International | Society

Are women better ultra-endurance athletes than men?

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Through thunderstorms, scorching heat and icy rain, Fiona Kolbinger cycled 2,485 miles (3,999km) in a little more than 10 days over some of Europe's most demanding terrain. In doing so, the German cyclist became the first woman to win the Transcontinental Race this week. That in itself was remarkable: it was the first time she had formally competed in an ultra-cycling event. But what was all the more remarkable was the fact she finished the brutal journey from Bulgaria to France a full 10 hours ahead of her closest opponent. "I am so, so surprised to win," she said. "When I was coming i
South Asia | Afghanistan | Activism

The activists leading efforts for women’s rights at Afghan talks

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Jamila Afghani, a prominent women's rights activist, was getting ready to address a peace dialogue attended by Afghan leaders and Taliban representatives in Doha, when she got the news of an attack back home. Sponsored by Qatar and Germany, the two-day talks in Doha are attended by Taliban representatives and about 50 Afghan politicians and activists, including 10 female delegates. Afghani said many young female Afghans were pinning their hopes on her and other women delegates to continue talks with the Taliban on women's rights in the country. "The meeting is a good start, w
North America | United States | Business

Google reviewed pay equity and learned it was underpaying men

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When Google reviewed its own pay structure recently, it yielded an unexpected result: It was underpaying more men than women for doing similar work, the company revealed in a blog postpublished Monday. The annual analysis comes as Google faces a class-action lawsuitthat alleges it denied career opportunities to women and systematically paid them less than men preforming similar work. The tech industry as a whole also is grappling with enduring criticism about a lack of diversity and dysfunctional work environments.
Europe | U.K. | Society

One in five women are childless at 45 and they are having fewer offspring than ever, new data reveals

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Women are having fewer children than ever before and more are staying childless, new data reveals today. Women who turned 45 in 2016 had an average of 1.80 children, down from 2.21 for their mothers' generation, who turned 45 in 1944. The same generation also had fewer children by their 30th birthday, suggesting women are having children later in life. Women who turned 45 last year had 1.06 children by 30 compared to 1.8 in their mother's generation. In total, 18 per cent of women who turned 45 last year had no children at all, compared with 11 per cent of women in their mother's ge
Latin America | Brazil | Law

Dilma Rousseff Was Not Impeached, Legal Scholars Say

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In Brazil, Ms. Rousseff has not yet been impeached, legal scholars say. “In Brazil, the term impeachment is used only after a conviction is made in the trial,” said Daniel Vargas, a law professor at Fundação Getulio Vargas in Rio de Janeiro. Now that Brazil’s Senate voted against her on Thursday, Ms. Rousseff will have to step aside during her impeachment trial, which could last for six months. But if she is ultimately absolved, she will not have been impeached, Mr. Vargas said.
International | Sports

The Real Story of the First Woman to Run the Boston Marathon

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Kathrine Switzer, a 20-year-old journalism major from Syracuse who finished an hour behind Gibb in 1967, was wearing a race number obtained by pretending she was a man on her race application and using only her first and middle initials. She became the face of women’s running when photos of enraged race director Jock Semple trying to physically remove her from the race ricocheted around the world. Switzer went on to a successful career as an author, speaker and TV commentator, won the 1974 New York City Marathon, finished second in Boston in 1975, and earned Runner’s World’s Female Runn
Europe | Sweden | Politics

How one Kurdish woman went from child soldier to Swedish lawmaker

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In pitch dark one night in 1991, some 50 people marched from Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq toward the Turkish border, unarmed and clad in traditional local attire. As they approached the frontier, a Turkish reconnaissance helicopter began to hover in the area, complicating their plan to sneak into Turkey. Only one woman marched among the men — 19-year-old Amineh Kakabaveh. She kept calm despite the building tension. Evading the helicopter and the border guards, the travelers managed to reach the Turkish border town of Silopi around midnight. The young Kakabaveh could have hardly imagined
North America | United States | Economy

Obama announces new rules to help ensure women are paid equally

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The Obama administration on Friday issued a proposal that would require private businesses to submit more data about how their employees are paid, in a bid to help address the wage gap between men and women. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's plan would require all employers with 100 or more employees to provide the agency with additional information on employee pay broken down by gender, race and ethnicity.
North America | United States | Health

47-year-old woman finds out she’s pregnant an hour before giving birth

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As she rushed to the hospital on Wednesday, Judy Brown was convinced that something terrible was happening. The 47-year-old was experiencing abdominal pain so severe she thought she must have a gallstone or some sort of massive blockage in her body, according to ABC News. The medical staff at Beverly Hospital in Beverly, Mass., discovered that Brown didn’t have a blockage inside her — she had a baby. But the shock didn’t end there, ABC reported. Not only was Brown pregnant, she also was about to become a first-time mother. As if on cue, Brown gave birth to a healthy 8-pound,
Asia | Vietnam | Economy

Tax reduction for employers hiring female employees

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In a bid to improve the employment prospects of women, tax cuts will be applied to employers hiring women, starting Nov. 15, 2015 in Viet Nam. As clarified in the Labor Code changes, the new policy will apply to companies that are employing from 10 to 100 women accounting for more than 50 percent of the total work force, and those with 100 to 1,000 female employees accounting for over 30 percent of the total staff. Enterprises with over 1,000 women working there will also benefit.
Europe | Germany | Politics

Angela Merkel ‘firm favourite’ for Nobel prize over refugee crisis – but losing favour in Germany

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Speculation is mounting that Angela Merkel will win this year’s Nobel Peace Prize for her handling of the European refugee crisis and the war in Ukraine, just as public opinion in Germany is hardening on the migrant issue. The German Chancellor has emerged as the firm favourite for the 2015 peace prize, the winner of which will be announced by the Norwegian Nobel Committee next Friday. But even as she is lauded on the international stage, Mrs Merkel is facing growing opposition to her refugee policy at home, where her personal approval rating with voters has plummeted n
Europe | Russia | Crimes

Ukrainian pilot tells court she was smuggled into Russia at gunpoint

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Ukrainian pilot Nadiya Savchenko, on trial for the murder of two Russian journalists, said Tuesday she was captured by pro-Kremlin separatists and then smuggled into Russia by armed, masked men. "I am a prisoner of war and a hostage who has been abducted," Savchenko told the court in a dramatic speech, saying separatist rebels captured her in eastern Ukraine and told her they would "sell" her to Russia. The 34-year-old military helicopter navigator was testifying for the first time at her high-profile trial in the small border town of Donetsk in southern Russia. The case has made her a nati
Europe | U.K. | Health

Advent of the virgin births: Women who have never been in a relationship paying £5,000 to get pregnant

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Dozens of young heterosexual women have had virgin births after undergoing IVF in Britain, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. Some are using the £5,000 fertility treatment to bypass the need to involve a man, and others so that they can save themselves for a ‘special relationship’. Doctors said last night at least 25 straight women had given birth in the past five years despite being virgins. But campaigners for the traditional family said the ‘distorted’ move turned babies into little more than ‘teddy bears’ to be ‘picked off the shelf’. Religious groups said it undermined the
Middle East | Israel | Culture

Rare view of the lives of the ‘Taliban Women’ in Jerusalem

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A recent report from a leading news channel exposed a phenomenon of extreme religious devotion that even the ultra-Orthodox community declared to be too fanatic. The “Taliban Women” group is controlled primarily by women and its members cover themselves completely in black cloth – including their face. Their young daughters are also forced wear the same burqa-like black outfit due to strict rules of modesty. All members are Orthodox women who have decided to take their faith to “the next level”. An Orthodox female reporter pretended to be in the process of joining the group.