:00:00. > :00:26.Welcome to the special edition of Reporters. Hundreds of the most
:00:27. > :00:31.inspiring women took part in a day of coverage at the historic Radio
:00:32. > :00:36.Here to at broadcasting house, we will bring you a series of reports
:00:37. > :00:41.showing it in issues and challenges facing women in the 21st century.
:00:42. > :00:44.Coming up: Sexual violence against women. We are hearing reports of
:00:45. > :00:49.what is calling an epidemic sweeping Egypt. I think that because one of
:00:50. > :00:54.them was trained to strangle me with a scarf that was around my neck.
:00:55. > :01:00.Michelle Hussain talks to be Burmese Opposition Leader about her hopes
:01:01. > :01:05.for Burma's future I think that people assume it readily that we are
:01:06. > :01:09.on the path to democracy, that we are democratising at a very fast
:01:10. > :01:20.rate. It is nothing like that at all. TRANSLATION: The fight has
:01:21. > :01:22.started. A dangerous tree. The Afghan women poll was risking their
:01:23. > :01:29.lives to express their deepest thoughts. Poetry is to be rooted in
:01:30. > :01:32.the traditions of this country. In rural areas where largely illiterate
:01:33. > :01:36.women have been using poetry for centuries. Changing times in the
:01:37. > :01:43.workplace. We meet American breadwinning mothers. And the body
:01:44. > :01:49.beautiful or pictureperfect? We take the airbrush challenge.
:01:50. > :01:58.That doesn't even look like me any more. Many thought that the Arab
:01:59. > :02:02.uprising might herald a new are in women's writes in the Middle East
:02:03. > :02:06.but human rights campaigners believe that sexual violence against women
:02:07. > :02:10.in some parts of the region has now reached epidemic levels. A recent
:02:11. > :02:16.United Nations study suggests that nine out of ten women in Egypt had
:02:17. > :02:22.experienced some form of Sir `` social her `` sexual harassment.
:02:23. > :02:25.Assaults by mobs of men have increased rapidly since the
:02:26. > :02:33.overthrow of Hosni Mubarak. As we report from Cairo, there is little
:02:34. > :02:36.hope from justice. Handing out the tasters. Volunteers
:02:37. > :02:43.get ready to patrol the streets of Cairo. And dispense vigilantes
:02:44. > :02:52.justice. TRANSLATION: If you resist, we know how we will deal
:02:53. > :02:57.with him. We joined his group, called Harass the Prices. They hunt
:02:58. > :03:04.for attackers during busy holiday period. `` Harass the Harassers.
:03:05. > :03:07.They say that they are on the streets because they have no choice.
:03:08. > :03:11.They are doing the jobs that the authorities should be doing. The
:03:12. > :03:18.most part, the police look the other way. They said that they are ready
:03:19. > :03:24.for violence is necessary. Minutes later, they surround an alleged
:03:25. > :03:30.attacker and restrain him in a headlock. Guilty or innocent, his
:03:31. > :03:37.publicly humiliated. Harasser is a stencilled on his back.
:03:38. > :03:43.But most of the worst attacks have happened under cover of darkness,
:03:44. > :03:51.during political protest in Tahrir Square. This was June 30. Two
:03:52. > :03:58.terrified women were rescued here but activists say that there were 46
:03:59. > :04:02.mob of salts that night. These are the pictures taken from the
:04:03. > :04:07.demonstration. There was no one to rescue this freelance journalist as
:04:08. > :04:11.she was taken `` taking pictures in Tahrir Square last January. I found
:04:12. > :04:18.myself surrounded by a huge circle of men who were attacking me. Every
:04:19. > :04:22.inch of me. I thought I was going to die. I thought that I was going to
:04:23. > :04:26.die because they were very aggressive and at a certain point,
:04:27. > :04:30.think I fainted because one of them was trying to strangle me with a
:04:31. > :04:39.scarf that was around by next. What is fuelling these cases? Impunity is
:04:40. > :04:44.there. It is encouraging all of the molesters to go because they can get
:04:45. > :04:45.away with it. Molesters may feel encouraged by ultraconservative
:04:46. > :05:00.cleric 's such as this one. This television channel has now been
:05:01. > :05:07.shut down but plenty here are ready to blame the victim. The police here
:05:08. > :05:10.are presenting a more concern to face, parading officers from the new
:05:11. > :05:16.unit set up to tackle violence against women. But with next to no
:05:17. > :05:22.prosecutions, victims fear that this is a token gesture.
