame, say health authorities. Abortion was declared legal in 1985 for women who have...AbortionAccessAdvocacy/CampaignGenderhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Barbados+Give+men+more+time.htmMon, 26 Jul 2010 09:18:08 GMT{359FF340-6972-4E6E-8754-F54F1929BF44} Three days don’t cut it and one week is not adequate. Men are parents too and deserve one month for paternity leave. Executive director of the Barbados Family Planning Association, George Griffith, made this call yesterday, charging that fathers are no less important in a child’s life than mothers. According...Genderhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Swedens+condom+challenge.htmMon, 26 Jul 2010 09:15:03 GMT{3812F76E-DD65-4B31-9B44-8FF4ABADB9B4} Scandinavian countries have always had a much more forward thinking approach to sex education and advertising than many other parts of the world. This open-minded approach means that they can use much franker and more direct language when talking to consumers about sex, which helps in the communication...Advocacy/Campaignhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Zimbabwe+Pregnant+teens+shun+HIV+treatment+for+fear+of+stigmatization.htmFri, 23 Jul 2010 09:20:28 GMT{CC5080AB-6B03-48C1-854B-B87DD4188593} At a local maternity clinic in one of Bulawayo’s high density suburbs, midwives are at pains to explain to a pregnant 15-year-old girl why she must be tested for HIV before she gives birth. But the teenager, who lightly beats her chest in an effort to pacify what seems like a painful cough, will...AccessAdolescentshttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/AIDS+epidemic+in+Central+Asia+and+Eastern+Europe+intensifying.htmFri, 23 Jul 2010 09:03:15 GMT{AF6D6C61-CAD5-4D60-9C37-499987F35DE2} The UN Children's Fund warns the HIV epidemic in Eastern Europe and Central Asia is "intensifying at an alarming rate." UNICEF says the increase is being fueled by drug use and high-risk sexual behavior. The agency says the problem is made worse because children infected with HIV and AIDS are...HIV/AIDShttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/England+Sex+education+could+be+better.htmFri, 23 Jul 2010 09:01:05 GMT{32E995B8-76A5-47DC-9B7B-DB4335F323A3} Lessons about sex, relationships and health are not good enough in 25 per cent of schools in England, inspectors say. Teacher embarrassment and lack of knowledge were often to blame, Ofsted said in a report based on findings at 92 primary and 73 secondary schools. It said in many secondary schools,...Adolescentshttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/USA+Lawyers+seek+injunction+to+halt+military+gay+rule.htmFri, 23 Jul 2010 08:55:52 GMT{65C75520-B95A-4232-9638-A64CE68BD90E} Lawyers for a Republican gay rights organization will ask a judge for an injunction to halt the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy during their closing arguments in a federal trial challenging the law. "Don't ask, don't tell" prohibits the military from asking about the sexual orientation...Advocacy/CampaignGenderhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Uzbek+women+accuse+state+of+mass+sterilizations.htmWed, 21 Jul 2010 11:52:09 GMT{3A8A1D42-F956-4D51-BFDB-FA54528C8244} Saodat Rakhimbayeva says she wishes she had died with her newborn baby. The 24-year-old housewife had a cesarean section in March and gave birth to Ibrohim, a premature boy who died three days later. Then came a further devastating blow: She learned that the surgeon had removed part of her uterus...Advocacy/CampaignMedicalhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Scientists+say+vaginal+gel+cuts+HIVinfections+by+half.htmWed, 21 Jul 2010 11:48:04 GMT{6A6F8A31-11C5-4DB1-9891-B900979830E9} A vaginal gel has significantly cut the rate of women contracting HIV from infected partners in an experiment in South Africa, researchers said. They said the gel, containing AIDS drug tenofovir, cut infection rates among 889 women by 50 per cent after one year of use, and by 39 per cent after two...HIV/AIDSMedicalhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/UNAIDS+salutes+country+leadership+to+eliminate+HIV-related+restrictions+on+entry+stay+and+residence.htmWed, 