Letter from WLP President Mahnaz Afkhami

March 8, 2009

Dear Friends:

Happy International Women's Day! Even as economies falter, relations among nuclear powers are tested, and armed conflicts proliferate--women's advancement stands out as a global achievement, the credit for which is shared by women from every nation, race, creed, and age. Human rights, equality in the family, and ending violence against women, are just a few of the hundreds of campaigns led by women around the world. We are sharing best practices, joining each others’ campaigns, voting ourselves into office, contributing charitable dollars to women’s programs, and listening very closely to what we are saying to each other. I think we are unstoppable.

Take, for instance, Breakthrough's revolutionary initiative to raise people’s consciousness about violence against women in India. Using radio, television, blogspots, and more, Breakthrough is grabbing people’s attention. Or the region-wide Equality without Reservation Campaign by Arab feminists pressing their governments to withdraw reservations to the CEDAW convention. Or the Musawah gathering last month in Kuala Lumpur, which brought over 250 women and men from 47 countries to a lively and thought-provoking discussion on human rights and Islam.

Organized by Zainah Anwar, WLP board member, and a planning committee that included Rabéa Naciri, WLP program advisor, the purpose of the Musawah gathering was to bring together scholars and activists working within a holistic framework on the rights of Muslim women. Yakin Ertürk, UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, spoke at the opening plenary on the complexity of pursuing universal rights in a Muslim framework. Among the presentations that resonated with me was one by Canadian activist, Alia Hogben, appealing for laws that do not make distinctions based on creed. I also had the honor of presenting my thoughts on faith and freedom in a plenary address. WLP partners participated, presented on panels, and even twitttered from Musawah.

In celebrating March 8, it is interesting to note the United Nations' International Woman’s Day theme--women and men uniting to end violence against women and girls. Not in every family or every community of course, but never-the-less, across the globe, women and men are coming together to find answers to protecting women's rights. Former Prime Minister of Canada, Kim Campbell, reflected on this theme in a recent interview she gave WLP staff, and her comments are included in this eNews.

Here at WLP, we are celebrating International Women’s Day by announcing yWLP's (Young Women's Learning Partnership) YouTube video contest winner on "What Does Human Rights Mean to You?" Be sure to view the winning entry and pass it on to a friend!

Warm Regards,

Mahnaz Afkhami
President and CEO