women leaders

Japan's Shinzo Abe on Friday named the country's first ever female aide to the prime minister, just weeks after Caroline Kennedy arrived as the first woman US ambassador to Tokyo, AFP reports.

Makiko Yamada, a 53-year-old internal ministry veteran, will advise the conservative prime minister on policies affecting women, said Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga.

If women are to achieve equality, they need a voice and a seat at the table. It's time to set measurable goals to affect change.

When I was first elected in 1987, I was part of an increased number of women in the UK parliament, but we still comprised only 5% of MPs. Even now, more than a quarter of a century later and in a country that has long prided itself on a commitment to equality, only one in five MPs is a woman. Far from leading the way, we are languishing at the global average.

What is the appropriate role of women in political life?

Are women fundamentally different than men? How does “femininity” qualify or disqualify women from political participation?

The leader in the race for president of Chile, Michelle Bachelet took 47% of the vote in November 17th elections. She will face a run-off against opponent Evelyn Matthei of the ruling center-right Alliance on December 15 who received 25% of the vote.

We invite you to read the full article published November 24, 2013

The Muslim Sisterhood, which remains under-reported, is a wing of the Muslim Brotherhood. But is it an organization that has a weight similar to that of the Brotherhood, or does it merely support the Brotherhood in times of need?

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said she has been granted permission by the president to lead the polls-time government. President Hamid has granted her the permission, she said on Wednesday evening during the 19th session of 9th Parliament. Stating that elections must be held within 90 days ahead of the end of her government’s tenure, the premier said: “Election is nearing.

We invite you to read the full article published November 20, 2013

When I arrived at the Capitol in 2007 to take my oath as a new member of the U.S. House of Representatives, I had the privilege of filling the seat held for so long and so well by my friend Patsy Takemoto Mink, the first Asian-American woman elected to Congress. I was so grateful to her.
I felt Patsy’s presence when I cast my first vote in Congress, which was to elect Nancy Pelosi as speaker of the House. I rose and said, “In memory of Patsy Mink, I cast my vote for Nancy Pelosi.”

Almost 10 years ago, in early spring 2004, I was one of 14 women appointed to the House of Lords. At the same time, 33 men were appointed.