21 Jul 2010 11:40:29 GMT{0EA7E904-71B7-4C6C-AE05-41E7472E8626} UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé applauded today the leadership displayed by China, Namibia and the United States of America to lift their travel restrictions for people living with HIV, while calling for similar action in all countries that continue to employ such discriminatory measures....HIV/AIDShttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Uganda+Red+Cross+opens+counselling+centre+for+bomb+victims.htmWed, 21 Jul 2010 11:33:23 GMT{632F425F-BA37-4E1C-B669-25987FB4FB89} The Uganda Red Cross Society (URCS) has opened up a site at Mulago Hospital where traumatized family members of bomb victims can get psycho-social support, the URCS secretary general, Michael Nataka, has said. In a press conference at the society’s offices in Wandegeya, Nataka said family members...Advocacy/Campaignhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Kenya+Church+under+attack+over+stand+on+abortion.htmMon, 19 Jul 2010 10:12:48 GMT{5D1ABFA9-D010-4202-8358-0CD293243CA5} Religious leaders campaigning against the Proposed Constitution have come under criticism from a global organization for their stand on abortion. Ms Brook Elliott Buettner has accused the clergymen of favouring the life of the unborn child over that of the mother. "I am baffled by the one-sidedness...AbortionAdvocacy/Campaignhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Trinidad+and+Tobago+Homophobia+can+lead+to+death.htmMon, 19 Jul 2010 10:08:07 GMT{85BBBB1B-5E86-4824-A9A1-7EBA916D833F} According to Stephen Lewis, Co-Director of AIDS-Free World, an international advocacy organisation that works to promote more urgent and more effective global responses to HIV/AIDS, the answer is homophobia. Talking with Sunday Newsday, Lewis explained how deadly homophobia really is. “Discrimination...HIV/AIDSMedicalhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Malaysia+Sex+education+is+already+being+taught+in+school+But+is+it+enough.htmMon, 19 Jul 2010 10:00:01 GMT{882C9235-D3BE-4178-889D-5EE8FDDFEE98} Bound by her purity vow, 16-year-old Quinn only indulges in kissing and heavy petting with her boyfriend Finn. The closest they got to a full sexual intercourse was the one time they made out half-naked in her parents’ jacuzzi. So imagine Finn’s shock when Quinn dropped the bombshell that she was...Adolescentshttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Rights+here+right+now+Where+are+they+for+the+gay.htmMon, 19 Jul 2010 09:45:28 GMT{9411A8B4-5097-42E5-92F5-C956B125AF09} The XVIII International AIDS Conference (IAC) will take place in Vienna, Austria, (18-23 July 2010). The conference theme, Rights Here, Right Now, (which also aims to address the issues of men who have sex with men (MSMs), particularly in relation to HIV/AIDS), opens in the backdrop of a rainbow...GenderHIV/AIDShttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Argentine+Senate+backs+bill+legalising+gay+marriage.htmFri, 16 Jul 2010 09:39:07 GMT{7347C9B3-E729-47E9-8FEC-456181C07B71} Argentina has become the first country in Latin America to legalise gay marriage after the Senate voted in favour. The country's Chamber of Deputies had already approved the legislation. The vote in the Senate, which backed the bill by just six votes, came after 14 hours of at times heated debate....Accesshttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Vatican+makes+attempted+ordination+of+women+a+grave+crime.htmFri, 16 Jul 2010 09:36:27 GMT{9AB9E1E1-0375-42D3-86EF-C816996CAC3C} The Vatican today made the "attempted ordination" of women one of the gravest crimes under church law, putting it in the same category as clerical sex abuse of minors, heresy and schism. The new rules, which have been sent to bishops around the world, apply equally to Catholic women who agree to...http://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Morning-after+pill+use+varies+widely+overseas.htmFri, 16 Jul 2010 09:33:19 GMT{DAC0B69C-EF5A-4E97-B7D0-60685C4BF725} In 11 European countries where the morning-after pill is widely available, its use by sexually