:05:23. > :05:27.It is seen as such a fearful procedure that it is now considered
:05:28. > :05:34.the grounds for seeking asylum here in the UK. Female genital mutilation
:05:35. > :05:37.is a well`known cultural ritual in many parts of Africa. It can have
:05:38. > :05:42.major health risks and even cause a fatal bleeding. It is outlawed now
:05:43. > :05:47.in the countries where it has been practised but the laws are poorly
:05:48. > :05:51.enforced. We went to one of those countries, Gambia, but the report
:05:52. > :05:55.begins here in the UK where she has met one Gambian woman seeking
:05:56. > :06:00.asylum. Fatimah is a 23 `year`old mother
:06:01. > :06:04.from Gambia seeking asylum in the UK. She does not want to show her
:06:05. > :06:06.face because she does not want the neighbours in the north of England
:06:07. > :06:11.where she lives with her three`year`old daughter to know that
:06:12. > :06:17.she has been cut. It happened when I was nearly ten. There were two
:06:18. > :06:21.people who are holding your legs. You see them holding a razor blade
:06:22. > :06:29.and then they just cut it. And then that is it. Painful. But you have to
:06:30. > :06:34.live with it for the rest of your life. Wyee seeking asylum in this
:06:35. > :06:38.country? Because it is not right to be cut and they now fearing that my
:06:39. > :06:45.daughter will be cut if she goes back to Gambia. Might Gambia would
:06:46. > :06:49.not have any chance to stay there without being cut. The UK border
:06:50. > :06:56.agency has rejected the claim. She and her daughter could be deported
:06:57. > :07:01.any day. I went to Gambia to find out whether Fatimah is telling the
:07:02. > :07:05.truth. Her family was a prominent one in her village and it was not
:07:06. > :07:12.hard to track down her mother who is in no doubt of what would happen if
:07:13. > :07:16.her daughter returns. TRANSLATION: It is our tradition. Fatimah comes
:07:17. > :07:23.back, her daughter must be cut. If not, everyone will point at her and
:07:24. > :07:26.call her an unclean girl. If your daughter comes back here and says
:07:27. > :07:38.that she does not want her daughter to be cut? TRANSLATION: She has no
:07:39. > :07:42.choice. A local anti` FGM campaigner explains to the village leaders that
:07:43. > :07:47.FGM can kill children from loss of blood and infection and cause death
:07:48. > :07:52.in childbirth. They would normally blamed this on witchcraft. They do
:07:53. > :07:57.listen. If the programme works in this community. This is the last
:07:58. > :08:01.generation of girls will be the victims and survivors of FGM. It
:08:02. > :08:09.could take four years before they agree to ban FGM, too late for the
:08:10. > :08:14.daughter of Fatimah. So`called dropping the knife ceremonies are
:08:15. > :08:17.being held here but it takes time and effort and campaigners say that
:08:18. > :08:19.a more helpful, enlightened approach by their former colonisers would be
:08:20. > :08:32.welcome. She is known as one of the world 's
:08:33. > :08:40.most inspirational women. The Leader of the Opposition in Burma, Aung San
:08:41. > :08:44.Suu Kyi, has warned that there is a long way to go before her country
:08:45. > :08:47.will be fully democratic. The level peace prize winner called on the
:08:48. > :08:49.international community to press the government to stop the ethics
:08:50. > :08:55.violence in her country. She has been speaking to the BBC in London
:08:56. > :08:59.during a visit to the UK. I think that people assume too
:09:00. > :09:05.readily that we are on the path to democracy, that we are democratising
:09:06. > :09:09.at a fast rate. It is nothing like that at all. If anybody takes the
:09:10. > :09:14.trouble to read the Constitution, they will be able to understand why
:09:15. > :09:18.we cannot become a genuine democratic society with such a
