Women's Rights
Violence and discrimination against women, including genital mutilation, is common. The rape of women by militia and bandits is a problem, and there are no laws against spousal rape.
Political activism for women's rights, led by Asha Haji Elmi's "Sixth Clan" women's movement, led to representation in the Transitional Federal Parliament (TFP). However, the Transitional Federal Charter requires 12% of the Parliament seats (33 seats) be reserved for women. However, in the November 2004 selections of MPs, only 8% were filled by women.
Read more about this topic: Human Rights In Somalia
Famous quotes containing the words women and/or rights:
“The belief that established science and scholarship—which have so relentlessly excluded women from their making—are “objective” and “value-free” and that feminist studies are “unscholarly,” “biased,” and “ideological” dies hard. Yet the fact is that all science, and all scholarship, and all art are ideological; there is no neutrality in culture!”
—Adrienne Rich (b. 1929)
“Unfortunately, I am involved in a freedom ride protesting the loss of the minority rights belonging to the few remaining earthbound stars. All we demanded was our right to twinkle.”
—Marilyn Monroe (1926–1962)