Reproductive Health Matters articles from May 2007

Reproductive Health Matters archives from May 2007

Taking on the opposition, male circumcision and other themes.(Editorial)
May 1, 2007... THIS journal issue has at least two themes. The originally announced theme is about strategies for taking on the opposition to sexual and reproductive health and rights. Not surprisingly, abortion is the subject of several of the papers....

Male circumcision for HIV prevention: the research evidence and some critical responses.(ROUNDTABLE)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... Introduction: Three randomised clinical trials, in South Africa, Uganda and Kenya, have shown a substantial reduction in female-to-male transmission of HIV to men who had been circumcised as compared to men who had not, during a follow-up...

Male circumcision for HIV prevention: research implications for policy and programming WHO/UNAIDS technical consultation 6-8 March 2007 conclusions and recommendations (excerpts).(ROUNDTABLE)(Conference news)
May 1, 2007... Introduction A number of observational studies indicate that circumcised men have lower levels of HIV infection than uncircumcised men. * On 13 December 2006, the US National Institutes of Health announced that two trials assessing the...

"Just a snip"?: a social history of male circumcision.(ROUNDTABLE)
May 1, 2007... THE last seven years have seen growing advocacy for male circumcision as a means of HIV prevention, commencing first among public health specialists working mainly in the USA, then among some of those working in international organisations, and...

"You can also cut my finger!": Social construction of male circumcision in West Africa, a case study of Senegal and Guinea-Bissau.(ROUNDTABLE)
May 1, 2007... THE aim of this study was to contribute to the current debate on male circumcision through an analysis of the cultural concepts, practices and social relations associated with male circumcision in two West African countries, Senegal and...

Male circumcision and HIV prevention: is there really enough of the right kind of evidence?(ROUNDTABLE)
May 1, 2007... AT the XVI International Conference on AIDS in Toronto in August 2006, assurances that the world was succeeding in fighting AIDS appeared shaky, or at least part of a new positive global "spin" provided by the international agencies and the new...

Male circumcision for HIV prevention: perspectives on gender and sexuality.(ROUNDTABLE)
May 1, 2007... FOR more than a decade, those working in the field of sexual and reproductive health have been calling for "male involvement" of various kinds. When men are actually expected to do something specific, however, the success rates have been very...

Male circumcision, in so many words ...(ROUNDTABLE)
May 1, 2007... INTEREST in male circumcision as an HIV prevention intervention is focused on the promise it holds to reduce the risk of HIV infection for men engaged in heterosexual, vaginal intercourse. Following an international consultation on 6-8 March...

The new evidence on male circumcision: an Indian perspective.(ROUNDTABLE)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... THE detection of the first cluster of sex workers with HIV in India was in 1986, and Phase I of the National AIDS Control Programme of India was launched in 1992. Although the estimated number of those infected is second only to South Africa,...

Delivery of male circumcision services: "Festina lente" .(ROUNDTABLE)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... THREE randomised clinical trials on the effects of male circumcision on HIV acquisition in men have been stopped by their data safety and management boards as the interim analyses showed a large protective effect, in the range of 50 to 60%....

Male circumcision: implications for women as sexual partners and parents.(ROUNDTABLE)
May 1, 2007... TWENTY years of observational data demonstrating an association between male circumcision and lower HIV prevalence followed the first publications in 1986 suggesting a possible role for male circumcision in HIV prevention. (1,2) However,...

Sexually transmitted infection management, safer sex promotion and voluntary HIV counselling and testing in the male circumcision trial, Rakai, Uganda.(ROUNDTABLE)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... RECENT randomised clinical trials on the efficacy of male circumcision show that medically performed adult male circumcision can be safe and efficacious in reducing the sexual transmission of HIV from HIV-infected women to their HIV-uninfected...

Abortion and Islam: policies and practice in the Middle East and North Africa.
May 1, 2007... Abstract: This paper provides an overview of legal, religious, medical and social factors that serve to support or hinder women's access to safe abortion services in the 21 predominantly Muslim countries of the Middle East and North Africa...

