Dhaka, November 30, 2023 – Global community marks 16 days of Activism each year between 25 November to (International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women) 10 December (Human Rights Day) to end violence against women and girls. In this Regard, on Thursday, Plan International Bangladesh has arranged a Round Table Dialogue (RTD) session during 16 Days of Activism where the respective Ambassadors, CEO as well as the girls with whom this year’s Girl’s Take over took place joined the session at Canada Club. The purpose of this RTD session was to celebrate the incredible potential of girls and amplify voices to protect and support young girl activists. Also, to learn practical experiences from the girls to create impact and reinforce the rights of girl child with an urge to increase investments for girls both nationally and globally.  Canadian Ambassador to Bangladesh Lilly Nicholls said that, ensuring gender equality is an ongoing battle all over the world.  Advocacy with legislative body is essential to create mass awareness. Community based approach has to be implemented in the communities and families to break stereotypes and bring powerful change in the society.  Swedish Ambassador to Bangladesh Alexandra Berg von Linde mentioned that, gender equality means looking at women and girls as an asset. Until now, child marriage is the most severe form of gender-based violence. We believe that, girls and women are the master of their own life. We have started to work on policy level to update the laws to mitigate this issue.  British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Sarah Cooke said that, in order to achieve the full potential, it is pertinent for a girl to receive complete 12 years of education. It is also important to include boys as well. Violence against women and girls is unacceptable. We all need to work together at all levels to change the social norms that exist in the society and find possibilities for women and girls to flourish.  Grameenphone Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Yasir Azman said that, Surface level conversation is not enough. This discussion session will help us to update our modality of work that can bring gender balance within the system. However, we cannot work alone. Grameen phone is working with organizations like Plan International Bangladesh and providing training to students at school level to empower and inspire young girls by giving them a unique opportunity to step into leadership roles and gain insights into various industries. Canadian Ambassador to Bangladesh Lilly Nicholls; Swedish Ambassador to Bangladesh Alexandra Berg von Linde; British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Sarah Cooke; Grameenphone Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Yasir Azman and our take over girls of this year-Sanjana, Shawpna, Priti, Shampa, Taslima, Poly, Maleka, Boishakhi, Runa, Shila, Halima were present as panelists in the session. Kabita Bose, Country Director, Plan International Bangladesh moderated the whole sessions. Nishath Sultana, Director - Policy, Advocacy, Influencing and Campaigns, Plan International Bangladesh delivered welcome remarks on the arrival of the distinguished guests. On the occasion, the girls discussed about the daily obstacles that girls face in their community such as- early marriage issue, girls’ education especially on drop out cases, gender-based violence and pointed out the challenges they face from Bangladesh’s patriarchal society and how they have fought back against stereotypes and social norms. They also proposed areas where they require investment for the girls to create a positive impact to foster gender inclusion in their community. They also shared their take over experience of this year. The dialogue session opened windows to understand the real and emerging challenges that girls are facing in their home and communities that hinders their progress. Through the session some practical and sustainable solutions of the problems came out. Plan International Bangladesh believes that this dialogue will inspire girls to amplify their voices and make them more confident for bringing greater changes in their own lives and communities.

