World news and comment from the Guardian | guardian.co.uk

Schapelle Corby: the challenge is now to return to a normal life
Schapelle Corby granted parole
NFL Talkboard: 2013-14 awards
Philip Seymour Hoffman to be given private funeral in New York
Asylum seeker burns: claims and counterclaims cry out to be tested
UAE law requires mothers to breastfeed for first two years
Schapelle Corby's story, a metaphor for Australian fears? | Brigid Delaney
12 Years A Slave first film to pass Indian censor for full nudity
Google doodle features Olympic charter as they enter Russian anti-gay laws row
Sudan accused of censorship in wave of newspaper confiscations
Cambodian reporter beaten to death
Stolen urn of Buddha's remains recovered in Cambodia
Syria aid operation to begin in Homs as UN condemns barrel-bomb attacks
Mexican journalist abducted
Tony Abbott and Joe Hockey need to visit drought-hit areas, says farm group
Japhet Koech's Edinburgh adventure: the next chapter
UN report on the UK housing crisis is a wake-up call for us all
Shark cull could harm migration, South Africa warns WA
Singapore in row with Indonesia over naming of boat
Black Saturday fires remembered as Victoria prepares for serious fire threat
How NGOs helped change Moroccan law on rapists marrying their victims | Fadoua Bakhadda
Winter Olympics: Reds upset about their beds: from the archive, 7 February 1980
Viral Video Chart: Sochi, Sherlock, Jerry Seinfeld and Jimmy Fallon
Schapelle Corby telemovie pitched against INXS in battle of the brands
Salvation Army’s ‘worst decision’ was to allow abuser back, inquiry hears

Schapelle Corby: the challenge is now to return to a normal life

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 01:13 AM PST

She will face a world obsessed with capturing every moment of her transition to relative freedom,with media organisations scrambling to buy her story

Bridie Jabour

Schapelle Corby granted parole

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 01:02 AM PST

Australian convicted of smuggling marijuana into Bali in 2005 will be released after serving nine years of her 15-year sentence

Bridie Jabour

Kate Lamb

NFL Talkboard: 2013-14 awards

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 01:00 AM PST

Paolo Bandini reveals his MVP, game of the year, most meta celebration, and the NFL Talkboard Pick Six champion

Paolo Bandini

Philip Seymour Hoffman to be given private funeral in New York

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:58 AM PST

Service for actor found dead of apparent heroin overdose held at church that hosted funerals of Jackie Kennedy and Aaliyah

Philip Seymour Hoffman, who fiercely protected his private life, will be mourned behind closed doors.

A private funeral for the actor will be held on Friday for 400 people at the Church of St Ignatius Loyola in Manhattan -– the church that hosted the funerals of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Lena Horne and Aaliyah.

Hoffman, 46, was found dead on Sunday of an apparent heroin overdose. He leaves behind his partner of 15 years, Mimi O'Donnell, and three children.

Further tests are needed to determine what killed Hoffman, who was found with a syringe in his arm and what authorities said were dozens of packets of heroin in his apartment. Autopsy results were inconclusive, authorities said this week.

A larger memorial service is being planned for later this month. On Thursday evening, family and close friends gathered for a private wake at the Frank E Campbell Funeral Home in Manhattan, which has held funerals for celebrities including Kennedy Onassis and James Cagney.

Among the mourners was Amy Adams, who co-starred with Hoffman in Doubt and The Master. Cate Blanchett and Joaquin Phoenix also attended.

Hoffman was nominated four times for Academy Awards and won an Oscar for best actor in 2006 for his portrayal of writer Truman Capote in Capote. He also was nominated three times for a Tony.

Broadway honoured the actor on Wednesday night by dimming its lights for a minute, a memorial common for renowned stage actors. Thespians also gathered that night for a vigil.

Asylum seeker burns: claims and counterclaims cry out to be tested

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:56 AM PST

Tony Abbott says he has seen nothing to cause him to believe claims the navy mistreated asylum seekers, but has he even looked?

