The article was written by Avi Mor, director of the Hotline, and by Malka Genachowski, director of WIZO’s Janet Burros Center for the Treatment and Prevention of Domestic Violence, in which the Hot Line operates. It showcases how WIZO is on the cutting edge of innovation in the battle against domestic violence, continually initiating new programs and services that bring a holistic and systematic approach to this complex problem, in treatment, prevention, education, advocacy and legislation.

We urge you to read this excellent article and share it widely.

Warm regards,

Anita Friedman                    Ora Korazim
Chairperson                          Chairperson
World WIZO                          WIZO Israel

Read the article from Newsweek

The post WIZO’s pioneering work in preventing domestic violence  appeared first on International Alliance of Women.

Violence against women and girls is one of the most widespread, persistent and devastating human rights violations. In our world today violence against women and girls remains largely unreported due to impunity, silence, stigma and shame surrounding it but also due to lack of political will by governments to implement relevant policies to help victims.

On the 25th of November every year we commemorate the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on the basis of resolution 54/134 of the General Assembly which invites governments, international organisations as well as NGOs to join together and organise activities designed to raise public awareness of the issue every year on that date.

I find raising awareness for one day too little. We must find other ways to commemorate the International Day.

The executive director of UN Women Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka in her speech at the official commemoration of this day in New York City this year called for turning the struggle to end impunity to a global movement for accountability. This is a very good approach to the issue of violence against women.

IAW has for a couple of years now issued Declarations on Accountability by governments on issues that have to do with the gender equality and women’s human rights. The last IAW Declaration of 2018 is even more important because it refers to civil society, in particular women’s organisations and feminist groups, and the shrinking space they encounter which creates enormous difficulties for them to work.

The reason this is taking place is that CSOs are key players in holding governments to account to ensure their role as duty bearers for the fulfillment of human rights.

So, without a strong civil society, we cannot proceed with what the Executive Director of UN Women is calling for.

We should mobilize to work against overregulation of civil society organisations putting in place restrictions in their funding, taxation, membership registration and thus their functioning.

As the UN Executive Secretary is saying we should turn decades of difficult struggle to end impunity into tangible sisterhood that is getting stronger and telling perpetrators that time is up.

More importantly it is about building partnerships and changing the culture in our society that makes these violations possible and tolerated.

The independence of CSOs is a perquisite for the effective accountability of governments and for building a human rights and gender equality culture.

We have to mobilize to ensure that governments stop using symbolic policies and practices with limited impact as a substitute for the real political and economic commitments that are needed to overcome the structural barriers to eliminating violence against women and more generally the realization of women’s and girls’ human rights.

One way of demonstrating to governments their lack of effective policies and accountability is by gathering data that are comparable at the international level. To that effect I have to reiterate the call of the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women who urges the worldwide adoption of femicide watches or gender related killings observatories, in order to collect, analyze and review data at the national, regional and global level.

These data concerning gender related killings would contribute to identifying existing failures of protection, boost preventive measures as well as tackle impunity of perpetrators.

The aim is to move in the direction of collection of comparable world data on femicide and towards the development of modalities of data collection and analysis. Such data could then be turned into femicide rates in order to enable states to objectively assess where they stand on the regional and global level to scale and to adopt actions needed to prevent many preventable deaths of women.

The post 2018 International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women appeared first on International Alliance of Women.

This is good news for anyone advocating for reproductive health and rights, like our good friend Gudrun Haupter

Gudrun Haupter, convener of the IAW Health commission comments:

My short assessment of the prospects of better access to abortion care in all countries according to international human rights standards is at best mixed.

Refusal by healthcare professionals on grounds of “conscientious objection” is wide-spread. The AGENDA EUROPE supporters led by ultraconservative forces in and beyond European countries are working on the roll-back of reproductive health legislation and its implementation. Their list of prohibition includes women’s and adolescents’ access to contraceptive options such as emergency contraception, one of the keys to lowering abortions rates.

After a period of relative openness following the ICPD politics of treating family planning as a taboo in development policies at national and international levels, is once again widely the norm.

Another alarm signal is the expected life-time nomination of one more conservative judge to the US Federal Constitutional Court. Brett Kavanaugh is said to be the first choice of conservative Evangelical Christians. The reason: they hope that he would vote to overturn Roe v. Wade in order to uphold the dignity of all human life – the well-known position of all pro-life missionaries. These are known to spread their message all over the globe, partly with dubious methods.

