Africa | Zimbabwe | Crimes

These women survived domestic abuse, now they’re sharpshooters protecting animals from poachers

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Abused and disadvantaged women have become Zimbabwe's hidden weapon against poachers who kill elephants and rhinos for their tusks and horns. The Akashinga squad, or "The Brave Ones," is Zimbabwe's first all-female anti-poaching team that has quickly earned a top reputation as sharpshooters. They've arrested 80 armed poachers in the past year. Petronella Chigumbura, the star sniper of the squad, wears a full camouflage suit for solo night patrols. "When I wear this suit no one can see me, and I can hide from the poacher," Chigumbura told CBS News foreign correspondent Debora Patta in a
Latin America | Brazil | Crimes

Here’s The Viral Photo Of The Bloodied Man Female UFC Fighter Allegedly Beat Up For Attempted Robbery

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A female Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fighter allegedly beat a would-be robber on Saturday after the man threatened her and tried to steal her phone in Rio de Janeiro. Twenty-six-year-old UFC fighter Polyana Viana told MMAjunkie on Sunday that she was approached by a man while she was waiting for an Uber driver. After asking her for the time, he demanded she give him her cellphone and told her he was armed. Making a split-second decision, Viana decided the "gun" he claimed to have was likely "too soft" to be an actual gun and deployed two punches and a kick to the man, and as he
Africa | South Africa | Crimes

The all-female patrol stopping South Africa’s rhino poachers

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As rhino deaths have soared across South Africa, in Balule reserve the Black Mambas patrol of local women has achieved a 76% reduction in poaching since 2013. Now there are plans to extend the award-winning scheme. “The Black Mambas are winning the war on poaching,” insists Siphiwe Sithole. “We have absolutely zero tolerance for rhino poaching and the illegal wildlife trade. The poachers will fall – but it will not be with guns and bullets.” Sithole and Felicia Mogakane are members of South Africa’s Black Mambas, the world’s first all-female anti-poaching unit that has capt
Latin America | Mexico | Activism

Leading Mexico City women draw up ‘manifesto’ to improve the city

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Tackling gender-based violence and unsafe public spaces are the main priorities for women in Mexico City, according to a diverse group of distinguished women who were invited to take part in a special discussion by the Guardian. The group – which included actors, singers, political analysts, human rights activists, journalists and students who live and work in Mexico City – debated the biggest issues and challenges facing women in 2015. The event was held in the garden of Casa Azul where Kahlo, arguably one of the world’s most influential feminists and female artists, lived and create
Africa | South Africa | Crimes

Mostly Female Anti-Poaching Group Honored by UN

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South Africa’s Black Mamba Anti-Poaching Unit, a mostly female ranger group, received the Champions of the Earth award, the United Nation’s (UN) highest environmental prize, on Tuesday, according to the UN. The 26-member unit patrols the Balule Private Game Reserve, which lies within the Greater Kruger National Park. The 2 million-hectare national park is home to leopards, lions, elephants, cheetahs, and hippos, as well as the highly endangered black rhino. The Black Mamba Unit works to stop bush meat and rhino poachers, which has become increasingly difficult in South Africa
Africa | Kenya | Activism

The village where men are banned

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Jane says she was raped by three men wearing Gurkha uniforms. She was herding her husband’s goats and sheep, and carrying firewood, when she was attacked. “I felt so ashamed and could not talk about it to other people. They did terrible things to me,” says Jane, her eyes alive with pain. She is 38 but looks considerably older. She shows me a deep scar on her leg where she was cut by stones when she was pushed to the ground. In a quiet, hesitant voice she continues her story. “I eventually told my husband’s mother that I was sick, because I had to explain the injuries and my depres
Africa | Zambia | Activism

Zambia: Street Harassment – Women Fight Back

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Driving to work I heard a call-in radio show about a woman who had been stripped naked in the streets because her dress was seen as indecent. Not one of the perpetrators of the stripping had been arrested, even though witnesses had taken photos and videos and posted them all over social media. Callers expressed the opinion that the woman had gotten what she deserved. "Women have gone too far with their dressing; a woman's thighs are only for her husband to see," one caller said. So upset by this and similar comments, for the rest of the day all I did was research ways I could do somet
North America | United States | Crimes