Lenore Taylor

UAE law requires mothers to breastfeed for first two years

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:55 AM PST

Social affairs minister warns it could mean that husbands sue wives who do not breastfeed

The United Arab Emirates has passed a new law requiring mothers to breastfeed their children until they are two years old, prompting anger and concern.

The clause was added to a children's rights law, but prompted objections from the social affairs minister, Mariam al-Roumi, who said it raised the prospect of husbands suing wives who did not breastfeed.

"This part of the law can be a burden," Roumi was quoted as saying by the Emirati newspaper the National. "If the law forced women to breastfeed, this could lead to new court cases."

The Dubai-based group Out of the Blues, which supports mothers with postnatal illness, warned that the law could criminalise women when they were at their most vulnerable.

"As many of the new mothers we encounter are already under significant pressure, we are concerned that enacting a law that leaves mothers facing potential punishment could be a step too far," the group said in an open letter.

Members of the UAE's federal national council, which passed the law, suggested wet nurses should be provided for children whose mothers had died or could not feed them.

"This is the right of every child for two years," Sultan al-Sammahi told the National. "If they do not have a mother or have been neglected, then they should get this right from someone else."

The law aimed to make breastfeeding "a duty and not an option" for able mothers, said another member, Ahmad al-Shamsi.

"Some families leave their children to maids and don't breastfeed. This is part of raising a child, though, this is mandatory," he said. "Laws are not all about fines and penalties, some are also humane."

However Out of the Blues warned that the legislation did not clarify who would assess women or what standards they would use to decide if they were able to breastfeed.

"The danger is that with the threat of punishment, these women could face additional stress at an already challenging time, risking serious repercussions and potentially contributing to postnatal depression," the group said.

The law requires a public information campaign and says all government offices must provide a nursery so working mothers can breastfeed, an existing regulation that has never been enforced.

Emma Graham-Harrison

Schapelle Corby's story, a metaphor for Australian fears? | Brigid Delaney

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:50 AM PST

Brigid Delaney: Her arrest and incarceration in Bali has spawned an entire industry. This intriguing obsession reveals that she is a conduit for the way Australians feel about Bali

Brigid Delaney

12 Years A Slave first film to pass Indian censor for full nudity

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:46 AM PST

Nudity in Steve McQueen's slavery drama is not cut by Indian film censor, after scenes are deemed 'necessary'

12 Years A Slave, the drama following the unjust enslavement of a free man in antebellum America, is the first to pass Indian censors for full-frontal nudity. It was originally to have nine cuts made to it, but a review found the nude scenes to be "necessary" and kept them in "based on merit".

The film's director Steve McQueen celebrated the decision in an interview with Indian newspaper DNA. "As a filmmaker, I needed to see the lashes on the back. I needed to see the pyschological effect afterward. If I hadn't done that, I would have done a disservice because that evidence had to be shown. The lynching had to be depicted in the best possible manner because it happened to hundreds of thousands of people. As someone whose ancestors experienced it, I needed to do it the way I did it."

The censor board's spokesperson Anjum Rajabali told DNA: "12 Years A Slave was given clearance based on merit after it was felt that the scenes were necessary and that cutting them would take away from the film itself. However, this does not mean a blanket approval for nudity in adult-only films." The chair of the board, Leela Samson, said the preservation of the film was in keeping with a gradual change in Indian values. "This board has always interpreted certification guidelines in the most sensitive, liberal and progressive way, reflecting the maturing sensibilities of our audiences," she said.

In an interview with the Hindustan Times, Indian filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt said: "The argument is that their culture is different from ours, so we should respect that and let their scenes go as they are. I still remember how kissing scenes in Hollywood were shown in theatres, while in Bollywood movies, it was a hush-hush issue."

The film is one of the most lauded of the year, and has nine Oscar nominations. It is also a commercial success, having made over $96m globally to date.

Ben Beaumont-Thomas

Google doodle features Olympic charter as they enter Russian anti-gay laws row

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:45 AM PST

Search engine's logo presented in the colours of the rainbow flag to coincide with the opening of the Winter Games in Sochi

Google has nailed its colours to the mast over Russia's gay rights record in a new Google doodle, which is dedicated to the Olympic charter.

