Women Affairs

Economic impulses and commercial forces drive globalization, but its impact goes far beyond the economy to affect all facets of social and political life. Powerful commercial interests have given rise to a commercial and commercializing global culture that, it is quite apparent, will not be satisfied until it reaches into the deepest recess of social life. Most recently the commercial global culture has generated a new form of slavery, more brutal and degrading than any form of slavery known thus far. Millions of vulnerable women and unsuspecting children throughout the world, some as young as ten years old, are trapped into a vicious and ugly world of exploitation, disease, and abuse. These children are sold, traded, prostituted, and trafficked under the watching eyes of a world community that has decided to ignore their plight. Most of these sex slaves are kept by their masters until their commercial value deteriorates as a result of their deteriorating health conditions with the a...

A mother in Tainan County, southern Taiwan, was found to have allegedly forced her three young daughters to serve as prostitutes for more than two years. The woman and five patrons were arrested and questioned by police just before Chinese New Year, local news media reported yesterday. The illegal operation was exposed after the eldest daughter, now aged 13, told her school teacher several days before Chinese New Year's Eve on Feb. 6. The student said that since October 2006, her mother had forced her and her two younger sisters to serve as prostitutes, with patrons mostly men aged over 60. At the time, the three sisters were aged 6, 7, and 10. Following initial investigations, police found that men paid NT$500 to NT$1,000 for each incidence, and some patrons asked to be served by the three sisters simultaneously. The police have already located 8 suspects involved in the cases, and have taken six into custody after interrogations, including the mother and five patrons. The Tainan ...

Fifteen-year-old Hadjo Garbo's child-like features belie a history more tragic and life-altering than many adults four times her age will have experienced. Two years ago this petite girl, who likes to fiddle with her elaborately braided hair and once dreamed of being a housewife, was married to one of the older men in her village in the Dosso region of southwest Niger. She was just 13 years old. The marriage was consummated, and by 14 she was pregnant with her first child. But before her 15th birthday she had lost the baby - and her 42 years old husband. Hadjo's anatomy proved unready for the task of delivering a baby and after an excruciating three-day labour, the unborn foetus was cut out of her, stillborn. The horrific labour left the girl with what gynaecologists call an obstetric fistula, a tearing of the tissue that develops when blood supply to the tissues of the vagina and bladder and/or rectum is cut off during prolonged obstructed labour. The condition mostly affects ...

A lawyer for Britney Spears today asked a court commissioner to keep Los Angeles County authorities from reviewing court filings in the pop star's child custody dispute. It would be best for her two young sons that the case remain sealed, Thomas Paine Dunlap argued. The Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and its representative, the county counsel's office, are a "large bureaucracy with thousands of employees" where the details of the case could easily leak out, he said. Kevin Federline's lawyer, Mark Vincent Kaplan, argued that if the court was going to turn files over it should identify and only release relevant issues in the case that are connected to the county investigation of Spears' parenting skills. A county lawyer representing DCFS asked for the hearing to be closed and Superior Court Commissioner Scott Gordon's decision on the matter was not disclosed. Spears, 25, and Federline, 29, were married in October 2004. T...

A Kathu Police investigations unit early Tuesday morning arrested an Indonesian adult-film producer in his hotel room after he was caught conducting a photo shoot with one of his starlets - a Thai ladyboy. Pol Sub Lt Nitikorn Rawang, duty officer of Kathu Police Station, said the bust took place at 4:20 am. After receiving a tip-off that a video shoot was taking place in room 314 of the Sup Inn on Soi Patong Resort, the police entered the room to find it had been converted into a makeshift studio with everything needed for the production of pornography and its distribution around the world via the Internet. Police arrested Indonesian Farisa Riyadi, 35, and took 32-year-old Thai ladyboy Phinit "Nong Ning" Lakharn, 32, for questioning at Kathu Police headquarters. Nong Ning, from Yasothorn, who has already undergone complete gender "re-assignment" surgery, told police that she agreed to pose for the Indonesian in return for 1,000 baht cash. Mr Riyadi offered the same ...