Christian and Hindu girls continue to be abducted, raped, forcibly converted to Islam, and married to Muslim men in Pakistan, a phenomenon “Bitter Winter” has repeatedly denounced. This obnoxious practice would not prosper without some complicity by police and courts of law. Some cases do land in courts. But it is not easy for the victims to win them. Sometimes, the victims are treated as if they were the perpetrators. Two cases of this month are of special interest. One concerns Mishal Rasheed, who was 15 when she was abducted at gunpoint on October 25, 2022, and taken to an unknown locality, where she was gang-raped by four men. These rapes are unfortunately customary and serve a specific purpose. It is believed that once no longer a virgin, a girl would become unsuitable for marriage, even if she belongs to a religious minority, and her only choice would be to marry one of her captors. Mishal was then forcibly converted to Islam and married to one of the kidnappers, Abdul Sattar. After six months, Sattar’s brother died and, while everybody in the house was busy with the funeral, Mishal managed to escape and return to her father’s home. They decided to report the kidnappers and rapists to the police. Not only did the officers refuse to investigate, but they also informed Mishal’s captors of what was going on. The girl and her father had to go into hiding for fear of being killed. Now, they went directly to the Lahore High Court, urging it to open a criminal case against Mishal’s captors. It is up to the High Court to decide, but the case is closely watched by activists for the rights of religious minorities in Pakistan. The second case concerns Samreen Aftab, who was abducted on August 22 this year by a young man named Muhammad Amir in the area of Faisalabad. She was immediately forcibly converted to Islam and married to Amir. Her father and six family members, knowing that most probably the police would not act, formed a rescue party and took Samreen back home. Now “they” are the defendants in a court case where Amir qualified their rescue effort as kidnapping. They have been identified by the police and released on pre-arrest bail. Supported by Samreen, they should now defend themselves from the paradoxical charge of being the perpetrators rather than the victims. Meanwhile, the business of kidnapping minority religion girls continues. The whereabouts of another Christian girl, Tabita, daughter of Razzak Mashi, kidnapped by four men on September 29, are still unknown. Her case was reported to the police on October 5, together with a birth certificate proving she is twelve years old, as her captors will probably claim as usual she is really 18. Whether the police will do anything about Tabita is a different question.  Source: BITTER WINTER

A group of Charbagh residents and some prayer leaders on Sunday intervened to halt a women cricket match at Charbagh Cricket Stadium. They said girls participating in cricket was immodest and considered inappropriate in the locality. Ayesha Ayaz, a 12-year-old budding athlete, had taken the initiative to arrange the match among girls hailing from Babuzai and Kabal tehsils. However, before the commencement of game, several prayer leaders and elders arrived at the venue and prevented the girls from participating in it. “When the girls from different areas gathered on the ground for the match, some religious people came and angrily forbade the players and organisers to do so. They were yelling and shouting and saying it was immodest for girls to play cricket in the open ground and we will never allow them to do so,” said Saeed Iqbal, an eyewitness. Later, he added, the imams contacted the local councilor, Ihsanullah Kaki, who also requested the match organisers and female players to leave the area. Ayaz Naik, one of the organisers, said many female cricket players in Swat wanted to play cricket professionally. “Many girls contacted us to organise cricket matches for them and make a district cricket team to play first class matches,” he said, adding that he, his daughter Ayesha Ayaz, and some professional players organised the match at Charbagh Cricket Stadium because construction work was underway at the stadium in Mingora. He said it was shocking for the girls and organisers when they were stopped from playing cricket in their area. Local players Humaira Ahmad and Sapna said they and their friends were excited about the match, but when they reached the ground, the locals did not allow them to play. “Our enthusiasm dwindled as we arrived at the venue and encountered individuals who prevented us from participating in the game. It’s puzzling why some men have reservations about female participation in sports because taking part in sports is our fundamental right, and we aspire to play at a higher level,” they said. Charbagh Tehsil Chairman Ihsanullah Kaki was contacted by the locals, who endorsed their decision and asked the organisers and players to leave the place. “The security conditions within the Charbagh tehsil are currently unstable due to the presence of individuals with firearms, who are often spotted in various locations. These individuals send messages to local residents, demanding money and issuing threats. Those residing near the cricket ground are hesitant to venture outside their homes at night, as they fear the presence of militants,” he told Dawn, adding they had also discussed the presence of unidentified persons with the police. Source: Dawn

