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Courage in Journalism Awards

Every year the International Women’s Media Foundation honors brave women journalists who risk political persecution,injury and sometimes death in their efforts to expose corruption and champion human rights.

Global Research on Women

The IWMF is working on ground-breaking research on the status of women in the media worldwide. The new study, the Global Report on the Status of Women in the News Media, will measure the career progress of women in the news media and use the results to help advocate for change.

The IWMF also tracks past studies on women in the news media, and will draw from this prior work in compiling the Global Report, which will be published in 2011.

4-Year Africa Project

With generous support from the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, the IWMF launched "Reporting on Agriculture and Women: Africa." The project is energizing the way African media cover one of the most important topics on the continent.
The IWMF is helping African journalists to boost coverage of agriculture and rural development and increase women’s voices – both as journalists and as sources – in stories about agriculture

Funding HIV/AIDS Investigative Reporting

The IWMF is establishing 10 fellowships to train journalists in South Africa to write investigative reports on the HIV/AIDS epidemic. With support from the M*A*C  AIDS Fund, these experienced journalists will conduct interviews and write in-depth research for their publications in 2011.

06

In the early 1990s, Akhlas saw the status of women deteriorating because of hostilities in Afghanistan and began producing stories on human rights issues. And when the Taliban began instituting bans on working women in Afghanistan, she began to work secretly for the AMRC, seeking international distribution of her reports on human rights, women and children.

In order to avoid detection by the Taliban, Akhlas and her family moved frequently. Her clandestine reporting was discovered more than once, most recently in 1998 - she was arrested and beaten. Her husband and father had to promise to keep her from reporting, or face arrest themselves. Of these attempts at intimidation, Akhlas says, "I didn't feel threatened, but found it as an opportunity to make a story."

She subsequently escaped to Pakistan with her family, but continues to move around to avoid detection. In her current work with the AMRC, Akhlas furtively travels back into Afghanistan, risking her life to interview women and bring news to the international community. In April 2000, she was arrested and beaten after being caught by the Taliban once again. After being released, Akhlas returned to Pakistan where she reports that she will continue her work.

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