A Judge today dismissed a hit-and-run case against pop star Britney Spears after her lawyer revealed an out-of-court settlement was reached with the person whose car she struck in a parking lot. But the 25-year-old performer is still on the hook for a misdemeanour count of driving without a valid licence in connection with the August 6 fender bender in Los Angeles, said City Attorney spokesman Frank Mateljan. Spears's lawyer today entered a not guilty plea on her behalf for that charge. She was not in court and is not required to be present for the next hearing, set for November 26. Britney had faced jail sentence Spears had faced up to six months in jail and a $US1000 fine on each of the two counts she was originally charged with. But the judge agreed to drop the hit-and-run case once the civil claim stemming from the incident was resolved, Mr Mateljan said. Details of the settlement were not disclosed. Video footage on TMZ.com of Spears's auto mishap shows her driving a conve...

After making headlines for everything but music, Britney Spears is back with an album industry insiders say should top the charts despite her. Over the past year the one-time Mouseketeer shaved her head, spent time in rehab, went through an ugly divorce, lost custody of her children and attacked a photographer's car. And in an odd habit yielding endless tabloid references to the title of her biggest album - Oops!... I Did It Again - she kept getting photographed without her underwear. Now Spears is hoping that the release of Blackout, her first studio album in four years on Oct. 30, will revive her reputation. The album has already produced Gimme More, which topped US digital charts and critics expect a hit. But some critics who have heard her latest opus say the album's likely success has little to with her abilities and more to do with the producers. The New York Daily News noted all the "studio trickery" made her sound like a "Brit-Bot" machine. "If ...

Following an emergency hearing called by Kevin Federline’s attorney, Mark Vincent Kaplan, yesterday in the ongoing custody battle between Kevin Federline and Britney Spears, there are indications that Britney has lost the one-night-a-week custody of her two children. The L.A County Commissioner Scott Gordon suspended her visitation rights due to her refusal to comply by the court orders to provide the drug testing people with contact information so they could reach her to facilitate the random tests. The hearing took place behind closed doors at a Los Angeles Superior Court and legal representatives for both teams were present by 9:20am (PDT.) Both attorneys refused to comment on yesterdays proceedings as did a representative for the court. In an earlier report, Gordon temporarily stripped Spears of physical custody of sons Sean Preston, 2, and Jayden James, 1. But after hearing a personal appeal from Spears last week, Gordon eased up on his restrictions and allowed her one overnight v...

Britney Spears, fighting to win back custody of her young children, has been granted one-night-a-week custody of her two children by Superior Court Commissioner Scott M. Gordon today. Britney made a suprise appearance in court for a 45 minute hearing after the judge declined to rule on her request earlier today. Superior Court spokesman Allan Parachini announced that the visitation order had been modified to permit the children, who were recently placed in Federline's custody, to have one overnight visit a week with their mother. Parachini said Spears adressed the court in a 'soft and respectful voice'. Lawyers for Spears, 25, who lost custody last week to her ex-husband Kevin Federline, had filed an emergency motion asking for overnight visitation rights with sons Sean Preston, 2, and Jayden James, 1. She previously shared custody with Federline, but a judge revoked that arrangement a week ago after the singer failed to comply with court orders for random drug and alcohol ...

Animal rights group, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), has written an open letter to Britney Spears's estranged husband Kevin Federline urging him to amend his custody application to include the couple's pets. The letter cites PETA's long-held opposition to Britney Spears's treatment of her Yorkshire terrier, London, as an "accessory" and her notoriety amongst animal lovers who voted her "the overwhelming choice for Worst Celebrity dog owner" in a 2006 poll. PETA also alleges that Britney Spears was recently the subject of an investigation by the Los Angeles Society for the Protection of Animals following reports that she failed to obtain proper medical treatment for London after the dog's leg was fractured by being stepped on. The well-being of the couple's children is at the heart of PETA's plea, with the letter making the case that "beloved companion animals can make a world of difference to the boys during this...