Dozens of girls who turned up for school in France on Monday wearing abayas in defiance of a ban on the Muslim garment were sent home when they refused to remove them, a government minister told French broadcaster BFM on Tuesday. The abaya, an over-garment covering the body from shoulders to feet that some Muslim women wear, was banned in schools by the French government last month. The government says the abaya constitutes a display of religious affiliation, banned at schools under a 2004 law. Until last month, the abaya had faced no outright ban as a gray zone under the law. What happened on Monday? Nearly 300 girls showed up at school on the first day of term wearing an abaya, with 67 sent home after they refused to remove the garment, Education Minister Gabriel Attal told BFM. He said the majority had agreed to change out of the dress. Attal said those girls sent away were handed a letter to their families stating that "secularism is not a constraint; it is a liberty." If the girls persisted in wearing the dress to school, there would be a "new dialogue," the minister said. What has been the reaction to the ban? An association representing Muslims, Action for the Rights of Muslims (ADM), has called on the State Council, France's highest court for complaints against state authorities, to issue an injunction against the abaya ban and one on the qamis, the male dress equivalent. The ADM motion is to be examined on Tuesday. French President Emmanuel Macron has come out in defense of the ban, saying there was a "minority" in France that "hijacks a religion and challenges the republic and secularism." On Monday evening, he said such behavior led to the "worst consequences," citing the brutal murder of teacher Samuel Paty three years ago. Paty was killed by an 18-year-old Russian Muslim refugee following a social media campaign against him in which he was criticized for showing caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed in a class on freedom of expression. "We cannot act as if the terrorist attack, the murder of Samuel Paty, had not happened," Macron said in an interview with YouTube channel HugoDecrypte. "School must remain neutral: I don't know what your religion is; you don't know what mine is," the president said. Under the 2004 secularism law, large Christian crosses, Jewish kippas and Islamic headscarves were already banned in school.

The abduction and forced conversion of Hindu girls continues in Pakistan.Several activists during the event ‘Aurat’ in Karachi talked about atrocities against women and the apathy shown by the government authorities towards such incidents. A resident of Malhi village of Sindh’s Tharparkar district, Ishwar Bheel, said that his 20-year-old daughter Guddi Bheel was kidnapped by Sikhander Bajeer of Tando Adam Naukot of Mirpur-Khason on March 8 while returning from the hospital where she had gone to collect fever medicines for her brother. He said that she had been pressured to embrace Islam and forced to sign and submit a sworn affidavit addressed to Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) and Deputy Commissioner (DC) Mirpur Khas, claiming that she converted to Islam on her free will and was not pressurized or forced to do so. In another incident of a Hindu minor girl being kidnapped and police refusing to register a case, Veero Kolhia resident of Talho Malho village of Umerkot said that his minor daughter was abducted by influential people of his village by giving her some soft drinks laced with intoxicants. He further said that despite repeated pleas, police refused to register a missing case. Three other cases of kidnapping and forced conversions of minor Hindu girls were reported in March 2023. While Meena Butt (14) was kidnapped from near her home in Mavomehhwar, Mirpurkhas and married to kidnapper Abdur after conversion at Barchundi Sharif Dargah (Gotki), Sangita Kumari (16) of Karachi was married to her kidnapper after being forced to embrace Islam at Karachi’s Sufi Darbar. Krishna Bheel (13) was abducted from Mirpurkhas while returning from school. The Mirpur Khas police refused to register the missing complaint saying that she must have eloped with her boyfriend, said her father Dasram Bheel. Meanwhile, on Monday, more than 100 social activists from different districts of Pakistan’s Sindh and Punjab provinces protested against the kidnapping and forced conversions of minor girls from minority, especially Hindu communities, in an event titled “Aurat” organized in Karachi. Several activists during the event talked about atrocities against women and the apathy shown by the government authorities towards such incidents. The speakers claimed that while police authorities refuse to file FIRs in kidnapping cases, medical and legal authorities connive to declare underage girls as major and eligible for marriage. Karachi-based activist Birma Jeswani said that such incidents of kidnapping of minors, declaring them as major and then forced conversion have been rampant in Sindh for more than a decade and called for an immediate end to such incidents.