Finally, I wish to mention that the implementation of women-friendly abortion laws still meets with many challenges, particularly – but not only – in rural areas. At the IAW board meeting in Lusaka some 20 years ago IAW-member Zambia Alliance of Women was complimented on the country’s liberal abortion legislation. We were told that women seeking an abortion faced disgracing conditions such as procedure performed on the bare floor, without even a blanket, no empathy of the medical personnel.

https://www.facebook.com/safeabortionzambia/posts/is-abortion-legal-in-zambiayes-safe-abortion-is-legal-in-almost-all-circumstance/1564225963794970/

Gudrun Haupter, 20 September 2018

Convener of Commission on Health

The post Barriers to Abortion appeared first on International Alliance of Women.

Who am I, a poor, rural, Zulu woman who did not have an opportunity to get formal education but made it her responsibility to educate herself, to be receiving such an honour and speaking to such prominent and very powerful women?

I guess the answer is that, in spite of what appears to be our differences, I am you…and you are me. And each of us, in our own way, in our respective countries, has been fighting for the same thing: the inalienable rights of women and girls living in the rural areas, of  indigenous girls and women and gender equality.

And I think I can say one thing for sure: We have all been silenced too often, been rejected too often, been ignored too often, cried too much, witnessed too much, and suffered too much. Do you agree?

Some even accuse us of working too hard, loving too much and giving too much. Yet few know that we also receive too much. With every step we take on the journey towards gender equality, no matter how small, we receive an immeasurable amount of joy.

And as different as we may seem, we are intimately and forever bound together because, like Oprah and Viola and Ruth and Liz and Malala and Maya and Rosa..and Eve (who is now here in NY), and you and you and you…… and so many more, each one of us,… in spite of being shut up, in spite of being warned, in spite of being mentally, emotionally, and often sexually and physically abused, and as in my case, in spite of being crippled, and over and over again threatened with death, we have…PERSISTED.

And we will continue to persist, insist and RESIST,

Like countless nameless women in my village,… like Nonkululeko Zulu who tried to resist…but 3 men were too many. Nonkululeko was orphaned at 4, beaten and raped at 14, and forced to marry the old man who was one of the 3 who beat and  raped her in exchange for 8 cows, given, of course to her uncle, since women could not own property.

I visited Nonkululeko often and shaking with fear, she would tell me that being with “her husband” made her relive that terrible night over and over again. She confided in me that she was working extra hard to be able to buy the 8 cows and give them to this man in order to run away with her two children. But before she could, she was pregnant again with her third child.

In 2015 Nonkuleko committed suicide and left 3 beautiful children behind. I stand here today with her, and millions of other indigenous wotmen who are by my side and in my heart, saying ………. NAMI FUTHI meaning #MeToo in isiZulu.

I am aware that here in the United States you are doing the same, with the #MeToo movement.

As in most African nations, we have been saying nathi futhi – ……actually ‘WeToo’…. for over fifty years.. We too, NATHI FUTHI, deserve to have the right to land, inheritance and property, which in most situations is solely given to men. Although it is estimated that between 75-80% of the African Continent is cultivated by women, we only own about 2% of the continent’s land.

We too, nathi futhi,  need to be protected by the constitutions of the world, and not silenced by corrupt male community, traditional leaders and national parliamentarians. We too, NATHI FUTHI, must have water…….. and not to have to wake up at 1o’clock in the early morning to dig holes in sand on the side of the rivers and often wait for at least seven hours  to get a 20-25 – litre bucket of water.

We,too must be heard and protected against rape, torture, killings, forced marriages and sex trafficking and not be silenced  with violence nor threatened because we are poor and have nothing.  We,too demand food to nurture ourselves and our children, and have access to health care and medicine and hospitals. We,too must be able to defend ourselves against gender based violence perpetrated against us mainly by our spouses and our boyfriends and ALL men, who are more than happy to give us HIV for their sexual satisfaction.  We too have a voice and it’s our turn!! And we invite all honorable men to join us. SEKUYITHUBA LETHU meaning  IT’S OUR TURN.

But permit me to go back in time. My journey, my #MeToo, as a human rights activist began 64 years ago when I was 8. I remember it as if it were yesterday.

