Bahraini Activist Ghada Jamsheer Participates in the 11th AWID International Forum in Cape Town 14th-17th November 2008.

Bahraini Activist Ghada Jamsheer Participates in the 11th AWID International Forum in Cape Town 14th-17th November, 2008


Bahraini human rights activist, Ghada Jamsheer, took part at the 11th AWID International Forum in Cape Town in the period between 14th-17th November, 2008. The Forum was held with the participation of 2200 women from all over the world, including the Nobel Award winner Shireen Abadi, by an invitation from Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID).

And this year's forum focused on discussing issues of women living under Islamic provisions, common goals and different strategies. The Forum was an opportunity for cooperation and rapprochement of ideas and experiences; There was an opportunity to present national experiences and achievements made by women at the national level and the obstacles that limit the rights and development. The Forum participated in 34 delegations from Muslim countries, and the Forum was formed of NGOs.

The objective of the forum was to highlight the role of Muslim women through the panel defecated for women in Muslim countries, as well as treatments of women, which is crucial to address the status of women on the light of their heritage and values.

The participants were distributed into groups such as: * panel on finance and donors * panel on Forum priority issues * panel on religious fundamentalism and all religions and philosophies, as well as secular philosophy and the mechanism .. under the title " Why secularism in women issues".

This forum was marked by its multi-axis, themes and the most focused effort to examine the situation of women in developing countries such as in African, Latin and Asian countries, in addition to other issues such as women in Islam, which focused on the efforts to examine the sources of Islamic laws involved, and issues of interpretation and what is resulting of a multiplicity of views led to differences and conflicts between the leaders of intellectual trends and sects.

Ghada Jamsheer also participated in a visit to the prison of the former South African President Nelson Mandela in Robbin Island.


Bahrain: Women's Petition Committee
28 November 2008

For more information please contact:

Ghada Jamsheer
Head of the Women's Petition Committee
Tel: 0097339680807

Kingdom of Bahrain