Latin America | Colombia | Activism

Revered Social Leader and Activist Killed in Colombia

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Social leader Tatiana Paola Posso Espitia, 35, was shot twice in the head Wednesday morning in front of her house in El Copey located in the Department of Cesar when two men on motorcycles fired at the activist and fled the scene. The assassination occurred just as Espitia’s taxi driver, Wilson Ortega Palomino, arrived at her home to take the social leader to work, according to local media reports. The bad timing resulted in Ortega also being shot four times by the hitmen. He is in critical condition at a nearby hospital. The National Network for Democracy and Peace in Colombia
Middle East | Dubai | Activism

Emirati woman begs for asylum in Macedonia after fleeing family

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An Emirati woman who fled to the Republic of Macedonia has made a desperate plea for help after her asylum request was rejected by the Balkan state. In a video posted online and obtained by CNN, Hind Mohammad Albolooki, 42, says she fled Dubai after her family threatened her when she sought a divorce from her husband. Her request for asylum in Macedonia was rejected on February 4 by the Macedonia interior ministry. While awaiting a decision, Albolooki is being held in immigration detention, where she has been since December 7, and now fears she will be deported back to the United Ar
Asia | China | Activism

Chinese women’s rights group closes amid ‘pressure from the authorities’

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A women’s rights organisation connected to five feminist activists whose detentions prompted international concern earlier this year said on Friday it has been forced to shut down permanently because of mounting pressure from the authorities. Founder and executive director Wu Rongrong said she was sad beyond words at the closure of Weizhiming in the eastern city of Hangzhou and that there now would be even fewer opportunities to speak out publicly in support of women’s rights. Weizhiming has campaigned against discrimination in the labour market, violence against women and sexual har
Asia | Korea | Activism

Women activists cross on bus after denied permit to walk across Koreas’ DMZ

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International women activists including Gloria Steinem and two Nobel Peace laureates on Sunday were denied an attempt to walk across the Demilitarized Zone dividing North and South Korea, but were allowed to cross by bus and complete what one of them called a landmark peace event. The group of 30 women from 15 countries made a final appeal to authorities on both sides to allow them to walk across the demarcation line, but were turned down. The North allowed a South Korean bus to cross the demarcation line to pick them up on the North side of the DMZ and transport them over the border to Sou
North America | United States | Activism

Fanchon Blake dies at 93; lawsuit broke LAPD’s glass ceiling for women

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In 1971, after nearly two decades with the Los Angeles Police Department, Fanchon Blake openly objected to policies that prevented her and other women from rising above the rank of sergeant. Then-Chief Ed Davis belittled her stance at a meeting of female officers, making it clear he felt real police work should be done by men. One drawback to women on the force, he said, was that they have "monthlies." Blake didn't respond, but was furious. "You don't know it, Chief," she later wrote in her unpublished autobiography, "But war has just been declared between us." She won the war. Bla