It was 3:00 a.m. since I had to get up early to get my siblings dressed for school. I started taking care of when I was 6.  Our school was a two and a half hour walk away. I was shaking, huddled underneath my mum’s bed, completely hidden by two blue and yellow scratchy blankets. Tightly pressed to my ears was a little radio, for fear I would be arrested for listening to the forbidden Radio Freedom…….of former Rhodesia which is now Zimbabwe and Radio of former  which is now Mozambique. The muffled voice of the radio announcer warned: “Smith (referring to the state president, Mr. Ian Smith) is killing  innocent people every day at 7p.m. by butchering them”. Those were people who were perceived to not respect the 7:00 p.m. curfew. I remember crying and once it was safe to creep out from under the bed, declaring my resolution to my mum, which by the way has never changed, “This is horrible. I must travel to all the African nations and learn from women how to defend ourselves from this kind of oppression.” My mum must have thought at best that I was cute, or at worst, that I was crazy when she told me and impatiently cried that we barely had enough to eat…and besides no one from our community had ever dared leave.

At that time indigenous women were not allowed to own property or even speak in community meetings where men were present. Women were often beaten up by their spouses (who were usually migrant workers only coming home in December for the holidays.) Some young girls were kidnapped, tortured, raped and drugged, in the name of ukuthwala and forced into abusive marriages to much older men in exchange for between four and eleven  cows.

But that was the past and although much is still to be done, we are here to celebrate the present and the ongoing accomplishments of our powerful and courageous Zulu sisters and daughters , who now number 50,000 and make up RWM, The Rural Women’s Movement, which stands for our right and power to evoke change, that a single voice has the ability to declare an iniquity, and that each time a woman or a girl stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, she sends forth a tiny ripple of hope.
I began by recruiting 4 indigenous young women. Zulu indigenous women and girls started having workshops where proud women, who suffered in silence, could openly acknowledge and share their hardships. Awareness was the first step in fighting back. The second step was to influence the policy making processes so women would know their constitutional rights.

We have continued to hold workshops on leadership skills, self-respect and basic agriculture. I don’t consider myself a leader, but a facilitator, a guide. Since each village and each situation is different and has different needs, we RWM create leaders who are empowered to solve their own unique challenges. We worked with women to recognize their power…to believe in it, to trust it, honor it, and then take action. We still have a lot to do, but I am proud to tell you…. As a direct result of the RWM’S interventions:

Ukuthwala, the abduction, torture, rape and forced marriages of girls as young as 13 years of age, has been eradicated in two indigenous communities. We are currently celebrating seven years and nine months of Zero tolerance for forced marriages.

Sexually transmitted diseases have decreased by approximately 15%, teenage pregnancy has decreased by approximately 10%, children no longer die in childbirth, the number of school drop-outs has decreased from 20% to approximately 2%. Parents, including fathers and uncles are now prioritizing school for their daughters rather than trading them off for marriage in exchange for between 4 to 8 cows.

RWM has currently worked with 450 women who increased their income and 750 rural women have become “better organized and mobilized to effectively lobby against and tackle legislation policies and practices that discriminate against women’s socio-economic and cultural well-being.”

Women are now effectively participating in the policy-making processes, as they partner with other women who are not members of RWM, by sharing their own experiences and knowledge.

The RWM was instrumental in declaring the Communal Land Rights Act11 of 2004 unconstitutional and enshrined in gender bias. We also tirelessly fought against the Traditional Courts Bill of 2008 and the Traditional Leadership and Governance Framework Act of 2003. The latter bill would have created a separate legal system for the 18 million women living in the former Bantustans, making them second class citizens. In the two communities RWM eradicated ukuthwala. No longer can men throw women off the land they have worked and toiled for decades, if their spouses or fathers die. Thanks to our work, men no longer confiscate and make their own what is rightfully owned by indigenous women and girls.

Yesterday, girls like Nonkululeko had no hope, today, like I previously mentioned, we have eradicated ukuthwala.

Yesterday, girls,  couldn’t study because it was assumed that they will take their families’ wealth to their spouses’ families or they had to bring up their siblings and fetch water, look after members of the families who are bed-ridden.

Today education is prioritized for girls, even by their fathers and uncles. Yesterday girls did not know how babies came into the world, today they know about biology and how to protect themselves from unwanted pregnancies. Never, never and never will any young woman or girl be abducted tortured, raped and  forced into marriage in these two communities.