The internet company's logo was presented in the colours of the rainbow flag and also featured images of Winter Games events. The build-up to the Sochi Games, the opening ceremony of which takes place on Friday, has been disrupted by a debate over the apparent conflict between the central principles of the Games and anti-gay laws in Russia.

The doodle linked to search results for "Olympic charter" and quoted from it: "The practice of sport is a human right. Every individual must have the possibility of practicing sport, without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play."

There have been widespread protests over the decision to hold the Games in Russia, which bans providing information on homosexuality to under-18s by law. Gay rights activists in 19 cities across the world spoke out earlier this week.

And, in a speech to the International Olympic Committee on Thursday, the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, spoke out against attacks on the LGBT community. He said that "many professional athletes, gay and straight, are speaking out against prejudice".

Sudan accused of censorship in wave of newspaper confiscations

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:43 AM PST

Newspaper publishers in Sudan are being harassed and intimidated by the arbitrary confiscation of newspaper issues and through sudden orders to cease printing.

There have been at least seven confiscations since the start of 2014 following more in the preceding months, according to the international press watchdog, Reporters Without Borders (RWB).

It says the latest closure order affected the Arabic-language daily Al-Jareeda, which was told on 27 January to stop publishing until further notice.

"These increasingly frequent acts of censorship, for which no explanation is given, are unacceptable and constitute flagrant violations of freedom of information," said Cléa Kahn-Sriber, head of RWB's Africa desk.

Sudan's National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) confiscated the copies of three newspapers – Al-Ayam, Alwan and Al-Sahafa – on 4 February shortly after they had been printed.

Sudan is ranked 170th out of 179 countries in RWB's press freedom index.

Source: Reporters Without Borders

Roy Greenslade

Cambodian reporter beaten to death

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:30 AM PST

Cambodian journalist Suon Chan was beaten to death by a group of fishermen after he had reported on illegal fishing methods.

The 44-year-old reporter worked for the Khmer-language newspaper, Meakea Kampuchea (Cambodia's Way), in Kampong Chhnang province.

After he revealed that people were using electric rods to kill fish in conservation areas of the Cholkiri district he was confronted at his home by a group of about 10 fishermen last Friday (31 January).

It is claimed that he was stoned and that four of the men beat him unconscious with bamboo sticks. Two of his relatives who tried to help him were also beaten and taken to hospital.

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), in registering its concern about the killing, said it is deeply concerned about journalist safety in Cambodia in recent weeks.

Sources: Phnom Penh Post/IFJ

Roy Greenslade

Stolen urn of Buddha's remains recovered in Cambodia

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:21 AM PST

Police arrest man after precious gold urn is found in Takeo house two months after it was taken from mountain shrine

Police in Cambodia say they have recovered a precious gold urn that was stolen last year and contains what are considered to be remains of the Buddha's body.

The urn was taken from a mountain shrine 25 miles (40km) outside the capital, Phnom Penh, in mid-December.

National Police spokesman Kirt Chantharith said it was recovered on Thursday from a house in the southern province of Takeo, and a man was arrested in connection with the theft.

Several countries in Asia possess relics believed to come from the body of the Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, and the stolen urn holds great religious and cultural significance for Cambodia, a predominantly Buddhist nation.

The theft ignited a national outcry, and widespread demands that authorities track it down.

The relics were given to the late King Norodom Sihanouk in 1957 by Sri Lanka to commemorate the 2,500th anniversary of the Buddha's birth.

Syria aid operation to begin in Homs as UN condemns barrel-bomb attacks

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:16 AM PST

Regime to participate in second round of talks after agreeing 'humanitarian pause' to provide relief for trapped civilians

The Syrian government will participate in the second round of peace talks in Geneva, its foreign minister has announced, as aid operations were due to begin in besieged areas of Homs.

"The participation of the delegation of the Syrian Arab Republic in the Geneva conference in the second round of talks next Monday has been decided," Syrian state television said, quoting Faisal Mekdad.

The apparent apparent humanitarian breakthroughs came as a non-governmental organisation said more than 250 people had been killed by the regime in barrel-bomb attacks on Aleppo, which were condemed by the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon.

