Africa: Marking International Widows' Day, Ban Urges End to Harmful Practices, Abuse Against Women

23 June 2014

No woman should lose her status, livelihood or property when her husband dies, yet millions of widows in our world face persistent abuse, discrimination, disinheritance and destitution stressed United Nation Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today in his message for this year's International Widows' Day.

In his message, the Secretary-General expressed his concerns about the number of widows subjected to harmful practices, including "widow cleansing", often involving the rape, and the increase in the widow's risk of HIV infection, as well as "widow burning".

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