Witchy Woman

"An overseas Filipino worker launguishing in a Saudi Arabian jail suffered miscarriage and now fears getting a hundred lashes before finally being freed.

Camille (not her real name) has been in prison since August last year after her employer turned her over to authorities because she got pregnant out of wedlock by a co-worker who raped her.

Camille, who lived with her in Quezon City, went to Dammam on May last year to work as a janitor in a dental clinic on a two-year contract, the victim’s mother told GMANews.TV in an interview.

Three months into the job, a co-worker – a Bangladeshi national – raped her.

But Camille chose to keep quiet, fearing her rapist would kill her if she reports the incident.

In September, after undergoing a medical check-up – a requirement before she decided to return to the Philippines – she discovered she was pregnant and was reported to Saudi authorities by no less than her employer.

However, hard life in Hafr Al-Baten prison caused the miscarriage of her daughter’s four-month-old baby in December, Camille’s mother said.

Although Camille was able to go to the hospital, she was sent to prison immediately after.

The Shari’ah or Islamic law imposes imprisonment for women who get pregnant out of wedlock and, after giving birth, a penalty of lashes to be determined by courts before being freed.

The law applies even to victims who claim to have been raped."

"A recent case from the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts affirmed a jury verdict in favor of a female pharmacist who claimed she was paid less than her male counterparts."

1. One man smacked my arse as I was walking by, someone with whom I have never even had a conversation. With one glare and a sharp reprimand, I ensured that he never came back. The fact that he had, had previous transgressions with others did not endear him any.
   
2. An older "gentleman" essentially stalked me before getting the hint that his constant attentions were unwelcome. Also never returned.
3. A man did not get the hint that staring at my chest was unwelcome attention. And he assumed that he was safely out of my reach (arm's length). Now for me, that is throwing down the gauntlet. I kicked him in the sternum, really no more than a tap with the top of my foot. The shock on his face was priceless, especially as one regular in our group pointed out that our female friends, no matter how unassuming we appear, can actually stand up for ourselves.

"As the economy falters and more people go without health insurance, low-income women in at least 20 states are being turned away or put on long waiting lists for free cancer screenings, according to the American Cancer Society's Cancer Action Network."

"“A woman in the military is more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire in Iraq,” Representative Jane Harman, a Democrat from California, said at a Congressional hearing this year, repeating an assertion she has made a refrain in a campaign of hers to force the military to do more to address abuses."

"California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger - making last minute cuts to the budget - eliminated all of the state funding for domestic violence shelters. That's right - all of it.

Although the state Legislature submitted a budget with a 20 percent reduction to the $20.4 million the state provides to agencies that offer domestic violence services, Schwarzenegger slashed the funding by 100 percent Tuesday.

For Catalyst, which relies on state funding for nearly 35 percent of its operating budget, the affect will be "devastating," Executive Director Anastacia Snyder said.

"We're still in shock," Snyder said Wednesday afternoon. "We were bracing for the 20 percent cut, but did not believe the governor could, with a clear conscience, cut 100 percent of funding for services that keep women and children safe and alive."

If you're a resident of California, please click on Stop Family Violence's action alert to urge lawmakers to reinstate funding for the programs that save women's lives. If you're not in CA - pass this on to someone who is! You can also post the following message to your Facebook account, or tweet it: CA Gov Eliminates funding for Domestic Violence Programs. Lives will be lost. You can help! CA residents click http://bit.ly/3jKQSo"

"Afghan officials accused militants of launching a poison gas attack today that caused dozens of schoolgirls to collapse with headaches and nausea as they waited for a Qu'ran reading.
The Taliban and other Islamist groups have regularly attacked girls' schools in Afghanistan, and the second apparent poisoning in two days has raised concerns that they have found a new weapon to scare girls into staying at home.
Students were gathering in the yard of Aftab Bachi school in Mahmud Raqi, in Kapisa province, for a morning reading of the Qu'ran when a strange odour filled the area. First one girl collapsed, then others, the school's headteacher, Mossena, said from her
hospital bed. Teachers told the rest of the students to go home. Mossena said she did not know what happened next because she too collapsed.
At least 98 people were admitted, including 84 students, 11 teachers and two cleaners, said Khalid Enayat, the hospital's deputy director. He said doctors were monitoring the condition of about 30 students.
The incident was the third alleged poisoning at a girls' school in a matter of weeks. Yesterday, 61 schoolgirls and one teacher went to hospital in the neighbouring Parwan province with a sudden illness that caused some to pass out. In late April, dozens of girls were taken to hospital in Parwan after being sickened by what officials said were strong fumes or a possible poison gas cloud.
"The enemies of Afghanistan are behind this poisoning," said the Kapisa education director, Abdul Gani Hedayat. "I am 100% certain it is poison. Ninety-eight people suddenly fell sick. This isn't something that happens just normally." He said blood samples had been sent to the capital, Kabul, for testing.
An interior ministry spokesman, Zemeri Bashary, said officials suspected some sort of gas poisoning in Kapisa, and police were still investigating.
The Kapisa patients complained of similar symptoms to those in the Parwan incidents, including headaches, vomiting and shivering, said Aziz Agha, a doctor treating the girls.
Sonya Sidiqi, 13, said she smelled something like cigarette smoke, "then my head started hurting and I started throwing up". Sidiqi said she was feeling better after resting at the hospital but was still dizzy and nauseous.
Another pupil, 11-year-old Tahira, said she planned to go back to school when she recovered, but was afraid to do so. "I'm going to be scared when I go back to school. What if we die?" she said.
Conservative groups in Afghanistan oppose education for girls, who were not allowed to attend school under the 1996-2001 Taliban regime. Militants in the south have previously assaulted schoolgirls by spraying acid in their faces and burning down schools. Scores of Afghan schools have been forced to close because of violence.
North-east Afghanistan, where the three recent apparent poisonings have taken place, is typically less conservative. No group has claimed responsibility for the mass illnesses.
A Parwan education official said no evidence of an attack had been found after yesterday's incident. He said one student had fallen seriously ill before the others, and suggested some of the symptoms could have been psychological. A Parwan health official said they were awaiting blood test results."

"Kabul - More than 1,000 Afghans surrounded a group of 200 protesters who took to Kabul's streets Wednesday to protest a new family law that they said violates women's rights.
As police tried to keep the two groups apart, a man picked up a stone and threw it at a schoolgirl, shouting at her, "You dog of the Westerners, go from here."
At least three people were wounded by police gunshots in western Kabul, witnesses said, when a group of young Shiite men tried to stop schoolgirls who were on their way to join the protest against the Shiite family law that lawmakers passed and President Hamid Karzai signed last month amid national and international criticism.
Critics said the law "legalizes rape within marriage" because some of its articles allow husbands to demand sex from their wives every fourth night unless they are ill or have "lawful or logical excuses." "