Baramulla's 'cake girl' who works as a head chef at a private restaurant in the district has become a source of motivation for them and sets an example for all those women who underestimate themselves . Yasmeena who lives at Bilal colony of Pattan village in Baramulla district of North Kashmir works at a famous private restaurant cum cake centre in Baramulla. "When I got the post of Head chef in this outlet, I got courage that I can do something in my life and become independent. When I started working, people used to question my choice of pursuing a career in baking. They discouraged my parents by telling them that I come home late but my parents always supported me," Yasmeena told ANI. She also said that she wants to motivate those girls who are sitting idle at their homes, thinking that they can't do anything. "All the girls should come forward with the confidence that they can do many things and can achieve their goals. They should dream big and have the courage to realise their dreams," Yasmeena added. Mudasir Nazir, the restaurant owner said that both male and female employees are equal in number at this centre. "Here, the head chef is a woman. The time has gone when only men could do these things," he added. Source: ANI

    The All JK Youth Society under its Vice-President, Yana Mir organised a drug awareness programme in Government Girls High School, Amira Kadal, and around 500 girls from the school attended the event with enthusiasm. The event was attended by RLGP national General Secretary Sanjay Saraf, Apni Party spokesperson Shoaib Dar, JK People's Justice Front President Agha Syed Abbas Rizvi, activists Sahil Bashir Bhat, Aijaz Kashani, and Javid Beigh, the school Principal, and local corporator, Shaheena Bhat. The speakers highlighted the medical and social problems created by substance abuse. Informative speeches educated the students about how drugs enter the Valley, how these reach the youth, and how these impact the addicted youth with regard to their future life. Speakers spoke about how Kashmir can be saved from losing its entire generation to drug abuse and subsequent crimes. The event was of the many organised by All JK Youth Society which continues to work for youth empowerment in the Valley. Source: tribuneindia.com    

Girls of Jammu and Kashmir are setting new goals by participating in sports and winning medals for India. It is quite a common sight in the Kashmir valley to see girls practicing during early mornings and evenings. On conversing with Bilquis Mir, an international mentor for Water Sports who hails from the midtown area of Srinagar, said that a tough lady isn’t one who doesn’t cry, a resilient lady is the person who cries, battles and gets up once more. She accepted that Kashmiri young women have a huge potential to contend in whatever field they are dedicated themselves to. Jabeena Akhter, who won a bronze for the country in April last year in Wushu, shared difficulties athletes have to deal with. During her training, she had to walk many kilometres at an hour of turmoil when there was no vehicle on the street. She said that she couldn’t even realize that she had covered so much distance to reach the practice session because of the passion towards her game. 23-year-old Sheikh Sajida, a senior rugby player, recalled the hardships that she faced in the morning practice session during the 2016 unrest and said that she used to go to the polo ground that is situated in the heart of the city, Lal chowk and she could hardly see any civilians on the streets. She used to go to the field on my bicycle and used to bump into the army men on the roads. There are associations and trainees who work with the players but these international women players who have fulfilled their dreams by reaching the highest level have set up their respective academies and given full support and training to the upcoming players from the state. According to the statistics provided by Youth Services and Sports, there has been a considerable increase in the participation of women in different games. In 2016 unrest, the total number of women that participated at different levels was 6,886 by December 31, 2017. In 2017, the total number of women that participated was 7,724 till November 30. An official from Youth Services and Sports said that the 2016 unrest hardly affected the participation in the national games. They had sent the same number of women teams outside that they used to in previous years. Mir, who had started the Water Sports Academy in 2008, has seen a tremendous increase in the number of girls from 3 to 200 in 2017 and she feels extremely happy about it. She said that he trains my players for the international level so that they win their national-level medals at a minimum. Sajida, who also runs rugby classes at the University of Kashmir, trains players of both genders of all age groups. Girl participation in her classes has also increased from 11 to 80 players this year. She gets immense happiness while seeing them getting trained and I do it free of cost. Akhter also runs an academy in Baramulla which she started in 2008. She has set up many Wucho clubs in different areas of the district. Every year 30 students from her academy participate in the state championship. She said that in every club under my academy, at least 35 players are getting trained. Not only in Rugby, Wushu, water sports, but also cricket, football, badminton and basketball are areas where girls are showing their mettle. Unjuman Farooq, 26, has been the first woman from India to bring the gold medal to the country in the senior category at the international Thang Ta Martial Arts championship held at Imphal, Manipur in 2011. She has participated in 16 nationals including three Federation Cups and considers her father as her role model. She is also looking forward to achieving the status of being a Black Belt this year. South Kashmir’s Anantnag district which is mainly affected by the conflict has produced a cricket player Rubaiya Syed who recently played for the north zone women’s team in an inter-zone tournament organized by BCCI in Mumbai. She has also played in the Ranji Trophy. Jammu & Kashmir Football Association (JKFA) has sent it’s first-ever girls team to participate in the 6th National under 15 championships this year. Arifa Bilal is the first female from Jammu and Kashmir who won a gold medal in powerlifting. Apart from being the first female powerlifter gold medalist at the National level, Arifa has also won three more gold medals. Two Sisters Sofi Sheerana and Sofi Sharmeen from Ganderbal fetched gold medals at the National as well as on state levels. Both the sisters are proud students of Thai Boxing iron fist academy and are promoting self-defence for girls in letter and spirit. It is pertinent to mention that Jammu and Kashmir Youth Development Forum is a non-governmental organization which is functional in Kashmir for decades. The organization always stands active to work for the cause of National integration despite facing a number of threat warnings. The said organization focused on strengthening the National interests in Kashmir and nowadays the organization is actively working for the empowerment of women in Kashmir. All the above-quoted girls were time and again promoted, helped and felicitated by the Jammu and Kashmir Youth development forum with the motive to empower them and attract more and more girls towards the mainstream in Kashmir. The recently issued order by the lieutenant governor’s administration of Jammu and Kashmir making sports personnel qualified for occupations is clearly going to focus on the choice of young women for various posts and their change will rouse different young ladies to partake in the sports and mainstream activities. Source: Daily Sikh

