Siyanda Update:
Issue No. 8, January 2003
http://www.siyanda.org/
Past issues of the update available at: http://www.siyanda.org/archive.htm
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INDEX:
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I. Database Highlights: Resources on Islam and Feminism
II. Partner Profile: AWID
III. Websites of Interest: WLUML and AMEWS
IV. Call for Contributions:Global Sex and Gender Issue-New deadline for submission
V. Announcements: New MA Programme in Gender and Peace Studies and New Gender Equity in Health Advocacy Pack
VI. Siyanda website: User survey and website redesign

I. Database Highlights: Resources on Islam and Feminism
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- Dismantling Bridges, Building Solidarity: Reconciling Western and Arab Feminisms, Basarudin, Azza, 2002
This paper examines how Arab women are marginalized within the sphere of Western feminism and calls for cross-cultural dialogue between the two.
http://www.siyanda.org/static/basarudin_azza.htm

- Islamic Feminism: What's in a Name? Badran, Margot, 2002
Islamic feminism's key argument is that Islam's fundamental and central holy text, the Qu'ran, affirms the equality of all human beings. However, the interpretation of this text has been patriarchal.
http://www.siyanda.org/static/badran_islamicfem.htm

- Islamic Feminism and Its Discontents: Toward a Resolution of the Debate, Moghadam, Valentine, 2002
This article examines the heated debates among expatriate Iranian feminists and leftists on the issue of Islamic feminism.
http://www.siyanda.org/static/moghadam_discon.htm

- The Politics of Feminism in Islam, Majid, Anouar, 2002
A paper that examines discourses of feminism in the Islamic world and explores indigenous models of emancipation for Muslim women.
http://www.siyanda.org/static/majid_polfem.htm

- Islamic Feminism: Perils and Promises, Tohidi, Nayereh, 2002
This paper describes how Islamic Feminism has provided a feminist reinterpretation of Islamic texts together with an alternative view of modernity from that presented by Western feminism.
http://www.siyanda.org/static/tohidi_islamicperils.htm

- Muslim Feminism and Feminist Movement: Africa, Samiuddin, Abida and R. Khanam, R., 2002
This book explores the development of Islamic feminism and the feminist movement in African countries.
http://www.siyanda.org/static/samiuddin_femmovsa.htm

- Islamic Feminism? What’s In A Name? Preliminary Reflections, Abou-Bakr, Omaima, 2001
Islam and feminism are not contradictory. However, Muslim women claiming their rights have different views on if, or how to call themselves 'Islamic feminists'.
http://www.siyanda.org/static/abou_baker_islamicfem.htm

(Summaries were written by various members of the BRIDGE Team)

More Siyanda resources on Islamic Feminism can be found here:
http://www.siyanda.org/Search/ (type "islam" in the keywords field)

II. Partner Profile*: AWID
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The Association for Women's Rights in Development
http://www.awid.org/

The Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID) is an international membership organization connecting, informing and mobilizing people and organizations committed to achieving gender equality, sustainable development and women's human rights.

Please find below a selection of AWID's publications in the Siyanda database:
- A Rights-based Approach to Development, 2002, Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID)
- The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women and the Optional Protocol, 2002, Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID)
- The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

To access these publications, please go to:
http://www.siyanda.org/Search/ and type the word "awid" in the keywords box.

You can contact AWID at:
96 Spadina Ave. Suite 401
Toronto, ON Canada
M5V 2J6
Telephone: (416) 594-3773
Fax: (416) 594-0330
E-mail: awid@awid.org

(*Partner organisations are those whose publications are featured on the Siyanda database).

III. Websites of Interest: WLUML and AMEWS
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- Women Living Under Muslim Laws
http://www.wluml.org/
WLUML is an international Network that provides information, solidarity and support for all women whose lives are shaped, conditioned or governed by laws and customs said to derive from Islam. The Network aims to increase the autonomy of women by supporting the local struggles of women from within Muslim countries and linking them with feminist and progressive groups at large.