Clashes between rebels and troops raged inside Aleppo's central prison after Islamist fighters freed hundreds of prisoners, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

A week after the situation in Homs was discussed at peace talks in Geneva, the state news agency, Sana, said agreement had been reached to allow aid in and safe passage out for civilians.

"Homs governor Talal al-Barazi and UN resident co-ordinator Yaacoub El Hillo have reached an agreement securing the exit of innocent civilians from the Old City and the entrance of humanitarian assistance for civilians who choose to stay," it said.

The UN announced there would be a "humanitarian pause", with spokesman Farhan Haq citing the UN under secretary general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief, Valerie Amos.

The deal clears the way for delivering lifesaving supplies for about 2,500 trapped civilians, with activists saying people have survived on little more than olives for weeks.

Sana said "the relevant Syrian authorities will implement the deal by providing the necessary humanitarian assistance".

The US state department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said it was understood the operations would begin on Friday morning "and will include a local humanitarian pause while the evacuations take place and while the food and other humanitarian assistance is delivered".

Rebel-held districts in Homs have come under nearly daily shelling since the army blockaded them in June 2012. Among the besieged residents are at least 1,200 women, children and elderly people, the Britain-based Observatory has said.

In Geneva, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights said food and supplies had been placed on the outskirts of Homs but they would not be delivered until safety was assured.

"They're not going to travel by night, but the agreement for delivery is there, and that is what we are welcoming," the OHCHR spokesman Jens Laerke said.

"You may only hear about the actual delivery when it has taken place. And that is simply to ensure the safety of our staff."

In Aleppo, meanwhile, the Syrian Observatory said more than 250 people have been killed in six days of regime barrel-bomb attacks, as a coalition of rebels announced a new military operation in the province.

A spokesman for Ban, Martin Nesirky, said: "The secretary general is following with deep concern the continued armed escalation in Syria, most deplorably the ongoing aerial attacks and the use of 'barrel bombs' to brutal, devastating effect in populated areas.

"He condemns once again the indiscriminate use of any weapon against civilians, in contravention of obligations under international humanitarian and human rights law. All civilians must be protected in any situation."

The Islamic Front, which groups tens of thousands of rebels, and the al-Qaida franchise Al-Nusra Front announced a joint operation called "Truthful Promise Approaches", a reference to a passage in the Qur'an.

The announcement came as the army seeks to take territory in the rebel-held eastern part of Aleppo city. The ground campaign has been accompanied by daily aerial attacks since Saturday by barrel bombs dropped from helicopters.

These attacks have killed at least 257 people, including 76 children, and wounded hundreds more, the Observatory said. Widely condemned as indiscriminate, the bombing has sparked a mass exodus from the worst-hit neighbourhoods in the east of the city.

Just outside the city, rebels and jihadists assaulted the central prison, freeing hundreds of detainees, the Observatory said.

But the NGO's director, Rami Abdel Rahman, said the army took back the initiative after Ahrar al-Sham – part of the Islamic Front – and al-Nusra had captured large parts of the sprawling complex.

An Ahrar al-Sham fighter told AFP that clashes were continuing, and state television said the attack was repulsed. The assault began with a suicide attack by an al-Nusra fighter at the prison's main entrance.

In New York, the UN security council demanded Syria move faster to remove its deadly chemical weapons stockpile and meet a 30 June deadline set for destroying the arsenal.

The 15 member nations "call upon the Syrian Arab Republic to expedite actions to meet its obligations", the council's president for the month, Lithuania's UN ambassador, Raimonda Murmokaite, told reporters.

The chemical weapons must be transported to the Syrian port of Latakia "in a systematic and sufficiently accelerated manner", he insisted.

President Bashar al-Assad has pledged to eliminate Syria's entire chemical weapons arsenal by the end of June or face sanctions, including the possible use of force.

Less than 5% of the stockpile has been removed from Syria, according to Washington, and Damascus has just missed another key deadline.

Mexican journalist abducted

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:15 AM PST

An armed gang abducted Mexican crime reporter Gregorio Jiménez de la Cruz on Wednesday (5 February) outside his home in Villa Allende, a town in the state of Veracruz.