So for Nonkululeko who will always be in my heart, and for all the innocent girls and women who have and continue to suffer, I dedicate today. And like Oprah recently proclaimed  A NEW DAY IS UPON US. We know changes take time and they don’t come about by one person, but a community of sisters willing to stand up for what is right.  And since we are talking about a NEW DAY and Oprah, she highlighted the magnificent men who have joined the #MeToo movement. Today, as I stand before you, I too thank those magnificent men and pray for a paradigm shift in my country and world, where hand in hand, men and women, boys and girls, can walk towards the light. (As ….said…it is not the darkness of the tomb, but the darkness of the womb.)

So, we have come full circle. What would I say to that little frightened but determined little girl, who had no formal education or mentors and who made such an absurd declaration to her Mama 66 years ago?

This is what I would tell her, beautiful innocent child, “Never forget that above all out are WORTHY. You are limitless. All that matters is that you know your purpose and you keep going never give up.

Your journey would not be easy and it will have many detours…but that doesn’t matter.

Your journey will often be arduous and painful, but that doesn’t matter either.

Your journey will test who you are

At times, it will feel like you want to give up and no one is listening. Not even that matters.

You will make mistakes – and stumble, but that’s how you will learn.

Its OK to be imperfect and NECCESSARY to be humble and vulnerable. Look the nay sayers in the eyes and tell them you don’t care about their opinion. If you do what you know is right, if you stand up to the oppressors and for the vulnerable, that is all you can do. Be aware of all your feelings, even the scary ones. Have compassion for others…..AND OURSELVES

 Ask for help when you need it and know we cannot achieve our dreams by ourselves. We need a community. We need to have someone who will listen to us when we think we are so tired we can’t move. We need to have someone who will take care if us when we have been emotionally….. and yes, physically beaten up.

And above all, we need to love ourselves and trust that somehow, one day we WILL achieve our goals. KNOW THIS IS YOUR SACRED JOURNEY and the spirit of all the women who came before you and with you.”

To My DEAREST MAMA – Nomaswazi Ngubane who raised me and supported me in my work until she passed on in 2014.  I would like to say to her spirit and that of my GRANDMOTHER – Mabuso Khanyeza:

“You remember Mama, Gogo what I talked about when I was 6.? I am here!!! At the NGO CSW62 in New York City, And it’s the beginning of a new day when an indigenous, poor  little girl from iMbubu Community of KwaZulu Natal…..is speaking to 1000 women from different countries and they are LISTENING ……Dear Mama, I didn’t let you down….. and it’s just the beginning.”

I thank you all for your attention.

To the International Alliance of Women. Mine is to say I do not have a word to thank you for nominating me for this prestigious award. Joanna……. when I received your email message informing me that the IAW would like to nominate me for this award I wanted to say please do not nominate me because I didn’t think  I could become a winner for such an award. But I ended up saying to myself I don’t want to disappoint them because there is no harm in nominating me even if I don’t make it to the top of the list – would still be something important for my history to be nominated by an international women’s organization.

Surprise, surprise – I was browsing the students’ internet for news and I came across an article – Sizani Ngubane is the winner of the NGO CSW62 Woman of Distinction Award and could not believe my eyes.

Thanks once more. With much love.

The post Sizani Ngubane’s speech on CSW62 Consultation Day, March 11 2018 appeared first on International Alliance of Women.

OCASI offers the graphic novel for free to individuals, social agencies, educational institutions or groups of people interested in discussion.  The use of the graphic novel as a communication tool is a brilliant idea.  The combination of visuals and short text ensures the graphic novel is easy to read.  This medium, alleviates language barriers that a text rich document might present for non native English speakers.

Four women; Kose, Magali, Amal and Manuela share their personal stories as survivors of gender based violence.  In a very brave way the heroines invite the reader into their lives and unveil the challenges they faced in their adopted country.  Though the stories are laced with violence, they are so gripping that one is compelled to read all four at once. The common message of each story is that it takes much courage to face the destructive nature of violence but, with support, women can rebuild their lives by connecting with a network of advocates.  The network of women who supported Kose, Magali, Amal and Manuela proved to be ingenious problem solvers, counsellors, and protectors.

At the time the graphic novel was written I suspect these 4 survivors had no knowledge of the #MeToo campaign or the “Times Up” movement.  That language had not yet entered the social consciousness. What they did know was that the emotional and physical attacks directed at them were the opposite of kindness or justice.