Women, guns: Well armed and growing

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It’s third Thursday at the Thunder Alley Indoor Shooting Range, which means it’s shooting time for members of Lincoln’s Well Armed Woman chapter. Chapter leader Julie Delp moves slowly behind the six-lane shooting range, observing the girls’ tiniest movements -- forward leans, crossing thumbs over gun handles. She watches for mistakes that happen all too often with firearms. Many women might own one, Delp said, but few can properly shoot it. That’s why she brought a Well Armed Woman chapter -- a national organization that trains women how to safely handle firearms -- to Linc
South Asia | Nepal | Crimes

Nepal earthquake survivors get self-defence classes after sexual assaults

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Police in Nepal have started self-defence lessons for women and girls in camps for people displaced by massive earthquakes earlier this year after concerns about a number of sexual assaults and an increase in reports of sexual harassment.More than 8,700 people died in the two major quakes that hit Nepal on April 25 and May 12, destroying nearly half a million houses and leaving thousands camping out in the open. “While visiting different camps in Kathmandu, we realised the need for such training so that women can protect themselves,” said Tara Thapa, deputy superintendent of police in
South Asia | India | Crimes

Women in India Are Turning into “Charlie’s Angels” to Fight Sexual Assault

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A New Delhi police force has a refreshing new tactic to combat sexual assault: a specially trained squad of karate-chopping policewomen, who hope to bring justice to the so-called "rape capital" of India. Their trainers call them "Charlie's Angels," and they're dedicated to cleaning up the capital's streets. The Angels: Led by policewoman Bharti Wadhwa and supported by Delhi police Chief Bhim Sain Bassi — who has been vocal about his commitment to Indian women's safety for years — this special unit of 40 women has been training in martial arts techniques for months. The squad's goal is
South Asia | India | Crimes

Sonia Gandhi writes to PM Modi on rise in incidents of atrocities against Dalits

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Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Monday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagging the "distressing rise" in incidents of Dalit atrocities and demanded that a bill to prevent such crimes is brought in the monsoon session of Parliament next month. Referring to the incidents of Dalit atrocities in two-BJP ruled states Rajasthan and Maharashtra, the Congress President also alleged that the NDA government had "allowed" an ordinance, brought by UPA, to lapse and slammed it for not bringing a bill to replace it in the last budget session of parliament. Gandhi's letter to the Prime Minister
Europe | U.K. | Crimes

Female kickboxer knocks out sex attacker who pounces as she walks home

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A woman kickboxer who used her martial arts skills to throttle a sex attacker has been praised by a judge who gave her a £500 reward for her bravery. Mark Willis, 39, "bit off more than he could chew" when he targeted the woman as she walked home through Cheltenham, a judge said. He repeatedly punched his victim before pushing her over a wall into a front garden and then jumping on top of her, Gloucester Crown Court was told. But the woman, who has been kickboxing for two years and has also taken a self-defence course, turned the tables on Willis in the attack a
Middle East | Iraq | Activism

Iraq’s female citizens: prisoners of war

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On the second day of the Nobel Women’s Initiative conference on building global support for women human rights defenders, the 100 participants delivered a sobering and urgent message: history is still repeating itself. Watching the military-industrial complex wreak havoc in the Middle East, reflected Shirin Ebadi, holder of the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize, is like ‘rewinding a movie’. Women human rights defenders from across the globe were in agreement: the incalculable suffering of the people of Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria have taught us, once and for all, that bombs lead to suffering, and n
South Asia | India | Activism

Wearing All Pink, A Group Of Women In India Takes Justice Into Their Own Hands

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Everyone knew the old woman in the bright pink sari. Men on the streets stopped what they were doing to wave at her and maybe strike up a conversation, and women would come from nearby communities to seek her help. Sampat Pal Devi’s story traveled pretty quickly around the region, gaining a sort of mythic status: One day Pal came across a man mercilessly beating his wife and she took action. The next day, she came back with five other women wielding bamboo sticks (known as “lathis”) to teach him a lesson. Since 2006, Pal and her gang of local women have donned their pink saris (“