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Women and gender

Women and gender
News and analysis on women's rights, the gender gap, LGBTQ issues, sexual harassment, sexual minorities and masculinity in Asia and beyond.
Bhumika Shrestha, Nepal’s first transgender woman to become a member of parliament, is congratulated by members of the LGBTQ community in Kathmandu on Monday. Photo: EPA
Nepal

Nepal’s LGBTQ community celebrates first transgender woman lawmaker

More than 900,000 people identify as sexual minorities in Nepal, which has some of South Asia’s most progressive laws on LGBTQ rights.

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Sexual harassment and assault

Video | Tate brothers party in Hong Kong, sparking controversy

The Philippines

Most Filipino women think a woman’s place is in the home, survey finds

Trending in China

China warship’s sole female top officer tells women to prioritise professional skills

Poised, confident senior officer adopts role of ‘evil instructor’ on board; is also known for her ‘caring’ attitude towards crew members.

Zhu Yuemeng, 36, is the only female senior officer on China’s Liaoning aircraft carrier. Photo: SCMP composite/Baidu/Sohu
Wellness

She didn’t ignore her brain fog – now she’s helping others with perimenopause

Femtech pioneers are tackling perimenopause with bold new tools, breaking long-standing taboos and empowering women.

Wellness

These new at-home tests let women get insights into their reproductive health

A Singapore-based start-up offers a hormone testing kit for perimenopausal women, while a German one gives insights based on menstrual blood.

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Crime

‘The Witch’: British mum who kept woman as ‘house slave’ for 25 years is jailed

The victim, who has a learning disability, was deprived of food, forced to do manual labour and assaulted by Amanda Wixon, the court heard.

Amanda Wixon, 56, of Tewkesbury in England, was jailed for 13 years on Thursday for forcing a woman with a learning disability to work as a “house slave” for more than 25 years. Photo: Gloucestershire Constabulary
My Life

Jane Houng: musician, author – and mother of a murdered child

The founder of Becky’s Button tells how she channelled the grief from losing her daughter into tackling gender-based violence.

Artificial intelligence

Opinion | To make AI safe, put women and girls at the heart of the technology

From deepfake porn to harassment, digital abuse disproportionately targets women and girls, supercharging the harm.

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United States

Wealth, drugs and rape: US luxury real estate stars convicted of sex trafficking

Once the kings of high-stakes property, Alexander twins Oren and Alon and brother Tal face life in prison after a trial exposed a pattern of drugged assaults.

Brothers Alon Alexander, Oren Alexander and Tal Alexander in court. Image: Jane Rosenberg via Reuters
Hong Kong society

Editorial | Hong Kong must do more to unlock women’s full economic potential

The city can take pride in women’s progress across different fields. Yet there is also room for cultural and policy improvement.

Commuters head for work in North Point on December 16, 2025. Women account for half of the government, legal and accounting workforce in Hong Kong. Photo: Sun Yeung
Trending in China

Ancient Chinese women used crude contraceptives – ate tadpoles, ingested mercury

Condoms made from dried fish maw, hanging women upside down, pregnancy prevention was a dangerous business for women in dynastic times.

Hong Kong economy

Hong Kong must ensure motherhood no longer derails women’s careers: advocates

‘Tokenism is the challenge that we need to address to ensure women have a fair share of decision-making and leadership in companies,’ an advocate says.

Trending in China

China Qing era spawned female authors, poets, despite restrictions on women in arts

Like much of the world, China experienced a notable rise in women authorship during the 19th century, with three poets making a particularly profound impact.

The Qing era saw a rise in female authors, particularly poets, despite widespread restrictions on women in the arts. Photo: SCMP composite/Wikipedia/legacyprojectchicago.org
Japan

80 years on, gender gap persists in Japanese politics

New research shows there has been little change since women in Japan first exercised their right to vote nearly 80 years ago.

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Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (centre, front) walks down the stairs to pose for a photo session with members of her cabinet in Tokyo on February 18. Photo: EPA
Trending in China

China women living together for years spark debate on cohabitation and support

‘Best friends’ rent flat together after abusive marriages to men; story sheds light on country’s long history of ‘collective’ female living.

International Women's Day

Celebrating International Women’s Day 2026

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Two Sessions 2026

Alarm sounded on mentally disabled women forced into marriage in rural China

CPPCC member Jiang Shengnan calls for crisis intervention centres and reporting hotlines as part of comprehensive prevention mechanism.

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Some parents may force their mentally unwell daughters into marriage for profit amid weak legal penalties for rights violations. Photo: Shutterstock
Trending in China

Taiwan actress, 58, praised for ‘youthful’ looks opposes ‘female competition’

Former teen idol says she strives to be a ‘radiant mum’; calls on women to find partners who respect them for who they are.

Style Edit

Style Edit: Chanel’s CC League empowers women athletes on and off the field

The initiative promotes confidence and camaraderie among sportswomen including Hong Kong’s Cindy Cheung and Janelle Leung.

Trending in China

China actress, 75, sparks debate playing teen, kissing much younger actor in TV drama

Gender equality activist questions if same criticism would arise if a male actor 30 years older than his female co-star took on similar role.

Chinese actress Liu Xiaoqing, 75, recently sparked controversy by portraying a young woman in a mini-drama and engaging in a passionate kiss with a male actor 30 years her junior. Photo: SCMP composite/YouTube/Sina
Food and Drinks

Your Hong Kong weekend drinks guide for March 6-9

Celebrate International Women’s Day with unDer Lab’s scientific cocktails, Jin Bo Law Skybar’s city-inspired menu, and women bartenders’ star turns.

Jin Bo Law’s new menu features drinks inspired by Hong Kong, like the Kai Tak Airport. Photo: Handout
Australia

Australia’s best-paid jobs are twice as likely to go to men as to women

Industries that pay the most, such as mining and construction, tend to have the largest gender wage gaps, according to a report.

Trending in China

China entrepreneur, abandoned as child, owns fashion brand with US$36 million sales

Driven woman who came from parents who rarely remembered her name, dumped her on a mountainside, tells young women ‘there is hope’.

United Nations

UN rights chief slams violence against women, calls it ‘a global emergency’

Volker Turk highlights the segregation of women in Afghanistan and sex trafficking cases against US financier Jeffrey Epstein as examples.

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UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk speaking at the opening of a session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva last September. Photo: AFP
Wellness

It’s not ‘all in your head’: women’s pain really lasts longer, study finds

Myth-busting findings that immune system differences cause chronic pain to persist longer for women highlight the need for better treatment.

Women’s pain has often been overlooked as “more in the mind”. But a new study has found chronic pain to be more exacerbated for women than for men, and the biological reason behind it. Photo: Shutterstock
Lunar

Women driving the Winter Olympics

Artificial intelligence

‘Digital public shaming’: Chinese AI tools under fire for pornographic deepfakes

Grass-roots group warns AI platforms have ‘sacrificed women’s right to safety’ as non-consensual sexualised images proliferate.

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