Abortion in democratic Spain: the parliamentary political agenda 1979-2004.
May 1, 2007... Abstract: Since Spain's transition to democracy, abortion has been a public policy issue both inside and outside parliament. This paper describes the history of abortion law reform in Spain from 1979 to 2004 and analyses the discourse on...

Knowledge and perception of abortion and the abortion law in Trinidad and Tobago.(Survey)
May 1, 2007... Abstract: As for most of its Caribbean neighbours, Trinidad and Tobago's leading cause of maternal morbidity is unsafe abortion. Yet activism to introduce public policy and legislation that effectively address this aspect of women's...

Sexual and reproductive health needs of sex workers: two feminist projects in Brazil.
May 1, 2007... Abstract: The sexual and reproductive health needs of sex workers have been neglected both in research and public health interventions, which have almost exclusively focused on STI/HIV prevention. Among the reasons for this are the...

Building coalitions to support women's health and rights in the United States: South Carolina and Florida.
May 1, 2007... Abstract: There is a health care crisis in the United States and women, particularly low-income women and women of colour, are paying the price. The politicisation of pregnancy, sexuality and women's reproductive rights has created a uniquely...

Emergency contraception under attack in Latin America: response of the medical establishment and civil society.
May 1, 2007... Abstract: The concept that it is possible to prevent a pregnancy after coitus is not new, but has gained prominence over the last 10-15 years. It provides a second chance to women who do not want to get pregnant and who, voluntarily or not,...

Emergency contraception in Peru: shifting government and donor policies and influences.
May 1, 2007... Abstract: Inclusion of emergency contraception in national family planning programmes is consistent with international agreements that countries should strive to ensure access to a wide range of contraceptive methods and promote voluntary,...

Legislating against sexual violence in Kenya: an interview with the Hon. Njoki Ndungu.(Interview)
May 1, 2007... Abstract: Sexual violence is rampant in Kenya and the law was not adequately dealing with it. This is an interview by the Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID) with the Hon. Njoki Ndungu, a Member of the Kenyan Parliament. It is...

Lost: illegal abortion stories.(BOOKSHELF)(Book review)
May 1, 2007... It's an awe-inspiring force, the iron determination of a woman who refuses to bear a child that she knows she cannot mother. Down through the ages, no religious anathema, no legal proscription has been able to weaken the adamantine power of her...

Excerpts of the constitutional court's ruling that liberalized abortion in Colombia: Women's Link Worldwide, 2007.(Excerpt)
May 1, 2007... THE May 10, 2006 decision of the Constitutional Court of Colombia, which extended the grounds for legal abortion, is historic. The Court decided, in case C-355/06, that the criminal prohibition of abortion in all circumstances violates women's...

The commodification of obstetric ultrasound scanning in Hanoi, Viet Nam.
May 1, 2007... Abstract: Growing numbers of pregnant women across the world now routinely have ultrasound scans as part of antenatal care, including in low-income countries. This article presents the findings of anthropological research on the use of...

Situation analysis of quality of abortion care in the main maternity hospital in Hai Phong, Viet Nam.(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... Abstract: Six months after a Comprehensive Abortion Care project was implemented in Phu-San Hospital, the main maternity hospital in Hai Phong, northern Viet Nam, a study of quality of abortion services was carried out. The study explored the...

Are monthly menstrual periods optional?: a European perspective.(DISCUSSION)
May 1, 2007... Abstract: Throughout human history, women have experienced menstruation, whether as a positive or a negative experience. The timing of periods was impossible to predict or to change. For the first rime in human history, hormonal contraception...

Targeting access to reproductive health: giving contraception more prominence and using indicators to monitor progress.(ISSUES IN CURRENT POLICY)
May 1, 2007... Abstract: Unmet need for contraception represents a major failure in the provision of reproductive health services and reflects the extent of access to services for spacing and limiting births, which are also affected by personal, partner,...

