Tropical cyclone Nargis made landfall on 2 May 2008 causing catastrophic destruction along the heavily populated Irrawaddy delta of Burma. The International Committee of the Red Cross estimates between 68,833 and 127,990 people have died and approximately 2.5 million people have been affected by the cyclone and its aftermath. Burma’s military junta has blocked aid efforts and refused the majority of international assistance altogether. Rescuers and aid workers have not been able to provide life saving assistance to thousands of cyclone survivors. "Our biggest fear is that the aftermath could be more lethal than the storm itself," said Caryl Stern, head of the U.N. Children's Fund.

Washington, DC

The solutions to climate change must recognize the disproportionate impact of climate change on the world's poor and the important role of women in managing key resources, including forests. This was the message delivered by Nobel Laureates Wangari Maathai and Jody Williams in meetings yesterday with US legislators and a public dialogue that brought together more than 400 environmental activists, researchers and representatives of international development groups.

“As long as the US refuses to commit to leadership on climate change, other countries will hide behind it,” said Maathai, who won the Nobel Peace Prize for her work linking environmental conservation to peace and human rights.  “The US is the world’s biggest polluter, and has a responsibility to help developing countries and women in particular deal with the impact of global warming.”

From 4-6 May, Nobel Peace Laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire joined other intellectuals and cultural figures at the Global Article 9 Conference to Abolish War in Tokyo, Japan. Maguire spoke on behalf of the Nobel Women's Initiative during the opening plenary session on 4 May.

We at the Nobel Women's Initiative believe that genuine peace and human security is a product of legislation such as Article 9. Peace and militarism cannot coexist.

After nine days in detention, Khadijeh Moghaddam, women’s rights activist and member of Change for Equality's One Million Signatures Campaign, was finally released the afternoon of 16 April.
 
On 8 April, Moghaddam was arrested by Iranian security forces. The forces forcibly entered her home with charges of "spreading of propaganda against the state; disruption of public opinion; and actions against national security." Moghaddam was being detained at Vozara Detention Center, with bail set at 100 Million Tomans (approx. $110,000). She was transfered to Evin prison on 15 April, after her bail was reduced to a third party guarantee.

The Nobel Women's Initiative stands in solidarity with the Iranian women's rights movement. The brave efforts by the One Million Signatures Campaign to defend and advance women's rights in Iran must not be criminalized. We condemn any action by the Iranian authorities aimed at suppressing the women's rights movement. 

Nobel Women's Initiative Laureate, Shirin Ebadi, has reported an increase in death threats against her and her family. Ebadi has reported death threats before. However, in recent days the threats have escalated. One note left at her office on 3 April said, "your death is near."

On 14 April, Ebadi sent a letter to Iran's police chief requesting immediate inquiry into the threats. According to recent news, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called for police protection and an investigation.

The Nobel Women's Initiative condemns these threats. We support our sister Laureate in her pursuit of human rights in Iran and urge the Government of Iran to protect the safety of Shirin Ebadi and her family.

On 10 April 2008 Nobel Peace Laureate Wangari Maathai announced her decision to withdraw her participation in the Olympic Torch Relay set for Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on Sunday, 13 April 2008. 

Explaining her decision in a statement read in Dar es Salaam, Professor Maathai cited concerns about China's crackdown in Tibet, and its ongoing political, economic and military support for the brutal regimes in Burma and Sudan.  She also acknowledged the important initiatives taken by China to create a "green Olympics".

During this public event, women Nobel Peace Laureates and co-founders of the Nobel Women's Initiative, Wangari Maathai and Jody Williams, will discuss their vision of ‘climate justice’ – an approach to climate change that recognizes differential responsibilities for developed and developing countries, and puts the rights of people, especially women, at the centre of the climate debate. Pat Mitchell, President of The Paley Center for Media and the former President and CEO of Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), will moderate.

In February Parvin Ardalan was awarded the Olof Palme Prize for 2007 for succeeding in making the demand for equal rights for men and women a central part of the struggle for democracy in Iran. Since then the prominent activist has been summoned to court at least three times on various charges. 

Ardalan was even barred from leaving Iran to travel to Sweden to accept the Olof Palme Prize. She had already boarded the plane when security agents removed her. Authorities confiscated her passport and a travel ban against her remains intact.

Ardalan is a journalist and one of the founding members of the One Million Signatures Campaign, which aims to collect 1 million signatures in support of changing Iran's discriminatory laws against women. In the past, she has been interrogated several times and detained as a result of her writings and activism.

Over the past week, Tibet has experienced the worst violence it has seen in over 20 years. The Nobel Women's Initiative has sent an open letter to Chinese President Hu Jintao in solidarity with Tibet's spiritual leader, fellow laureate, His Holiness the Dalai Lama. The Dalai Lama continues to be adamantly opposed to violence, and denounces the brutality of recent protesters and government officials. We urge the government to reject the use of violence and to engage in meaningful dialogue with the men and women of Tibet.

Copies of the open letter were also sent to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, U.S. President George W. Bush, and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. 
 

The Nobel Women's Initiative partnered with Swedish women's organization, Kvinna Till Kvinna, in calling for meaningful inclusion of women in the Darfur peace negotiations. 

In a letter to UN Special Envoy to Darfur, Jan Eliasson, sent March 6, 2008, Mairead Corrigan Maguire, Betty Williams, Jody Williams and Lena Ag of Kvinna Till Kvinna sent a strong message about the importance of women's full participation in the peace talks.  "No peace agreement will be just or sustainable if women’s voices are not heard." The letter called for women's voices at the peace table, and justice and reparations for the victims of atrocities, including sexual violence.

The authors also congratulated Ambassador Eliasson on his outreach to women's organizations in Sudan, and offered their support for his work. 

To read the full letter, click here.   

To read the Sudanese Women's Statement on Darfur, click here.