active 15-year-olds varies widely, with the highest use among the French, researchers report. After analyzing information from more than 2000 sexually active 15-year-old girls, European researchers led...Accesshttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Report+proposes+new+research+agenda+on+pregnancy+intentions+of+HIVpositive+women.htmWed, 14 Jul 2010 09:11:36 GMT{96187A71-C679-4D34-90A6-5CF0FA39D7DC} A report issued by the Program on International Health and Human Rights at the Harvard School of Public Health proposes a new research agenda to address the sexual and reproductive health and rights of HIV-positive women. "The Pregnancy Intentions of HIV-Positive Women: Forwarding the Research...AccessGenderHIV/AIDShttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Namibia+Nation+Marks+World+Population+Day.htmWed, 14 Jul 2010 09:04:02 GMT{8FFE68C5-3F57-4C92-B0EF-A5ABB63FE6EC} Namibia commemorated World Population Day with the main event taking place in the Khomas Region yesterday. The event kicked off with a march from the Katutura Health Centre to the UN Plaza, where cultural groups from primary schools in Katutura entertained the crowd. The Ondarata Concert Group also...Advocacy/Campaignhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Safer+sex+by+Africas+young+drives+HIV+rates+down.htmWed, 14 Jul 2010 08:59:04 GMT{88CCACFF-AA4D-4401-BE79-062D7C2A6CF3} The prevalence of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that causes AIDS is falling among young people in 16 of the 25 countries most affected by the disease, a study by UNAIDS found, with many of them on track to hit a 25 per cent reduction target in HIV and AIDS rates in 15- to 24-year-olds by...AdolescentsHIV/AIDShttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Obama+calls+for+political+will+to+increase+efforts+in+preventing+HIVAIDS+and+improving+care.htmWed, 14 Jul 2010 08:50:03 GMT{F0BC1C60-C563-46F5-A7EF-13DE6206F8BE} President Barack Obama said Tuesday a new strategy for combating HIV and AIDS fulfills America's obligation to stopping the spread of the virus and rooting out the inequities and attitudes on which it thrives. The strategy sets a goal of reducing new infections by 25 per cent over the next five...AccessHIV/AIDShttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/USA+Guatemalan+women+could+get+asylum+due+to+murders.htmWed, 14 Jul 2010 08:46:19 GMT{4DE1F632-9C52-4CC4-A7CC-0EE14814580E} Lesly Yajayra Perdomo's chances of staying in the United States, even though she arrived illegally, increased dramatically because of her novel legal argument. The Reno, Nevada, resident argues that she should be granted political asylum because her native Guatemala is so dangerous to women that...Genderhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/World+Population+Day+Observed.htmMon, 12 Jul 2010 15:10:33 GMT{F83F4F79-C935-4794-A1DC-26CFF136DBE3} The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) holds the World Population Day each year on July 11 in order to draw attention to various issues surrounding population, women, and children. This year’s theme is “Everyone Counts,” and will bring people together in countries with UNFPA offices around the...Advocacy/Campaignhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/After+65+Years+A+UN+Agency+for+Women.htmMon, 12 Jul 2010 14:33:24 GMT{A062A03C-B40D-4D48-89DB-9D25FA54168B} For decades, advocates for women believed that a campaign for "gender mainstreaming" at the United Nations—that is, consciously factoring women into programs worldwide, promoting laws to support women at local and national levels and ensuring that women were well represented and heard in the UN itself—was...Genderhttp://www.ippf.org/en/News/Intl+news/Fears+of+rape+in+Kenyas+slums+trap+women.htmMon, 12 Jul 2010 14:16:52 GMT{A0A00561-B4A2-47B7-AD02-B5FBDDB6A0B4} Fear of sexual violence is keeping poor Kenyan women away from communal toilets, and increasing the risk of disease, Amnesty International says. In a report on Kenya's slums, the human rights group said women and girls were afraid to leave their shacks at night. As a result they were risking contracting...