SANAA, Yemen (AP) An international human rights group is urging Yemen to ensure that its new constitution has adequate protections for women.
Human Rights Watch addressed Yemen's National Dialogue in its Tuesday statement. The conference brings together political and religious leaders and other representatives to decide on the country's political system before writing a constitution.
"This is a historic opportunity for Yemen to end the deeply entrenched discrimination against its women in both law and in practice," said Rothna Begum of HRW.
HRW says that Yemeni women face severe discrimination in all aspects of their lives, including the inability to marry without the permission of male guardians. It says the country also has high levels of child marriage, sometimes involving girls as young as eight.