Use of unsafe condoms and unsafe use of good condoms.(Letter to the editor)
May 1, 2007... FOLLOWING from the article on unsafe condoms and other unsafe sex accessories by Ditmore and Neth in your November 2006 journal, (1) I would like to point out that the practice of unsafe use of good quality condoms is also an issue that needs...

Ensuring access to HPV vaccines.(ROUND UP: Human Papillomavirus Vaccination)
May 1, 2007... The greatest burden of cervical cancer is in developing countries, where more than 80% of cases and more than 90% of deaths caused by cervical cancer occur, largely due to lack of screening. A meta-analysis of 57 studies found that there was an...

What about vaccinating boys? And should HPV vaccination be mandatory?(ROUND UP: Human Papillomavirus Vaccination)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... A Lancet editorial has called for urgent publication of data from trials of the HPV vaccine in boys as sex-specific vaccination programmes will be at most 75% as effective as programmes targeting both sexes. In the meantime, it says European...

Guidance on the introduction of HPV vaccination programmes.(ROUND UP: Human Papillomavirus Vaccination)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... This guidance note is based on a UNFPA/WHO Technical Consultation on HPV Vaccines and Sexual and Reproductive Health Programmes held in March 2006. It outlines the key issues for those working in sexual and reproductive health, immunisation,...

HPV vaccination position statement, USA.(ROUND UP: Human Papillomavirus Vaccination)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... The recommendations on HPV vaccination of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have been supported in a position statement of the US Society for Adolescent Medicine. In June 2006,...

HPV vaccination and cervical cancer screening.(ROUND UP: Human Papillomavirus Vaccination)
May 1, 2007... Covering the work of over 100 authors, this special supplement of the journal Vaccine provides a summary of the literature on many different aspects of HPV vaccines and cervical cancer. The supplement is divided into six main sections: HPV as a...

Maximising the benefits of HPV vaccination.(ROUND UP: Human Papillomavirus Vaccination)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... The US Food and Drug Administration has recently approved vaccines targeted at HPV types 6 and 11 (accounting for 90% of genital warts), and 16 and 18 (accounting for 70% of cervical cancer) and is expected to approve further vaccines. This...

Human papillomavirus types in women with HIV.(ROUND UP: Human Papillomavirus Vaccination)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... A meta-analysis of 20 studies involving a total of 5,578 HIV positive women, largely in North America, but also in Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America, found 36.3% prevalence for any HPV type and 11.9% prevalence for multiple types in 3,230...

Canadian government includes $258 million in budget for HPV vaccination.(ROUND UP: Human Papillomavirus Vaccination)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... The Canadian government announced that it is including about $258 million in the 2007-2008 budget to help pay for provincial HPV vaccination programmes. Canada's National Advisory Committee on Immunization has recommended that girls ages 9-13...

Nevirapine safe for HIV positive women for PMTCT: Zambia and Botswana studies.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... The World Health Organization has reaffirmed its support for the use of nevirapine following a new Zambian study into the effects of the drug on HIV positive women. The study by the Zambian Centre for Infectious Disease Research examined 4,552...

Reduction in perinatal transmission of HIV.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... A new UNICEF report shows that only 9% of HIV positive pregnant women in low- and middle-income countries worldwide received antiretroviral drugs in 2005 that could prevent perinatal HIV transmission, an increase from 3% in 2003. The agreed...

Breastfeeding does not contribute to mortality among HIV-positive women in Kenya.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Brief article)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... A prospective cohort study comparing 198 HIV positive Kenyan women who breastfed and 98 who formula-fed found no increased risk of overall mortality after two years. But the breastfeeding women had faster CD4 and body mass index declines. In a...

Safety of formula-feeding for HIV uninfected infants: Cote d'Ivoire.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... A study among infants of HIV-positive mothers in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire, looked at safety of infant feeding interventions aimed at reducing mother-to-child HIV transmission in Africa (either formula feeding or shortened breastfeeding). At...

