By Alexia Saoulli
CYPRUS has the highest percentage of female university students, according to the author of The Atlas Of Women.
The 100-page atlas, a colourful illustrated compilation of facts of the plight of women across the globe, was re-released yesterday to mark International Women’s Day. First published a decade ago, it was conceived and compiled by Canadian feminist and geographer Joni Seager.
The general theme of the atlas is that “while women represent more than half of the world’s population, they nowhere share the same rights as men”.
The charts and maps confirm that women are treated worst in countries where humanity is treated worst, and treated best in places were humanity is most respected. For instance, the atlas shows that in Thailand women need the permission of a husband or father to obtain a passport or travel abroad, whereas in Finland all government decision-making bodies must include a minimum of 40 per cent of women.
“For women, there are no developed countries. Although some places are clearly better for them to live in than others, it is not always true that the relatively rich countries of the world provide better circumstances for them as women than do poorer countries,” Seager said.
“While many countries provide formally for sexual equality in law, very few governments have legislated to protect specific job and marriage rights; and such law as exists is nullified or blunted in its effect by social and administrative practice. Nowhere do women have full equal rights with men.”
The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.
