A special report from Future TV covered International Women's Day and gave background information on how it has become a global day to celebrate women and their importance in society and in the world: "On March 8, 1908, thousands of female textile workers protested on the streets of New York under the slogan 'bread and roses.' They carried dry bread and roses, demanding shorter work hours, voting rights and an end to child labor. This demonstration marked the start of the women's movement in the United States, especially after middle-class women joined the wave of demand for equality and justice. They adopted slogans demanding political rights, and particularly voting rights."

In 1977, the United Nations proclaimed March 8th as International Women's Day. The event was a socio-political movement that blended into the cultures of the United States, Europe and Russia. But for a lot of people, International Women's Day is linked to the illusion of celebrating a woman for being a woman. Lebanese journalist Joumana Hadad belives that International Women's Day is "a reminder of all the women, and even men, who fought for a better world for women, a more equal world. And for those who are still struggling today, it is a day to commend those people. It is the day of the woman to believe in her power, and take action."

The women of the Middle East commemorated International Women's Day by drawing attention to their struggles.  Their rights are infringed due to a spectrum of different forces, but they are still standing strong and fighting to win their battles in the face of oppression.

Women in Afghanistan are still fighting for their right to receive an education, especially in the southern provinces of the country.  Aljazeera reported on the city of Kandahar, "girls risk their lives to secure their future in an attempt to change the reality of women living in southern Afghanistan." The Taliban and foreign troops are not the only elements that as an obstacle and threaten for women, but also because of the dangerous security situation and the social norms of the country.

For years, women in Palestine have played a key role in the fight for freedom. Al Jazeera reported, "yesterday Palestinian women held a demonstration in solidarity with female prisoner Hana al-Shalabi, who is on her 24th day of an open-ended hunger strike, protesting her administrative detention in Israeli prison. Despite her deteriorating health condition, al-Shalabi remains firm to continue her hunger strike to fight the racism of the occupation forces' policies against Palestinians. The women protestors raised slogans to end the Israeli occupation and settlement construction."

In Egypt, women marched in the streets of Cairo to bring attention to their case especially after last year's attacks on women in demonstrations and also demanded that females be included in the political arena, which is currently male dominated. The female protestors chanted against the military that used excessive force against women in protests at the end of last year and even sexually assaulted them.

Photo: Women shout slogans against the Egyptian military council before marching with other women to mark International Women's Day in Cairo March 8, 2012. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany

BBC Arabic reported that a Bahraini military court sentenced one protestor to death for killing a policeman during an anti-regime protest in March. The court also issued harsh prison sentences to 20 medical professionals working at al-Salmaniya Hospital in Manama during the protest movement. Thirteen medics were sentenced to 15 years in prison. According to the Bahrain News Agency, the medics are being charged with "forcefully occupying Salmaniya Medical Centre…possessing unlicensed arms and knives, incitement to overthrow the regime, seizing medical equipment, detaining policemen, and spreading false news." Several written testimonies of the sentenced doctors indicate that they were physically and psychologically abused, tortured, beaten, sexually harassed, and humiliated while in custody.  

On June 14, after Bahrain started the trial of 48 medics, journalist Robert Fisk dispatched an eyewitness account from the hospital to The Independent. He wrote that he saw doctors desperately trying to save the lives of injured protestors shot by Bahraini forces, describing the charges as "a pack of lies."

One of the sentenced doctors, Dr. Fatma Haji, told the BBC that the medics' only crime "was that we helped innocent, helpless people who were just protesting and got injured." In a video to her three-year-old son, she maintained her innocence and expressed hope that when he is old enough to understand, he will be proud of her.

Amnesty International condemned the Bahraini regime for its harsh sentences against the health practitioners. Deputy Director of Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa Programme described the charges against the medics as "ludicrous." The Dublin-based human rights organization Front Line also condemned the sentencing after a "deeply flawed and unfair trial." It declared that medical care has been "criminalized" in Bahrain.

In July, Human Rights Watch issued a 54-page report documenting the government's abuses against citizens since February, and called on the Bahraini regime to immediately end its systematic policy of arresting and abusing medical personnel and patients.

(Photo: Doctors form a human chain at Salmaniya Hospital fearing an attack by riot police in Manama, on March 15/ Reuters)

Bahrain: Saudi-backed Bahraini troops attacked anti-government protestors in the island city of Sitra, killing a 14-year-old boy. Witnesses say the victim was hit in the head by a tear gas canister fired from close range. Reports say the city's hospital refused to admit the critically injured teenager and that he died shortly afterwards. It is believed that hospital authorities refused to treat the wounded teenager for fear of being arrested by security forces.

Libya: Clashes broke out between Muammar Gaddafi's battalions and Transitional National Council forces in the Um al-Qanadil region and its surrounding areas, close to Sirte. Chairman of the Council Mustafa Abdul Jalil gave Gaddafi's loyalists in Sirte until this coming Saturday to surrender before using military force. The revolutionaries are approaching Sirte from both the east and west but are refraining from launching attacks in the hopes of a negotiated surrender of the city. Meanwhile, the whereabouts of Gaddafi himself still remain unknown.

Syria: The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 473 people were killed in Syria during the month of Ramadan, including 360 civilians and 113 soldiers and members of the Internal Security Forces. Twenty-five minors and 14 women are among those killed, but the death toll does not include victims killed during the military operations in the city of Hama. Amnesty International confirmed that 88 Syrians, including ten children, died in detention centers and police stations between April and August.

"What I got from the show Mystical Experience is seeing the beauty of universal diversity when wisdom, patience and respect are in the conversation." - Shahid Muhammad, chat participant quote via Facebook

Question: Does fearfulness lead to aggression and fundamentalism? Do those on the spiritual path go through a fundamentalist stage? What is the best way to address fundamentalism inside and with others? What can we learn from this new understanding about how we work with those that come from a fundamentalist perspective?