Impact of HIV and highly active antiretroviral therapy on menstruation.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... 1,635 HIV positive women and 595 HIV negative women in several US cries were recruited into a multicentre prospective cohort study to find out whether HW and highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) increased the risk of changes in the...

Reduced fertility among HIV-positive women with high viral load, Uganda.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... This study assessed whether HIV-1 viral load affects the likelihood of live birth among HIV-positive women in a nested case-control study of HIV positive women from a community cohort in Rakai District, Uganda. Cases were women who had a live...

Sexual dysfunction in men and women living with HIV: UK.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Men living with HIV who are on successful antiretroviral treatment expect to lead full lives, including in their sex lives, but may experience sexual dysfunction. This was a retrospective study in 190 consecutive HIV positive men attending a...

Recurrence of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia in HIV-positive women.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... A literature search of Medline and the Cochrane libraries found 15 articles on the rate of recurrence of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) in HIV-positive women after excision of affected tissue and a margin of normal tissue. Of these 15...

Sexual networking patterns and HIV risk in four provinces of Viet Nam.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... This is a study of patterns and determinants of HIV prevalence and risk behaviour characteristics in four population groups--female sex workers (n=2023), injecting drug users (n=1391), unmarried men aged 15-24 (n=1885) and different categories...

Brothel-based sexual health clinic for sex workers: South Africa.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... Conventional health services often present barriers to sex workers seeking health care; sex workers fear that they will be refused services and may experience public humiliation by health workers. Brothel-based clinical services were...

Sexual health of people with HIV: new UK STI guidelines.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(sexually transmitted infections)
May 1, 2007... There is a recognised synergy between STIs and HIV that may enhance transmission of both, and evidence that improved STI control, e.g. periodic presumptive treatment as well as syndromic management in sex workers, (1) reduces HIV spread....

Partner violence and HIV risk behaviour among young men: South Africa.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... Interviews with 1,275 sexually experienced young men aged 15-26 from 70 villages in the rural Eastern Cape, South Africa, found that 31.8% reported physical or sexual violence against female main partners. Violence was correlated with higher...

Partner reduction vital in fight against HIV.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... This commentary argues that it is time to call an armistice in the battle between condom promotion and abstinence for HIV prevention. Abstinence messages alone are not effective. However, condoms do not provide a total solution. Research from...

Improving contraceptive delivery to women with HIV: Kenya.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... 319 pregnant women with HIV participating in a perinatal HIV transmission study were referred to local clinics for contraceptive counselling and management and followed prospectively. Median time to sexual activity post-partum was two months....

Hormonal contraception and risk of HIV acquisition: Uganda and Zimbabwe.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... This study among 6,109 HIV-negative women recruited from family planning clinics who were using either Depo Provera or combined oral contraception in Uganda and Zimbabwe tested the women quarterly for HIV over 15-24 months. 213 women became HIV...

Treatment of herpes simplex virus reduces genital shedding of HIV.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... Epidemiologic and biologic data support a strong association between herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) and infection with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). A recent meta-analysis of prospective observational studies showed that...

HIV/STI prevention for men who have sex with men, Kenya.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(sexually transmitted infections)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... The stigmatisation and denial of homosexual behaviour in Africa can mean that vulnerable populations are overlooked in HIV/STI prevention programmes. Researchers sought to understand the extent to which men who have sex with men in Kenya are at...

Cellulose sulfate microbicide trial stopped.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... A Phase III study of the candidate microbicide cellulose sulfate to prevent HIV transmission in women has been stopped prematurely because of a high number of HIV infections in the active as compared with the placebo group. This is a...

A condom named "NYC".(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... With the government's imprimatur and a condom wrapper inspired by New York's subways, city workers and volunteers in New York City handed out more than 150,000 condoms at numerous subway stations across the city on 14 February, Valentine's Day....