Kashmir football club is training girls not only for their future but for their future. Every day at the field, these girls do warm-ups and learn basic football skills and more complex tricks. The coach and players alike work hard every day on the football pitch to ensure that dreams to play at the national and an international level translate into reality and girls serve as an inspiration for other women who wish to take up sports as a career. Besides serving as a place where they can work hard to fulfil their dreams as football players, this academy also serves as a platform for these players to showcase their talent and prove that girls are just as good as boys in sports. Nadiya, the coach of the academy said that the academy initially provided training to only boys. “This academy has been around for last 7 years and it started with providing coaching to boys but initially girls could not come. We earned a lot of reputation and won a lot of tournaments. In 2018-19, I started the academy for women but the plans were put on a halt due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But now for the last three months, I have been training girls. I have been getting a good response. 28-30 girls are coming and even parents have given a great response. I have an aim to develop the football scene of Kashmir. Girls have a lot of talent but no platform”. Players are also extremely happy being a part of the academy and the sport. “I was fond of playing football. I used to look at the boys playing in the academies and wonder why girls could not play this sport and why there were no girl coaches?. This platform can help us showcase our talents to the world. I want to represent the country at the international level. We are working hard, so is our coach. This academy has given a lot of benefit to the girls,” said a player named Haniya. Another player Zainab said, “We always wished for a platform to showcase our talents in Football. If boys can play this game, then why cannot we girls? We urge the government to give us a platform so that we can play better. We are giving our best and so is our coach. We hope that all girls get to play and represent India. We have been benefited and learned a lot. We hope that the mindset of people changes too.” Mafeef, another player talked about the things taught in the academy and said that more academies like this should open in other districts to encourage other women to take up sports. “I am very happy to play football because it teaches us how important team spirit and unity is. Sports have taught me a lot. We have gained a lot of discipline via sport. Earlier, only boys used to play the sport and society also discriminated against us. But our coach took the initiative to play and train girls, and now we are here,” she said Source: Daily Sikh

Police recovered two bodies of minor girls from a seven-storey building in Demra of the city on Monday night. The deceased were identified as Nusrat, 4, daughter of Palash, and Faria Akhter Dola, 4, daughter of Faridul of the area. Demra Police Station duty officer Shah Alam said on information, police recovered the bodies from the ground floor of the building located in Shahjalal road in the area. The girls might be tortured before killing as injury marks were found in different parts of their bodies, said Konapa police outpost assistant sub-inspector Abu Hayat. MHK