One of the daily newspapers he works for, Notisur, made a passionate plea to his kidnappers to return him "home safe and sound". His kidnapping "seriously and deeply cuts us", it said, arguing that the kidnappers had made a mistake.

Jimenez de la Cruz, 42, who also writes for Liberal del Sur, had reported recently on a wave of kidnappings in Allende.

The Zetas drug cartel, considered to be Mexico's most violent criminal organisation, operates in Veracruz. Nine journalists have been murdered, at least three have gone missing and about a dozen have fled Veracruz since 2011.

Sources: RSF/Knight Centre/Latin American Herald Tribune

Roy Greenslade

Tony Abbott and Joe Hockey need to visit drought-hit areas, says farm group

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:04 AM PST

National Farmers Federation head says John Howard visited during the drought and now communities want to see Tony Abbott

Gabrielle Chan

Japhet Koech's Edinburgh adventure: the next chapter

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:00 AM PST

Kenyan athlete Japhet Koech will be back in Edinburgh to run the 2014 marathon – if his Crowdfunder project is another success

When I first met Japhet Koech, grinning outside a tiny wooden kiosk in a backstreet in Iten, Kenya, I didn't realise quite how far we'd go together. After we trained for and ran the Lewa marathon in Kenya in 2011, I said goodbye and headed back to London. Our adventure was over, I thought. In fact, it was just beginning.

After I wrote the book Running with the Kenyans, people kept contacting me asking if they could help Japhet to find a race. His story had touched them: his unwavering dedication to training, his wonderful way with words, his heartbreaking story of losing his mother as a small child.

However, he had the same problem as most other runners in Kenya: getting a race. Every marathon in Kenya is either at high altitude, or somewhere very hot, so it is impossible to run fast times. Also, the competition is so fierce that getting anywhere near the front is nigh on impossible.

All that training, and no outlet. It seems too cruel, but it is the reality for many Kenyans. For all the 327 Kenyans who ran marathons across the world in under 2 hours 15 minutes last year (a time not one single British athlete managed), another 327 at least are stuck in Kenya with no way of proving themselves.

So last year I gathered together all these offers of help, and crowdfunded to get Japhet to Edinburgh to race the marathon. I wrote about it on these pages. He ran hard, but trailed in a disappointing (for him) fifth in 2 hrs 21 mins. We thought that was that. The chance gone.

But his efforts and charm won over many people during his brief stay in Scotland, and the race organisers said they wanted him back in 2014. They'd pay towards his flight and accommodation, they said. Japhet was keen, so I offered to help him again. And so here we are, back on Crowdfunder, and hopefully soon, back in Edinburgh. Japhet's adventure, it seems, goes on. Who knows where it will end?

Note: A US reader of Running with the Kenyans decided to set up his own crowdfunding project last December to bring Japhet and another runner from the book, Shadrack Chepyego, over to Sacramento to run the California marathon. The story even made CNN news bulletins.

• To help Japhet make it to the starting line in Edinburgh, visit crowdfunder.co.uk.

Adharanand Finn

UN report on the UK housing crisis is a wake-up call for us all

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:00 AM PST

Raquel Rolnik's report amounts to a damning indictment of our housing system. Dismissing it is a mistake

A United Nations report on the UK has concluded that we are facing a critical situation in terms of availability, affordability and access to adequate housing. That conclusion will come as no surprise to anyone who works in housing or to the people who are suffering the worst impacts of this crisis – those who have been made homeless or who are having to cut spending on essentials like food and fuel just to keep a roof over their heads.

But the report must come as a wake-up call to our politicians. It's been put together by Raquel Rolnik, the UN's special rapporteur on adequate housing which is seen as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living. Perhaps inevitably, the focus has been on the political controversy stirred up by her recommendation that the bedroom tax should be immediately suspended and re-evaluated. I agree – the bedroom tax doesn't work, it isn't fair and is unlikely to be successful even on its own terms. The government needs to think again.

However, the report goes farther, signalling long-term challenges for the UK's housing and welfare systems. It amounts to a damning indictment of the crisis in our housing system – which makes it particularly disappointing to hear that ministers and government departments have dismissed it so quickly and using such uncomplimentary language.

