AUSTRIAN WOMEN'S RIGHTS MINISTER URGES ACTION TO STOP HARMFUL PRACTICES.

The Austrian Minister for Health and Women, Maria Rauch-Kallat, has said she wants to launch an initiative to crack down on "harmful traditional practices" against women and has called on member states to become more involved in looking for solutions to the problem of forced marriages, genital mutilation and so-called honour crimes. Unveiling her ideas during the informal meeting of EU Equal Opportunities Ministers with representatives from the European Commission, the Parliament and observers from non-EU countries in Brussels on January 25, Mrs Rauch-Kallat emphasised that these practices were not imposed by a religion but were largely cultural. "As a result of global migration, women all over the world are falling victim to these human rights violations" she said, adding that...