Bahrain: Amnesty International said two Bahraini women activists who have been imprisoned and allegedly tortured for their involvement in protests began a hunger strike to demand their release. Roula al-Saffar, head of the Bahrain Nursing Society, and Jalila al-Salman, vice president of the Bahrain Teachers' Association, have been held for several months, according to the rights group.

Libya: Muammar Gaddafi's son, Saif al-Islam, announced that his family had reached an agreement with what he described as the Islamist opposition to get rid of the secular opposition demanding his father's resignation. Saif al-Islam said he negotiated with Ali al-Sallabi, an Islamist leader in eastern Libya. Al-Sallabi confirmed that talks were held with Gaddafi's son, but did not confirm reaching an agreement.

Syria: French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe described the decree issued by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad authorizing political parties in Syria as an act of "provocation" that only comes amid the violence against civilians. In Hama, all water, electricity, and communication services have been cut off as what is being referred to as a massacre continues in the city. Residents say that yesterday, over 40 people were killed or wounded yesterday.

Thirty years after the CDC confirmed the first cases of HIV, millions have died, particularly in developing nations. But there's hope. Innovative HIV prevention programs -- including a peer education program from hair stylists in Zimbabwe and a media campaign promoting male circumcision in Africa -- are contributing to a decrease in the global rate of new HIV infections.

These and other stories of effective programs on the ground in developing nations are showcased in a new TV documentary, ViewChange: HIV Prevention - Looking Back & Moving Forward, that premieres on Friday, July 29, from Link TV and international global health organization PSI (Population Services International). Debra Messing, actor and PSI ambassador, narrates the half-hour show.

You can view ViewChange: HIV Prevention - Looking Back & Moving Forward online at www.viewchange.org.

You can also watch the documentary on Link TV (DIRECTV channel 375, DISH channel 9410) at the following times:

We hope you'll join us in marking this key milestone, and that you'll spread the word about what's working in global HIV prevention.

Saudi Arabia: Amnesty International has strongly condemned a new Saudi Arabian anti-terror law that criminalizes legitimate political oppositions. The organization said in a statement that the draft law considers it a crime to question the integrity of the king or the crown prince and carries a minimum prison sentence of ten years. The draft law also allows for detaining a suspect for one year without a trial and holding suspects for four months in solitary confinement. The rights organization describes the law as posing a dangerous threat to freedom of speech in the name of preventing terrorism.

Yemen: Anti-regime protestors gathered in the capital Sana'a and various other provinces to reaffirm their rejection of Ali Abdullah Saleh's regime. They named today the "Friday of Rejection of Collective Punishment." Meanwhile, supporters of the ruling party rallied in support of Saleh at Sana'a's al-Sabeen Square on what they called the "Friday of Sit-in to Thank God."

Syria: Cities throughout the country witnessed popular protests today, like every Friday since March. Activists on social networking websites called for demonstrations on the "Friday of the Grandsons of Khaled Ibn el-Waleed." The opposition estimated that 1.2 million protestors participated in today's demonstration. Protests were witnessed in the cities of Damascus, Homs, Hama, Daraa in the south, Idlib in the north and Deir az-Zour in the east near the border with Iraq. According to preliminary estimates by human rights activists, five people were killed today.

Libya: Libyan revolutionaries have launched an assault on a key gateway to the capital Tripoli as fighting intensifies between the opposition and forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi. In their slow approach toward the capital, the revolutionaries attacked the regime’s positions in the Gualish area, 50 kilometers from Tripoli. Last week the opposition also took over a large ammunition depot belonging Gaddafi’s forces in western Libya.

Syria: Amnesty International has accused Syrian government forces of committing crimes against humanity during a crackdown on a pro-democracy protest in the town of Talkalakh near the Lebanese border. Amnesty International’s report makes allegations of murder, torture, and arbitrary detention.  The organization says that it gathered the testimonies of thousands of Syrians who fled the town to Lebanon. The government denies the allegations.

Bahrain: Human Rights Watch has accused the Bahraini government of carrying out a punitive and vindictive campaign of violent repression against its own citizens since March. The organization says that the campaign targets Shiites who account for 80% of the population, and that dozens of protestors have been killed and tortured. The organization demanded that the Bahraini government end the abuses.

Yemen: Deputy Minister of Information Abdu al-Janadi says President Ali Abdullah Saleh will soon address the nation. Saleh will be interviewed by Saudi state television in Riyadh, where he has been staying for the past three weeks for medical treatment. The ruling Congress Party announced that Saleh will soon return to the country and that he plans to transfer his authorities to parliament and to form a coalition government to prepare for early elections. The opposition described the announcements as "a coup against the Gulf Initiative."

Libya: Libyan Justice Minister Mohamed al-Gamudi said that the International Criminal Court's decision to issue arrest warrants for Muammar Gaddafi, his son, and his intelligence chief is politically motivated and is being used as a cover-up for NATO's crimes. He vowed to prosecute members of NATO. The decision has prompted the opposition to reject any dialogue with the regime.

Syria: Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Federation Council of Russia, Mikhail Margelov, met with the Syrian opposition's delegation in Moscow today. The delegation called on Russia to use its influence to push the Syrian regime to end the violence against peaceful protestors. Margelov urged Syria to implement real reforms and stated that Russia will do everything possible to prevent the Syrian crisis from descending into a Libya-style war.

Morocco: The February 20 Movement has once again taken to the streets, this time in protest of the constitutional amendments proposed by King Mohamed VI. They assert that the amendments do not sufficiently reduce the king's authority. While the amendments give the government executive authority, the king remains the head of the army and retains religious and judicial authority. The new constitution also maintains the king's right to appoint the prime minister.