:09:19. > :09:21.constitution in place. Amid the positive development that we have
:09:22. > :09:25.seen in the last few years in your country, there are some troubling
:09:26. > :09:30.ones. I think particularly of this wave of ethnic violence that has
:09:31. > :09:33.targeted the Burmese Muslim community. What is your view of what
:09:34. > :09:36.has been happening there. Some people are calling it ethnic
:09:37. > :09:41.cleansing. It is not ethnic cleansing. It is a new problem and
:09:42. > :09:46.yet it is linked to old problems as well. I would make the point that
:09:47. > :09:50.there are many moderate Muslims in Burma who have well integrated into
:09:51. > :09:55.our society that these problems arose last year and I think that
:09:56. > :09:58.this is due to fear on both sides. You would accept the view that the
:09:59. > :10:01.vast majority of the victims of the violence have been more sons? There
:10:02. > :10:07.is evidence that they have been systematically... Muslims have been
:10:08. > :10:14.targeted but also Buddhists have been subjected to violence. There is
:10:15. > :10:17.fear on both sides. This is what is leading to these troubles. We would
:10:18. > :10:22.like the world to understand that the reaction is based on fear. I
:10:23. > :10:27.think that you will accept that there is a perception that Muslims
:10:28. > :10:31.power, global Muslim power is very great and that is the recipient in
:10:32. > :10:38.many parts of the world and in our country too. If there is fear on
:10:39. > :10:42.both sides, you accept that this suffering is not equal on both
:10:43. > :10:45.sides. There are thousands of them is Muslims displaced and homes and
:10:46. > :10:49.living in camps. They then the brunt of the violence. There are many
:10:50. > :10:53.Buddhists who have left the country for various reasons. There are many
:10:54. > :10:58.Buddhists in refugee camps for reasons, various reasons. You will
:10:59. > :11:02.find them in Thailand, many of them, and you will find them scattered all
:11:03. > :11:07.over the world. This is the result of our sufferings and `` under a
:11:08. > :11:11.dictatorial regime. I think that if you live under a dictatorship for
:11:12. > :11:19.many years, people do not learn to trust one another. A dictatorship
:11:20. > :11:22.generates a climate of distrust. That people have to take
:11:23. > :11:26.responsibility for their actions? And that is what the government has
:11:27. > :11:29.to do to make sure that there is accountability. It is not seem that
:11:30. > :11:33.the government is making people accountable at the moment. I think
:11:34. > :11:37.particularly of the Buddhist monk who used to be imprisoned but was
:11:38. > :11:42.let out and now is a very popular and influential figure. He goes
:11:43. > :11:47.around, spouting what it takes speech. Talking about more sons
:11:48. > :11:51.being like dogs and blaming them for stealing Bernie to women and think
:11:52. > :11:56.that that. `` Muslims being like dogs. You condemn that kind of hate
:11:57. > :11:59.speech? I condemn of any kind. You are right that the government has
:12:00. > :12:06.not been playing a responsible part in this. I would very much like to
:12:07. > :12:09.urge EU and others `` urge you and others to us a government what the
:12:10. > :12:18.policies and what they are trying to do or what they are doing and not to
:12:19. > :12:22.improve the situation. Ten years since the fall of the Taliban, how
:12:23. > :12:26.much is life changed for women in Afghanistan? Under Taliban rule they
:12:27. > :12:30.were not allowed to work all the educator. As international slant to
:12:31. > :12:41.pull out next year, many are concerned that the countries that
:12:42. > :12:43.are about the country 's respect for women's rights. Some women are
:12:44. > :12:52.fighting back. The waiting a war that is both literary and financial.
