Rape a "huge problem" in Afghanistan, U.N. says

Afghan law does not protect rape victims and for too long communities have turned to traditional forms of justice which tend to criminalise victims of a profound problem, the United Nations said on Wednesday.

"This is an issue that is under-reported and to a significant extent concealed, but it is a huge problem in Afghanistan," Norah Niland, the United Nations' human rights representative in Afghanistan, told a panel of Afghan women.

A U.N. report, the full version of which is yet to be published, described rape as an everyday occurence. A summary of the report said that in northern Afghanistan, for example, more than a third of cases analysed showed rapists were directly linked to local leaders who are immune from arrest. Those likely to commit rape are close family members, men who work in prisons or orphanages and men in powerful positions either in state-run institutions or in armed groups and criminal gangs, it said.

Read More at Reuters

UN Poised to Close Gender Gap and Create Women's Agency

The UN is poised to create a powerful new department for women who say they have been sidelined for decades, to rectify a glaring omission in the world body.

Women from developing countries have been let down by the UN, say ministers. Photograph: Martin Godwin/GuardianAdvocates for women's rights are looking for a fully-fledged agency with a budget of $1bn (£639m) on a par with other high-profile UN departments, to address crucial areas such as violence against women, property rights and HIV/Aids.

"The UN record on women has been abysmal," said Stephen Lewis, co-director of Aids-Free World, and an advocate of gender equality. "It has neglected the rights and needs of women everywhere. It's clear to everyone that the marginalisation of women over decades is unacceptable and the best way to correct it is a UN agency like Unicef for children."

Read More At CommonDreams.org

US Signs UN's Declaration to Decriminalize Homosexuality

The Obama administration on Wednesday formally endorsed a U.N. declaration calling for the worldwide decriminalization of homosexuality, a measure that former President George W. Bush had refused to sign.

The move was the administration's latest in reversing Bush-era decisions that have been heavily criticized by human rights and other groups. The United States was the only western nation not to sign onto the declaration when it came up at the U.N. General Assembly in December.

Read More At the Associated Press