It seems clear to me that Rolnik has chosen her words more carefully than she has been given credit for – not surprising when she knows her assessment could be taken into account by the court in Strasbourg, or indeed by courts across the UK in considering cases regarding the right to housing. The fact that a country described by the OECD as an "advanced economy" has singularly failed to realise a basic human right to adequate housing for so many shames us all, and in my view the government cannot afford to dismiss that assessment.

The report rightly commends the UK for "its history of ensuring that low- and middle-income households have access to adequate housing and have been protected from insecure tenure forms and poor housing conditions", adding that our policies and practices have served as inspiration around the world.

But the right to an adequate standard of living is intended to be "progressive". In other words, the standard of housing provision is meant to steadily improve or at least be maintained. There should be no backwards steps. The protections afforded to households under international human rights law are intended to ensure that an adequate standard of living is a right to be enjoyed by everyone. So it is deeply concerning to read Rolnik's conclusion that "some policies and practices which have resulted in the progressive realisation of the right to adequate housing are being eroded, and that the structural shape of the housing sector has changed to the detriment of the most vulnerable." The report also notes her concern that "recent measures are contributing to an increased vulnerability of those who, until a few years ago, were protected."

On her visit to the UK last year, Ms Rolnik will have seen evidence of the impact of significant reductions in government spending for social and affordable housing, and how changes to the financial model for affordable housing have increased rent levels on new homes, with a consequent impact on levels of affordability, and a fundamental shift in who gets access to new forms of affordable housing. Rents are now allowed to reach 80% of market rents – which is quite simply not "affordable" for many people and, as the report notes, also has the potential to increase reliance on housing benefit.

As well as suspending the bedroom tax, the report's recommendations include extending and expanding grants and subsidies for social housing and increasing regulation and accountability in the private rented sector. Rolnik also recommends that measures to release public land to tackle lack of availability of housing should favour social and affordable housing, and that the government should put in place targeted measures to increase the supply of housing in the private market.

Yes, it's an ambitious wish-list – some of the recommendations are controversial, some will attract widespread support and others may not. But this report should be a catalyst to further invigorate the urgent discussion on how to address our housing crisis and to drive the beginnings of a more effective response. More than that, as Rolnik notes, it is essential to consider the human beings behind the figures. When we talk about housing, we often focus on the technical aspects of getting homes on the ground, which is understandable. However, for those struggling to access decent and affordable homes, public policy on housing needs to focus on housing as a basic human right. Realising those rights is fundamental to the enjoyment of other rights, and most importantly, is central to ensuring an adequate standard of living for all.

Few people are better placed than Rolnik to draw conclusions on the impact of the housing crisis in the UK. We cannot allow this report to be lost in political wrangling – the consequences of failing to heed her warnings are too great to ignore.

Grainia Long is the chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Housing

This content is brought to you by Guardian Professional. Interested in housing? Join the housing network for more news, analysis and comment direct to you.

Shark cull could harm migration, South Africa warns WA

Posted: 06 Feb 2014 11:34 PM PST

Warning highlights the potential international ramifications of Western Australia's controversial catch-and-kill policy

Oliver Milman

Singapore in row with Indonesia over naming of boat

Posted: 06 Feb 2014 11:27 PM PST

Anger as Indonesia dedicates new navy vessel to marines who planted bomb in Singapore during 1960s konfrontasi era

Black Saturday fires remembered as Victoria prepares for serious fire threat

Posted: 06 Feb 2014 11:16 PM PST

Fire crews on high alert with temperatures in the 40s forecast for Saturday and extreme fire conditions predicted in some areas

How NGOs helped change Moroccan law on rapists marrying their victims | Fadoua Bakhadda

Posted: 06 Feb 2014 11:00 PM PST

A suicide case and a campaign to stop rapists avoiding jail via wedlock finally brought change but further reform is necessary

A law that allowed rapists to dodge jail by marrying their victims has been changed by the Moroccan parliament after a campaign by NGOs, including my organisation, the Association Marocaine de Planification Familiale (AMPF).