:12:53. > :12:56.They call the poetry the sword. TRANSLATION: The fire of war has
:12:57. > :13:04.started. My heart is burning in these claims. My body is burning.
:13:05. > :13:08.Words of war, of Walton. Afghan women gather every week to recite
:13:09. > :13:17.the poetry. It is a small but significant freedom. But some can
:13:18. > :13:22.still only take part by telephone. Fearing retribution from their
:13:23. > :13:26.families, they write in secret and call in defiance. Today it is a
:13:27. > :13:30.schoolgirl from outside the capital. Every woman has had to
:13:31. > :13:40.fight to be here, fight for the right to be heard. TRANSLATION: I
:13:41. > :13:48.miss you. My hands are stretching from the ruins of Kabul. She was
:13:49. > :13:54.called is an infidel. She was accused of dishonouring her village.
:13:55. > :14:01.TRANSLATION: I want to invite you to my room for a smoke. And you who
:14:02. > :14:06.gave me refuge in your shivering red body. Forced to flee her home in
:14:07. > :14:10.northern Afghanistan, she now lives in Kabul with her brothers.
:14:11. > :14:16.TRANSLATION: There were people who harshly a post my poetry. They said
:14:17. > :14:21.I should be got rid of. They meant I should be killed. `` opposed my
:14:22. > :14:26.poetry. Was it worth it to leave your home and family for your
:14:27. > :14:33.poetry? TRANSLATION: Even if it costs me my life I will continue. To
:14:34. > :14:42.a life lived as a hostage in silence I prefer a dignified death. In this
:14:43. > :14:46.very conservative society, Afghan women have always broken taboos with
:14:47. > :14:52.words. Poetry is deeply rooted in the traditions of this country. In
:14:53. > :14:55.rural areas where largely illiterate women have been using poetry for
:14:56. > :15:01.centuries as a means of expression and escape from lives `` lives that
:15:02. > :15:07.are almost completely controlled by men, except the deepest thoughts. In
:15:08. > :15:14.this village poetry room this doctor takes on the men with guns.
:15:15. > :15:16.TRANSLATION: Oh my God, all the warlords are testing the weapons
:15:17. > :15:24.again and earning a lot of money out of war. Afghan warlords dominate the
:15:25. > :15:30.walls here as they do society. They forced this doctor to censor her
:15:31. > :15:36.poems. Watch didn't they like about what you are writing? TRANSLATION:
:15:37. > :15:50.The truth. They want us to ignore crimes in Afghanistan, killings and
:15:51. > :15:52.bombings. In Kabul there is a poem to President Karzai. At this moment
:15:53. > :15:55.in Afghan history women were to draw on their own history, have their say
:15:56. > :16:02.on the future, including the lives of a will lead.
:16:03. > :16:05.Times are changing in the American workplace. More and more families
:16:06. > :16:09.are relying on mother to make the most money. It is a social change
:16:10. > :16:15.that has been happening slowly for decades. But now around 40% of
:16:16. > :16:20.American households with children have so`called breadwinner moms.
:16:21. > :16:24.Parap what has been to Richmond in Virginia to meet some.
:16:25. > :16:27.This is the face of the modern American executive. A mother in her
:16:28. > :16:38.mid` 40s with another child on the way she is the CEO of a consulting
:16:39. > :16:53.firm. We have offices in the three companies. We are a multimillion
:16:54. > :16:55.dollar company. With rice responsibilities running the company
:16:56. > :16:57.are a lot of responsibilities fall to her husband Scott who also works
:16:58. > :17:02.at Frontier. Brian's schedule overrides mine. I am the one who
:17:03. > :17:10.ensures she can be where she needs to be. They are example of a growing
:17:11. > :17:16.reality in Virginia and across the country that mum is the main
:17:17. > :17:19.breadwinner. In 1960 only about 11% of American women were the primary
:17:20. > :17:26.providers of households with children. A recent poll put it now
:17:27. > :17:31.at 40%, an all`time high. Many of the new breadwinner and ``
:17:32. > :17:35.breadwinners are single mothers. This woman and a small nursing
:17:36. > :17:40.business and worked a number of other jobs to provide for her
:17:41. > :17:44.children. It is a daily struggle. There are always deals and financial
:17:45. > :17:50.obligations that I am attached to. My kids are always in need. It can
:17:51. > :17:55.become overwhelming. Aretha is a dynamo. She somehow squeezes in time
:17:56. > :18:04.to produce a reality TV show for a local TV station. The message `
:18:05. > :18:10.single mothers can make it on their own. These are social shifts mean
:18:11. > :18:14.teaching children the days of the week often falls to hide help.