"No glove, no love" in Kenya.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Survey)
May 1, 2007... Kenya has a national HIV prevalence of 5.9%. Prevalence in young women is 7.7%, almost twice as high as in young men of the same age. However, recent research shows that HIV prevention messages disseminated in schools and via the media and...

Campaign for men to protect their wives from HIV in India.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... A national campaign launched by the human rights organisation Breakthrough in India asks men to wear condoms to protect their wives from HIV. Two million women in India are estimated to have HIV, most of whom got it from their husbands. The...

Review of sexual behaviour data from 59 countries.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... This paper presents analyses of sexual behaviour data for the 59 countries where it was available. Gaps in data from the Middle East and Asia were found. Trends towards earlier sexual experience were less pronounced and widespread than is...

Japan uses the most condoms.(ROUND UP: Condoms)
May 1, 2007... Japan uses 1.624 billion condoms a year, 58% of all condoms produced worldwide. (1) (1.) Factfile. Metro (UK). 1 November 2006.

Consistent condom use decreases HPV risk in women.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(human papillomavirus)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... A study of 82 women students aged 18-22 who were newly sexually active or sexually inexperienced found that the more consistently their male partners used condoms, the less likely they were to get human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. The...

Condom merchandising to increase consistent use in US.(ROUND UP: Condoms)
May 1, 2007... Despite high HIV incidence in the US and general awareness of the protection from condom use, many sexually active adults use condoms inconsistently. Condom availability is strongly related to condom use, but most research into condom...

Erection loss, condom use and risk behaviour in the US.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... 278 men attending an STI clinic who had used a condom during penile-vaginal sex at least three times in the past three months were asked to complete an anonymous questionnaire. The men were asked to report on how they used condoms, how...

Condom acceptability in Mexico, South Africa and Thailand.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2007... Researchers evaluated the PATH women's condom which was created after six years of research and development. 60 couples in three sites in Mexico, South Africa and Thailand were recruited. All were in good general and genital health, monogamous,...

Female condom use: a literature review.(ROUND UP: Condoms)
May 1, 2007... This systematic literature review of 137 articles on female condom use covered acceptability, use, re-use, negotiation, facilitators and barriers to use, efficacy and effectiveness, and promotion. Female condoms reach those unlikely to use...

The Mexican Supreme Court and abortion.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)
May 1, 2007... In August 2000, under the lead of the Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), the Legislative Assembly of Mexico City reformed the Penal Code and related procedures to admit new forms of legal abortion and to create a procedure for the provision...

Confidentiality owed to adolescents: UK case law.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)
May 1, 2007... In the 2006 UK court case Axon v. Secretary of State (1,2) the high court judge affirmed health professionals' obligation to protect the confidentiality of patients under the age of 16 in relation to advice and/or treatment on contraception,...

Women compensated for cost of private abortions in Quebec, Canada.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... A court in Quebec has ruled that 45,000 women should be reimbursed for money they spent paying for abortion services at private clinics. Under the Quebec Health Insurance Act the government is responsible for funding abortion, but chose to...

Fetal pain: a review of the evidence, UK.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... In a review of evidence on fetal pain, the writer finds that the existing evidence is scientifically unsound and and that it is inaccurate to claim that fetuses can feel pain. Legal or clinical mandates for the prevention of such pain during...

Abortion ban passed; first pregnant woman dies, Nicaragua.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... The Nicaraguan Parliament passed a law banning all abortions, including those to save the woman's life. The bill allows for jail sentences of 6-30 years for women and providers who terminate their pregnancies. It has been condemned by human...

Global control of sexually transmitted infections.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Health policy and practice needs to prioritise effective control of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) alongside HIV, according to the authors of this article in this special Sexual and Reproductive Health series. Combating HIV is now a...

Family planning: an urgent global priority.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... The international agenda on family planning urgently needs to be revitalised. Family planning with its potential to bring enormous benefits including reductions in poverty, child and maternal mortality, empowerment of women and increasing...