Disgraced pop princess Britney Spears lost custody of her two children because she did not comply with previous orders made by the court, her lawyer told celebrity magazine People. Her ex-husband Kevin Federline was ordered on Monday to take sole custody of Sean Preston, 2, and Jayden James, 1, ``until further order of the court'' after almost a year of erratic behavior by the singer. Since separating from Federline last November, Spears, 25, has been in and out of rehab, photographed without underwear, shaved her head and struggled to stage a comeback. Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner Scott Gordon did not give a reason for his decision in a written ruling. But he was the same judge who two weeks earlier ordered Spears to undergo random drug testing and to hire a parenting coach after finding evidence of ``habitual, frequent and continuous use of controlled substances and alcohol.'' Four days after that hearing, Spears was charged with hit-and-run and driving wit...

Pop US star Britney Spears lost custody of her two sons today after a wrenching and highly publicised court battle with ex-husband Kevin Federline. Judge Scott Gordon ruled that Federline was to "retain physical custody" of the children on Wednesday until further order of the court," Judge Scott Gordon wrote in his court order. Celebrity websites TMZ and X17 said Spears took her sons to the drive-through window of a fast food restaurant before handing them over to Federline's bodyguards ahead of time, shortly after noon on Monday. The divorce between Spears, 25, and Federline, 29, became final at the end of July, but their temporary-shared custody arrangement for their sons has unravelled amid allegations from Federline's camp that Spears was an unfit mother. Gordon on September 18 ordered Spears to undergo random drug testing in the latest twist in the bitter custody battle over Sean Preston, 2, and Jayden James, 1. Gordon said at the time that according to evi...

If Britney Spears' former bodyguard Tony Barretto can be taken at his word, the embattled popster is nearing her expiration date, and not for her career - for her life. Barretto, 28, a former bounty hunter turned professional muscle, viewed his job guarding the singer as on the level of Secret Service duty. The gentle giant, who could just be the guardian angel Sean Preston, 2, and Jayden James, 1, have been silently begging for, claims he would have taken a bullet for his charges. But the big guy said more often than not he was baby-sitting the slurry singer and her children to protect all of them from her unpredictable madness. Now off the Spears' payroll for neglecting to pick up one of her wayward fedoras, Barretto is making the media rounds, airing all Spears' dirty laundry for any media outlet willing to listen, and perhaps pay. His lawyer, bulldog attorney Gloria Allred, has been standing diligently at his side, as she did yesterday morning when Barretto carefully wa...

A court commissioner has ordered Britney Spears to undergo random drug testing and hire a parenting coach to help her raise her children with ex-husband Kevin Federline. The documents, which were posted on celebrity news site TMZ.com, result from a Monday hearing in the bitter custody battle between Spears and Federline. ''Based on the evidence presented, the court finds that there is habitual, frequent and continuous use of controlled substances and alcohol by the petitioner,'' who is Spears, Superior Court Commissioner Scott Gordon wrote in his ruling. Federline had been asking for increased custody, but Gordon maintained a 50/50 joint arrangement. Gordon ordered both Spears, 25, and Federline, 29, to complete a ''parenting without conflict'' program, and said each must refrain from making derogatory remarks about the other. But he saved his most stringent requirements for Spears, who in recent months has exhibited odd behavior after completing a ...

During a custody hearing on Sep 17, former minder Tony Barretto claimed that Spears took drugs in front of her two young sons, Sean Preston, two, and one-year-old Jayden James, and even walked around naked in front of them. Britney Spears’ likelihood of getting the full custody of her two sons from ex-hubby Kevin Federline has further been put in jeopardy, with her former bodyguard accusing the pop star of taking drugs and walking around naked in front of her kids. During a custody hearing on Sep 17, former minder Tony Barretto claimed that Spears took drugs in front of her two young sons, Sean Preston, two, and one-year-old Jayden James, and even walked around naked in front of them. Story Continues Below The shocking revelation means that the ‘Toxic’ singer could very well increase her chances of losing custody of the boys to Federline. The bodyguard's attorney, Los Angeles lawyer Gloria Allred, said in a press conference that Spears' attorney chose not to cross-examine th...

