- Women in Switzerland are preparing to strike on Friday, drawing inspiration from a 1991 protest which involved more than half a million. At that time, there were no women in government positions or maternity leave. Friday’s strike aims to address equal pay in the workplace.
- The Scottish Parliament is debating a Census Bill which included a “third option” for self-identification. Labour MSP Jenny Marra said conversations about women’s sex-based rights were necessary and condemned violence and threats against women who wished to have them. Senior MSP Joan McAlpine has been vocal on the issue and accused the government of acting in secret. In The Times, McAlpine writes:
“This advice was hidden on the website. It was never subject to democratic scrutiny. That’s shocking when you think that for 200 years sex was uncomplicated, binary and biological. For most people, it still is.”
- The Australian Human Rights Commission, along with Sport Australia and the Coalition of Major Professional and Participation Sports, released new guidelines “for the inclusion of transgender and gender diverse people in sport.” According to Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins, “Access to sport is a human right for everyone and is really important for social, mental and physical health.”
- In Sudan, paramilitaries are attacking protestors and employing sexual violence. Doctors believe paramilitaries carried out more than 70 rapes during an attack on a protest camp in Khartoum a week ago. In response, social media users, including celebrities such as Rihanna and Cardi B, are showing solidarity and striving to bring awareness via the hashtag #BlueForSudan.