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	Focus “Women’s rights are human rights.” This landmark slogan of the Beijing Conference on Women held exactly five years ago is more than ever brandished by women the world over. Already influential forces in their own communities, women are now demanding greater access to decision-making powers. But why does their quest to break into the male political bastion remain such an obstacle course?
	The magic of the mirror The uprising in Chiapas has forced Mexican society to look at the Indians straight on, perhaps for the first time, and to start weaving with them a truly common future. Photos by Alex Webb, text by Fabrizio Mejía Madrid. Alex Webb is an American photographer with the Magnum agency. Fabrizio Mejía Madrid is director of culture at the municipality of Mexico City. A contributor to the daily La Jornada, he is the author of three books, including “Small Acts of Civil Disobedience”, published in Spanish in 1996.
	No progress without a secular society Born in Bangladesh, Ms. Nasreen has led a twin career as a doctor and writer. She is the author of six novels, several collections of poetry and essays, and an autobiography. Her works have been translated into over a dozen languages. Two of her novels, Shame and My Girlhood, were banned in her country, where Islamic fundamentalists issued a fatwa against her. Accused by her government of blasphemy, Ms. Nasreen has been living in exile since 1994. She has received numerous international awards, including India’s Ananda Award, the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize and the International Humanist Award from the United States.
	The “miracle” of the Rhine Fish are once again swimming in the Rhine River but it took an ecological catastrophe for the countries it flows through to clean up their act. Urs Weber, editor of the regional supplement of the Swiss daily newspaper Basler Zeitung, in Basel.
	Doing it their own way: home schooling in the U.S. Whether for religious reasons or out of a strong desire to do things differently, a growing number of parents in the United States are choosing to educate their children at home. Jeff Archer, staff Writer at Education Week (U.S.).
	European disunity Parents throughout Europe are becoming bolder about educating their children at home, even if it means defending their rights in court. Cynthia Guttman, UNESCO Courier journalist.
	Gypsies: trapped on the fringes of Europe Across Europe, Gypsies live in dire poverty and are frequently the target of violence and racism. But some governments are finally taking notice of the continent’s largest minority. Alain Reyniers, ethnologist, lecturer at the Catholic University of Louvain and editor of the magazine Études Tsiganes.
	A Roma ghetto in Florence Nicolas Solimano and Tiziana Mori, members of the Michelucci Foundation, Florence.
	Diving for dollars New technology means shipwrecks swallowed up by the deepest waters can now be reached. But who owns the precious finds? Some countries allow a free-for-all of plundering Vincent Noce, journalist with the French daily newspaper Libération.
	Internet to the rescue of democracy? Advocates of e-democracy profess that the Internet is the only way to bridge the gap between disaffected citizens and politicians. “Nonsense” say others. René Lefort, director of the UNESCO Courier.
	Africa: cell phones for citizenship Ibrahima N’Diaye, the mayor of Mali’s capital Bamako, is banking on the Internet to boost democracy in Africa via specially-outfitted cell phones. Interview by Jasmina Sopova, UNESCO Courier journalist.
	Margarita Salas: knowledge to dispel fear Margarita Salas, a Spanish pioneer in molecular biology, dismisses alarmist reactions to recent scientific advances and stays thoroughly optimistic on all fronts. Interview by Lucía Iglesias Kuntz, UNESCO Courier journalist.