Previously, the law stated that anyone who "abducted or deceives a minor" could face a prison sentence under article 475, but a second clause of the article specified that when the victim marries the perpetrator, "he can no longer be prosecuted, except by persons empowered to demand the annulment of the marriage – and then only after the annulment has been proclaimed". This meant that prosecutors were not allowed to pursue rape charges independently.

The spirit of the 2011 constitution stated that men and women should be treated equally, which was at odds with article 475. We decided to set up an advocacy campaign to reform the law, and to challenge the right of judges to allow child marriage "for cultural and social reasons".

In parts of Morocco, particularly in rural areas, a girl or unmarried woman who is not a virgin, even if she lost her virginity through rape, is seen as bringing dishonour to her family. Marrying the rapist is thought to alleviate this stigma.

Another horrific consequence of this law was that if a man wanted to wed a woman who was unwilling to be his bride, by raping her he could, in effect, force her into marriage.

It took the tragic case of Amina Filali, 16, who was forced into marriage after she was raped, and who killed herself seven months into wedlock, to be the catalyst for action. Her plight caused such outrage across the country it triggered protests in several cities.

Last August, several women's rights groups joined forces to tackle child marriage. We organised a so-called peace and white march – "peace" because our protest was non-violent; "white" to represent the colour of doctors' coats. Our aim was to show how rape and forced and child marriage had a negative impact on women's health.

A pair of doctors who work in our clinics joined us on the rally. We waved placards, but fell silent as we marched on the parliament building in the Moroccan capital, Rabat. Many women suffer in silence and we wanted our demonstration to emphasise that.

The peace and white march was followed with a pink march – to symbolise women's rights. Each demonstration increased public interest.

Victory came last month, in January, when we discovered that the law had been changed, though the clause relating to child marriage has been postponed for further consultation.

We are working on a declaration to express our thanks to the government and to request further discussion. Much needs to be done to bolster gender equality, outlaw child marriage and change the law on abortion.

Abortion is prohibited in Morocco, except to preserve a pregnant woman's physical and mental health, or to save her life. The law punishes severely both the person who helps the woman to abort and the woman herself. In cases of rape and incest, for example, abortions are not allowed.

Many Moroccans are forced to make desperate choices, which can lead to unsafe abortions, abandonment, and even infanticide.

We have the support of two political parties and plan to organise a national debate to advocate for legal changes, so no woman has to undergo an unsafe abortion.

We are pushing the government to adopt the WHO definition of abortion, which we believe would address the social aspects of a woman's reality.

The time is right for such reforms. The amendment to the rape law is not just a victory for us in Morocco but for women throughout the region. A legacy of the Arab spring and globalisation is that we are sharing experiences and learning how to make our voices heard at the highest level. This success will encourage women in other Arab countries to fight for change.

There is still room for improvement. One in four women in Morocco is a victim of violence. Many articles in the penal code need to be reformed because they contain provisions that allow women to be discriminated against and fail to protect them from violence.

The ministry of women, family and solidarity is working on a law that penalises harassment against women. It is a good initiative that needs more involvement from us.

I do not know how soon we will see more rape convictions. But one thing I can say for sure is that we have sent a strong message, one that says women have to be at the centre of the discussions about laws that affect them.

Fadoua Bakhadda, is executive director of Association Marocaine de Planification Familiale, a member association of the International Planned Parenthood Federation

This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Winter Olympics: Reds upset about their beds: from the archive, 7 February 1980

Posted: 06 Feb 2014 11:00 PM PST

The Soviet team arriving in the US for the Lake Placid Games describe the athletes' living quarters as the worst they've seen

The first Soviet delegation to arrive in Lake Placid for the Winter Olympics has complained about the athletes' living quarters and about the proposed US boycott of the summer games. Yuri Sych, a spokesman for the 85-strong group who started workouts yesterday after arriving from Moscow via Montreal, said the athletes' living quarters were: "Worse than any others at previous Olympics." The village is to be turned into a federal prison after the Games and the facilities have been criticised by many other countries.