Britney Spears' lawyer wants to seal all court papers in her custody battle with ex-husband Kevin Federline over their two children. Lawyer Laura Wasser filed a motion yesterday asking a Superior Court commissioner to make a conditional July 30 order to seal all documents dealing with custody permanent. It was filed in response to a motion by a magazine and TV station to unseal some of the papers. "This is the perfect instance to stop the madness," Wasser said in court. "No one could have contemplated the plethora of media activity." Commissioner Scott Gordon heard arguments yesterday but put off ruling on the issue until a scheduled hearing on Monday. Representing People magazine and KNBC-TV lawyer Alonzo Wickers sought to unseal some documents in the case. He cited a pair of cases that he said show not all family law documents, even those involving child custody, need be kept entirely private. "No statute says custody-related documents should be broadly s...

The singer’s earnings have been revealed in court documents, linked to her battle with her ex-husband Kevin Federline over custody of their two children. Resting pop princess Britney Spears still earns almost $750,000 each month despite not having released any album in two years. The singer’s earnings have been revealed in court documents, linked to her battle with her ex-husband Kevin Federline over custody of their two children, Sean Preston, 23 months and Jayden James, 11 months. The documents, obtained by a website, reveal Spears’ average monthly salary is $737,868. The documents, stemming from the couple’s August 27 hearing, also reveal Kevin is receiving $20,000 a month in spousal support, however, that payment ends on November 15. Pay my bills: K Fed Kevin Federline’s lawyer wants Britney Spears to pay some of her ex-husband’s legal expenses in their divorce case, US court documents show. Lawyer Mark Vincent Kaplan said in an August 26 declaration that Federline has “no net inco...

Britney Spears’ much-publicised comeback seems to be an X-rated affair. The troubled pop star’s two new songs were leaked on the internet recently and one track, ‘Cold As Fire’ is an appallingly explicit, adult-only affair. Cold As Fire contains couplets about oral sex as well as lots of breathtakingly creative swearing. In the song, Britney sings, "I'm just the girl with the ability to drive a man crazy/ Make him **** in my mouth/ Make him my new baby. Little legend you can look but don't touch because/ I'm cold as fire baby and hot as ice/ If you've ever been to heaven this is twice as nice." The second verse begins with this perplexing rhyme: "The foolishness and f***ery and handling my bizness/ Hola if you hear me/ Can I get a witness?” Best Beauty Products For Him & Her The other song, her comeback single Gimme More, has a noticeably more conservative lyrical slant, however the subject matter remains pretty steamy. She then sings: "It...

Britney Spears is under investigation for child abuse allegations that her sons have poor dental hygiene, eating and sleeping habits, it has been revealed. The allegations, lodged with Department of Children and Family Services, are contained in legal papers filed yesterday by Federline's attorney, suggesting it might have been Federline who lodged the complaint. Spears, 26, is currently battling ex-husband Kevin Federline for custody, and the allegations involve her two sons Sean Preston, 23 months, and 11-month old Jayden James. The Daily Mail reported today that Spears gives her sons bottles of fizzy drinks and lets them snack on sugary food. The allegations were reportedly raised at an unscheduled hearing yesterday at Los Angeles Superior Court. Although Britney was not present, her lawyer, Dennis Wasser, was said to be there along with Mark Kaplan, who represents her estranged husband, Kevin Federline. Federline is also said to have served legal papers to a string of witn...

WHO says we can't rise above our circumstances - no matter how depressing the situations have been?Nadine Martin is a single mother of five children who has triumphed over many dark moments in her life, by using education and forgiveness to overcome it all. This is the story of a 36-year-old woman who was molested, raped, rejected by her father, encouraged to get involved with men by her own mother and who suffered from an eating disorder. However, after giving birth to five children, fathered by four men, she decided she wasn't going to stay in the slum. It was time to pick herself up and move on. To support her children, Martin did any odd job she could find just to put food on their table."I have done so many jobs, but never found the one I wanted," she admitted. And what she now wants is to be an early childhood educator, someone who would impact positively on the lives of children. But her dream doesn't stop there. She also wants to be a motivational speaker,...