Legal abortion for mental health indications.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Where legal systems allow therapeutic abortion to preserve women's mental health, abortion providers often lack access to mental health professionals for making diagnoses regarding mental health effects of unwanted pregnancy in particular...

Guidelines for providing abortion for medico-legal indications in Uruguay.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Ministry of Public Health)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... In 2004, Uruguay's Ministry of Public Health issued Ordinance 369/04 to adopt a health care protocol developed by Iniciativas Sanitarias contra el aborto provocado en condiciones de riesgo (Health Initiatives against Unsafe Abortion) as an...

Guidance on providing legal abortion in Peru.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Ministry of Health)
May 1, 2007... In 2005, a 17-year old girl in Lima, Peru, was 14 weeks pregnant when ultrasound diagnosed an anencephalic fetus. An obstetrician-gynecologist found danger to the girl's life and, with the support of her mother, recommended abortion. A...

Promoting motherhood in Estonia.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Estonia has a low fertility rate and one of the world's fastest ageing populations. Financial incentives provided by the Estonian government to boost the fertility rate have achieved an increase from 1.3 to 1.5 since 2004. The government has...

Oocyte donation, ethical issues.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... An increase in oocyte donation from poorer to more affluent countries creates a number of ethical issues. Transnational oocyte donation can result in cost savings, shorten waiting lists and solve the shortage of donor eggs in Western countries....

Regulation of assisted reproductive technology as regards embryos: UK and Australia.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... This exploratory discussion paper looks at the possibility of reframing regulation of assisted reproduction away from its focus on the embryo. This could more closely align biological and legal understandings and ensure that the legislation and...

Releasing identifying information about sperm donors in Australia.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... In the context of new legislation permitting mature donor offspring to obtain identifying information about their donors, research was carried out in Western Australia to assess the opinions of potential sperm donors, recipients and partners on...

Italians seek assisted reproduction procedures abroad.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... A law passed in Italy in January 2004 restricting assisted reproduction techniques and pre-implantation implantation genetic testing has led to a fourfold increase in Italians travelling to access procedures in clinics abroad. Clinics in...

Stop Press: Polish woman wins damages at European Court of Human Rights.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Alicja Tysiac)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... The European Court of Human Rights has awarded Alicja Tysiac, age 35, of Poland 25,000 [euro] in dam ages from the Polish government. She was refused an abortion in 2000 despite warnings by three eye specialists that continuing the pregnancy...

Campaign against post-war sexual violence in Liberia.(ROUND UP: Advocacy)
May 1, 2007... Rising levels of reported rape and sexual exploitation of women and teenage girls in Liberia have sparked concern by both the government and women's fights groups. Despite a peace agreement in 2003 that ended the brutal 14-year civil war,...

Health reform in Arab countries.(ROUND UP: Advocacy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Using examples from Lebanon, Palestine and Syria, this opinion piece sets out the economic, political, social, structural and cultural context for discussion of public health in Arab countries. The authors argue that getting health on the...

Peer education programme tackles homophobia in Canada.(ROUND UP: Advocacy)(Teens Educating and Confronting Homophobia)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Teens Educating and Confronting Homophobia (TEACH) is a programme of peer education provided by Planned Parenthood of Toronto which aims to address homophobia and heterosexism by working with young people in schools and through outreach work....

Safe and legal campaign for abortion rights launched in Ireland.(ROUND UP: Advocacy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Safe and Legal, Ireland's abortion rights campaign, was launched in October 2006. The campaign seeks to raise awareness, fight stigma and realise fights for the 6,000 Irish women who travel to Britain to have an abortion each year. The Safe and...

Drama-based intervention promotes HIV testing in South Africa.(ROUND UP: Advocacy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Low-cost drama has been used to increase the uptake of voluntary counselling and testing for HIV. Five young adults (two male and three female) were recruited from a mainly Xhosa-speaking township outside Cape Town. They worked with educators,...