:18:15. > :18:21.Mothers are working longer hours, which is good business for day care
:18:22. > :18:24.centres like this one. When women are more they also spend more. That
:18:25. > :18:28.gives them a lot of power as consumers. Take cars, for example,
:18:29. > :18:34.women in America now buy as many cars as men. If you are coming a
:18:35. > :18:40.factor, that means a new way of doing business. Everything from a
:18:41. > :18:43.designed to be marketing of cars at Ford is now done with women buyers
:18:44. > :18:47.in mind. She has a laundry list of features she wants in her car. That
:18:48. > :18:52.means employing more women, from the showroom to the boardroom. Today you
:18:53. > :18:58.walk into dealerships and you see women in management roles, selling
:18:59. > :19:02.cars, being service advisers, making that consumer experience for women
:19:03. > :19:06.different when they come in. I have the key my pocket... It is this kind
:19:07. > :19:13.of thinking that is opening even more doors for American women.
:19:14. > :19:18.Body image is an issue which preoccupies many in `` women today.
:19:19. > :19:23.If the media putting too much pressure on us to achieve physical
:19:24. > :19:36.perfection? The British eating disorder charity called Eat was to
:19:37. > :19:41.put a ban on photo shopping. The camera doesn't lie, or does it?
:19:42. > :19:53.We decided to find out just how different I could look using some
:19:54. > :19:56.postproduction magic. Airbrushing has been used in the fashion and
:19:57. > :19:58.advertising industries for decades. It has the technology has evolved to
:19:59. > :20:00.bring us more powerful cameras, capturing every line of blemish, so
:20:01. > :20:06.has the postproduction that goes with it. That is a worry for eating
:20:07. > :20:10.disorder charity Beat. It has hosted a debate at the end of London
:20:11. > :20:15.Fashion Week looking at what it says is the extreme use of
:20:16. > :20:18.postproduction. I know that the whole notion of a hyper perfect
:20:19. > :20:23.reality is damaging some young people 's lives. It is not cause an
:20:24. > :20:26.eating disorder by itself, they are more complex than that. We know that
:20:27. > :20:31.some people get trapped in the eating disorder because of the way
:20:32. > :20:34.it is images affect them. Plenty of young people are now taking a
:20:35. > :20:43.similar approach to their own photos. You can't see any of my
:20:44. > :20:57.imperfections on that. You think not photo shopping yourself is you
:20:58. > :21:00.looking back? Yes. The government says it is working with the fashion
:21:01. > :21:02.and advertising industries to get them to take more responsibility is
:21:03. > :21:04.full of the images. Advertisers have sent this back to schools to help
:21:05. > :21:07.children understand how postproduction works. A certain
:21:08. > :21:09.amount of it is about buying a dream, and if you're talking about
:21:10. > :21:12.cosmetics you do not expect to look like the most beautiful person in
:21:13. > :21:17.the world, you associate with the dream. Back in the edit suite, the
:21:18. > :21:28.new me. This is before and then after. While. That is not even look
:21:29. > :21:32.like me any more. That is all from this special
:21:33. > :21:44.edition of reporters celebrating the BBC's 100 women celebration. ``
:21:45. > :22:02.Reporters. From me and the team, goodbye.
:22:03. > :22:03.I hope you feel a refresher Sunday begins based on an extra hour