Women from various African countries gathered at Mt. Kilimanjaro to demand land rights Saturday during observations of International Day of Rural Women [official website]. The protest, dubbed the “Kilimanjaro initiative,” is an attempt [HRW report] to bring attention to the denial of land rights and unequal treatment women are facing in various sectors. Uniting behind the social media campaign #Women2Kilimanjaro [twitter link], the women united to force governments to protect law and policies that promote the rights of women. The women also circulated a petition [text, French] that will be delivered to various leaders in the coming days.

The rights of women and girls continue to be something governments struggle to address. In September UN human rights expert Dubravka Šimonović called [JURIST report] for women to participate in a new peace process between Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). In June the UN Working Group on Discrimination against Women in Law called [JURIST report] on the world’s governments to take quick, effective steps towards ensuring women are granted equal rights to health, including reproductive and sexual health. The governments of Gambia and Tanzania in July announced [JURIST report] the end of the practice of child marriage along with prison sentences for those who continue the tradition.