- The Association for Middle East Women's Studies
http://www.amews.org/
AMEWS is a private, non-profit, non-political, international organization of scholars and other persons interested in the study of women in the Middle East. The objectives of the Association are to advance research in this area. AMEWS is an affiliated organization of the Middle East Studies Association of North America, Inc.

IV. Call for Contributions: Global Sex and Gender Issue-New deadline for submission
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Parallax: The Journal of Ethics and Globalisation, seeks articles for its December 1st 2003 Global Sex and Gender issue that examines how globalisation has affected conceptions of sex and gender in all societies of the world, and, likewise, how conceptions of sex and gender as well as the manifestations of these conceptions have affected globalisation.

Parallax welcomes contributors from any field, with any background and with any view. Articles do not necessarily need to be submitted by an individual; an organisation as a whole may submit its views to Parallax as well. Pieces can be of any length. Features are generally 2500 to 4000 words and section or opinion pieces 500 to 2000 words. Parallax understands that not all contributors will have prior writing experience, online or otherwise. Our editing team would be pleased to assist contributors in preparing a piece for publication. Parallax will not publish libel or any other illegal content. Parallax relies on volunteer contributions; writers may retain copyright on their work.

To contribute to Parallax's Global Sex and Gender issue, please send an e-mail query and/or article abstract to contribute@parallaxonline.org. Deadline is February 28, 2003.

V. Announcements:
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New MA Programme in Gender and Peace Studies-Costa Rica
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The Department for Gender and Peace Studies at the University for Peace announced the Master of Arts Degree in Gender and Peace Building (in English), beginning in September of 2003. The Programme will include subjects such as Cultures and Cultural Transformation: from a Culture of War to a Culture of Peace; Strategies of Inclusion and Exclusion: Diverse Human Groups; and Human Security from the Gender Perspective. With the support of the government of Finland, a limited number of scholarships are available to students who demonstrate financial need along with superior academic skills and experience within the field of gender.

For more information on the Department, including an application form contact the Office for Academic Administration at:
University for Peace
Apdo. 138-6100
Ciudad Colon, Costa Rica
Tel: +506-205-9000
Fax: +506-249-1324
E-mail: acadmin@upeace.org
http://www.upeace.org/

New Gender Equity in Health Advocacy Pack
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The Women, Health and Development Program announces its new Gender Equity in Health Advocacy Pack! The kit consists of a fact sheet, an issue paper and a PowerPoint presentation, which present the ethical and empirical underpinnings of the effort to incorporate the gender perspective in health policies and programs.

Download the Advocacy Pack at: http://www.paho.org/english/hdp/hdw/advocacykits.htm

VI. Siyanda Website: User survey and website redesign
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The Siyanda website is currently being redesigned as part of an extensive evaluation process. As a final step in this process, we have put together a user survey (forwarded in a separate e-mail), which we ask that you kindly fill-out and return to us no later than February 7th 2003. By filling-out and returning the survey, you are helping us make Siyanda the user-friendly, responsive and informative website that you need. The re-designed website is scheduled to be launched in February 2003.

*We encourage you to send us any relevant information on gender in your country or region for circulation through this update. Comments and suggestions on how to make Siyanda more responsive to your needs and interests are also welcome. Please write to: siyanda@ids.ac.uk. We also invite NGOs working on gender and development to link to the Siyanda website. When you do so, please send us an e-mail so that we can create a reciprocal link*

** The "Siyanda Update" is a monthly newsletter featuring the latest gender mainstreaming resources available on our website http://www.siyanda.org/. Siyanda aims to assist busy gender practitioners with locating essential gender mainstreaming resources, quickly and easily. It is also an interactive space where gender practitioners can share ideas, experiences and resources with like-minded colleagues. To subscribe or unsubscribe from the "Siyanda Update", please go to: http://www.siyanda.org/subscribe.htm **