Sergei Pavlov, the leader of the Soviet group, has already voiced indignation at the US boycott threat. "We do not believe that it is right to boycott anyone and destroy the Olympic movement," he said. Meanwhile, the 28-member Russian figure skating squad, which has been practising just outside Boston for the past week and which will not transfer to Lake Placid until next Monday, has banned spectators from its training.

The loud applause from the crowds which have attended the sessions at the Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, has severely disturbed the concentration of the athletes according to Alexander Vedenin, the manager. Vedenin said that the anti-Soviet demonstration by 50 Babson College students last Saturday "will not destroy the discipline of the team".

President Carter's efforts to boycott or change the venue of the Moscow Games received a setback when the association of Olympic National Committees (ACNO) urged that the Games should go ahead as planned. ACNO, meeting in Mexico City, decided to urge the IOC to reject any attempts to boycott the Games or have them moved to another venue in protest against the Soviet Union's intervention in Afghanistan.

An advance party of five Taiwanese Olympic athletes were refused entry to the Olympic village, it was reported in New York last night. The IOC has ruled that Taiwan cannot compete in the games unless it changes its name, national emblem and flag.

Viral Video Chart: Sochi, Sherlock, Jerry Seinfeld and Jimmy Fallon

Posted: 06 Feb 2014 10:53 PM PST

Watch a witty ad that says 'the Olympics have always been a little gay' and Benedict Cumberbatch get clued up on maths

Controversy has dogged the Winter Olympics at Sochi, especially surrounding Russia's poor record on diversity. The Canadian Institute of Diversity and Inclusion has produced a witty ad featuring the luge.

Sherlock star Benedict Cumberbatch was out for the count in series three of the BBC1 detective drama when he went on Watson's stag night. Now his number is almost up again when he meets "Murray-arty" on the set of Sesame Street. Luckily for Cumberbatch, the friendly Count Von Count is around to give him a clue to a brain-teasing maths question.

Comedian Jerry Seinfeld made a comeback appearance in the ad break of the Super Bowl, which was enjoyed by millions. He has also revealed that his Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee shows for mobile phones have become so successful that it has "gotten completely out of hand." The third series, which featured stars including Larry David and Tina Fey, was streamed 25m times. "Why would I put a show on a big heavy rectangle in your house when I could put it in your pocket?" he asked on CBS This Morning.

Meanwhile, television news in the UK has been full of reports about flooding and huge waves crashing against the coast. Devon plumber Andrew Cotton went to Nazaire in Portugal to find his big wave, which he hopes will prove to be a record breaker.

We've got a couple of clips to make you weep this week – a tribute to actor Philip Seymour Hoffman, who died at the age of 46, and a taster of the summer's big sentimental movie, The Fault in Our Stars, which is released in June.

Finally, to cheer you up, take a look at the Swedish Marines' parody of Grease, which was filmed in Afghanistan, and comedy group Barkada's spoof on the song from Disney's Frozen, Do You Want to Be My Boyfriend.

Guardian Viral Video Chart. Compiled by Unruly Media and mashed around by Janette

1.The Canadian Institute of Diversity and Inclusion: "Luge" Super Bowl XLVIII TV Commercial
Thrusting message

2. Benedict Cumberbatch and the Sign of Four (or is it Three?)
Elementary maths

3. Seinfeld Reunion Super Bowl Commercial 2014
Jerry in the can

4. Swedish Marines making parody of Grease lightning in Afghanistan
Step to it

5. Andrew Cotton at Nazaré Feb.2 - 2014 Ride of the Year Entry - Billabong XXL Big Wave Awards
Riding high

6. Do You Want To Be My Boyfriend [FROZEN PARODY]
Courting trouble

7. "Full House" Guys Reunite On Jimmy Fallon
Late night departure

8. Top 10 Anticipated But Disappointing Movies
Top of the flops

9. The Fault In Our Stars | Official Trailer [HD] | 20th Century FOX
Get the hankies out

10. Philip Seymour Hoffman Tribute RIP - 1967 - 2014
Genius actor remembered

Source: Viral Video Chart. Compiled from data gathered at 14:00 on 6 February 2014. The Viral Video Chart is currently based on a count of the embedded videos and links on approximately 2m blogs, as well as Facebook and Twitter.