New movement to fight violence against women [Archives:2008/1119/Local News]

SANA'A, Jan. 1 ) A homegrown movement called “Difa'a” has launched within the first few days of this new year with a mission to fight violence against Yemeni women. Meaning “defense” in Arabic, Difa'a was established by several Yemeni activists living both inside and outside Yemen.

“We aim to support Yemeni women, who are violated in everyday life, but most especially during conflicts. We'll monitor the circumstances women are experiencing in Sa'ada, where atrocious violations are occurring, but no one is saying anything about them,” the movement's director Ismail Al-Mutawakil says.

The group also has a web site: www.wr-yemen.org.

In its press release, highlighting the reasons Yemen needs such an organization, the movement cited violations against female journalists, as well as abuses by authorities in women's prisons.
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