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Perilous conditions for pregnant women displaced in northern Syria
A surge in violence in Syria’s northern Afrin region has triggered a mass displacement of the civilian population, with an estimated 98,000 people fleeing as the hostilities approached Afrin City. The humanitarian…
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Violence knows no borders: Leaders, activists take on horrors of gender-based violence
Leaders and youth advocates gathered in New York on Tuesday to discuss how to work together to end violence against women and girls, the most prevalent human rights violation in the world. The event, Violence Knows No…
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New generation of women saying: “Not yet”
Kyae Nai, 23, has been married for two years and has one young child, in north-western Myanmar. “I want another child,” she said. “But not yet.”
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The rise of a girl hero
In her home district in far-western Nepal, 19-year-old Sangita BK needs no introduction. She is well-known as an activist against child marriage. In the last three years, she has – on her own – stopped at least a dozen…
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In Indonesia, family support groups tackle roots of gender violence
JAYAPURA, Indonesia – “My daughter used to hide all sorts of things from me,” said Martina, 41, at a support group session in Jayapura, in the far-eastern Indonesian province of West Papua. “But here, we learn to talk…
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Courageous girls change attitudes about FGM in Ethiopia
Genet Girma, 31, was a trailblazer in her community. Fifteen years ago, she ran away from home when she learned that her mother planned to have her undergo female genital mutilation (FGM). As in many other communities…
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Sheltering teen moms: Emergency home offers crisis care in Thailand
Mon* began dating her boyfriend when she was 14 years old. They met online. A few months in, "he wanted to have sex," she recalled. "He did not use any protection. I was scared at first, but he said he…
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Dispatches from the road: UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador Ashley Judd on the horrors facing Rohingya refugees
In mid-February, humanitarian advocate, writer and actor Ashley Judd travelled to Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh to meet Rohingya refugees who have escaped violence in Myanmar’s Rakhine State. There, she visited UNFPA-…
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Mayon volcano eruption displaces pregnant women and new mothers in Philippines
“I was washing clothes near my house when I heard the eruption from Mayon Volcano,” Jiassal Balatinsayo told UNFPA. Eight months pregnant and residing just over 6 km from the volcano erupting in the village of Santa…
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