Zvonareva named UNESCO Gender Equality Ambassador

October 13th, 2009 UNESCO: drought forces 100,000 Iraqis from homesPARIS — Not war but drought has forced more than 100,000 people in northern Iraq to abandon their homes since 2005, with 36,000 more on the verge of leaving, UNESCO said Tuesday. The four-year drought and excessive well pumping have led to the collapse of an ancient system of underground aqueducts, or karez, as they are known in Iraq.

September 22nd, 2009 PARIS - Bulgarian diplomat Irina Bokova was late Tuesday elected as the first-ever woman Unesco director-general, diplomatic sources said. The 57-year-old Bokova received 31 votes from the 58-member Unesco Executive Board.

September 21st, 2009 UNESCO race down to 2 candidatesPARIS — An Egyptian culture minister who once threatened to burn Israeli books will face off against a career diplomat from Bulgaria in the race to lead the U.N.'s agency for learning and culture. In an election full of suspense, secrecy and surprise maneuvers, two candidates for UNESCO's top job tied in a fourth round of voting Monday, the Paris-based organization said.

September 17th, 2009 PARIS - Controversial Egyptian Culture Minister Farouk Hosny failed to get the necessary majority late Thursday in the first round of voting to find a successor to outgoing Unesco director general Koichiro Matsuura. According to diplomats close to Unesco, the 71-year-old Hosny received 22 votes from the 58 members of the organisation's executive council, well short of a majority.

August 4th, 2009 UNITED NATIONS - A newspaper produced entirely by women in rural India is among the four winners of this year's Literacy Prizes awarded by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco). Khabar Lahariya, the fortnightly newspaper distributed to more than 20,000 readers in Uttar Pradesh, is entirely created and marketed by newly literate "low caste" women who are training as journalists in Chitrakoot and Banda districts.

July 10th, 2009 PARIS - Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal met UNESCO Director-General Koichiro Matsuura and impressed upon him India's keenness for establishing the Mahatma Gandhi Institute for Peace Education and Sustainable Development. During the meeting in Paris on Thursday, Sibal said this proposed Category-I UNESCO institute should be a symbol of rich heritage and values of peace and diversity that India stands for.

July 9th, 2009 UNESCO: US damaged historic Iraqi site of BabylonPARIS — U.S. troops and contractors inflicted considerable damage on the historic Iraqi site of Babylon, driving heavy machinery over sacred paths, bulldozing hilltops and digging trenches through one of the world' most important archaeological sites, experts for UNESCO said Thursday.

July 9th, 2009 UNESCO: U.S military inflicted considerable damage on Babylon PARIS — Experts for UNESCO say considerable damage was inflicted by the U.S. military in Iraq to one of the world's most important archaeological sites.

April 6th, 2009 PARIS - Murdered Sri Lankan journalist Lasantha Wickrematunge has been named recipient of the 2009 UNESCO World Press Freedom Prize, the UN's educational and cultural organisation said Monday. 'Jury members were moved to an almost unanimous choice by a man who was clearly conscious of the dangers he faced but nevertheless chose to speak out, even beyond his grave,' said Joe Thloloe, president of the 14-member jury.

April 2nd, 2009 BONN - Government ministers appealed Thursday at the end of a three-day UN meeting here to teach children the ideas of 'sustainable development' at schools around the world. A closing declaration said this would be an investment in the future.

March 26th, 2009 LONDON - Thomas Beatie, the US 'pregnant man' who gave birth to a baby girl last year, is expecting another tot in June. The transsexual, 34, has shown off his new bump by posing with first baby Susan Juliette.

March 12th, 2009 KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysian Bar Council President Ambiga Sreenevasan, an ethnic Indian, is one of the eight women who received the prestigious 'women of courage' award from Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in US. Sreenevasan, who has been at the forefront of the civil liberties movement in Malaysia, was present at the ceremony in Washington Monday, The Star newspaper said.

February 14th, 2009 PATTAYA - India's Sania Mirza gave World no.5 and top seed Vera Zvonareva some tense moments but made far too many errors to lose the $220,000 Pattaya Open tennis final 5-7, 1-6 here Sunday. An Australian Open semi-finalist, Zvonareva, was pushed against the wall by the Indian who broke her in the third game of the match.

February 14th, 2009 PATTAYA - India's Sania Miza faltered at the final hurdle of the $220,000 Pattaya Open, losing in straight sets to World No.5 and top seed Vera Zvonareva 5-7, 1-6 here Sunday. Unseeded Sania, who was playing her fourth WTA tour final, was broken five times in the match by the Russian who won the match in little over an hour.

February 11th, 2009 PALAKKAD - The Kerala cabinet has approved the adoption of a new policy to ensure gender equality and prevent crime against women, Pinarayi Vijayan, state secretary of the ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) said here Thursday. Vijayan, who is on a tour of the state, told reporters that the main objective of floating the new policy was to ensure social justice for women.