A common motivator for people to immigrate to a new country is to seek opportunities for their wellbeing.  Instead these women were preyed upon by violent men in power positions.  Supernaturally, with a gesture of hope Kose, Magali, Amal and Manuela harnessed enough strength to raise their hand to say, “I am deeply hurt but I will not be defeated by violence against my person”!

It would be interesting to know if the women who contributed their stories would be available for speaking engagements.  Did the four women get to meet each other and create an additional circle of friendship for themselves?  What are they doing now?  What was the healing process for each woman?  Also of interest is whether or not OCASI plans to expand the program with a series of graphic novels on issues that face immigrant women.

These 4 women, Kose, Magali, Amal and Manuela, might be surprised to know that they are part of the “Times Up” movement, the #MeToo campaign and that their story made it to Denmark where Lene lives.  I hope they feel the admiration of all the women who stand by them.  Thank you “Soul Reclaimers” for sharing your stories to help others reclaim their dignity and find Peace.

Direct Link to Full 44-Page 2017 Graphic Novel:

http://www.ocasi.org/sites/default/files/ocasi-vaw-graphic-novel-english_0.pdf?utm_source=CCMW+Mailing+List&utm_campaign=54fca196b0-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2017_09_10&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_2b5d741f20-54fca196b0-74883373&mc_cid=54fca196b0&mc_eid=44763f7cee

Cheryl Hayles

Vice President North America, International Alliance of Women

The post “Telling Our Stories: Immigrant Women’s Resilience”.  appeared first on International Alliance of Women.

We believe the elimination of violence can only be realized with the understanding that aggression against one woman is abuse against all women.  The individual cannot be separated from the community and therefore national epidemics of violence have a global impact. Whether actors are enablers, bystanders or bullies, each act of violence against women has active perpetrators and conspirators who must be held accountable for attempting to diminish the personhood of the divine feminine.

For this significant Canadian National Day of Remembrance and Action to eliminate Violence Against Women the CFUW is intentionally making connections to SDG #4, #5, #16 and #17 (However, connections to any other SDG may be implied).

This is the sixth feature in the series of nine Theme Days (Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, World Day to end Human Trafficking, International Literacy Day, International Day of the Girl Child, National Day of Remembrance of Violence Against Women – Canada, International Women’s Day, Earth Day, and 50/50 Day).  This initiative provides a critical opportunity to discuss the interconnectedness of the SDGs to achieve gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls. We also aspire to highlight the intersectionality of women’s issues and the need to engage all stakeholders in the conversation.

The 2030 Agenda is for all, and achieving its goals requires action at all levels. In the spirit of the 2030 Agenda, contributors from diverse backgrounds have offered a perspective that we hope you can connect to and extend the conversation beyond your circle.

Cheryl Hayles, VP International Relations, Canadian Federation of University Women (CFUW), Regional VP North America, International Alliance of Women (IAW)

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It Has Been Twenty-Eight Years and What Has Changed?

Violence against women takes many forms: physical, mental, verbal, and sexual.  In 1989, 14 young women were murdered, an event now referred to as “The Montreal Massacre”.  At the time, the public expressed shock and outrage; something had to be done to prevent this type of thing from happening again.  But, what has really changed since then?  Not much apart from the fact that we now have a national day of remembrance.  During the 28 years since that event how many Indigenous women have been murdered or gone missing? In most cases, authorities did not take the situation seriously.  How many victims of sexual assault have not come forward because they fear being victimized again by the system and even by court officials themselves? This kind of behaviour on the part of males, even ones in positions of great responsibility, has become normalized as their bragging of their actions has been dismissed as “just boy talk”.

While we do have that day of remembrance, nothing will change until men form a bigger part of the discussion and they are made to see how their actions have affected their women victims.

Valerie Hume, Member of the International Relations Committee, (CFUW) 

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We Remember December 6, 1989

Geneviève Bergeron, 21

Hélène Colgan, 23

Nathalie Croteau, 23

Barbara Daigneault, 22

Anne-Marie Edward, 21

Maud Haviernick, 29

Barbara Klueznick, 31

Maryse Laganière, 25

Maryse Leclair, 23

Anne-Marie Lemay, 22

Sonia Pelletier, 23

Michèle Richard, 21

Anne St-Arneault, 23

Annie Turcotte, 21

The post Canadian National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women December 6 appeared first on International Alliance of Women.

Male violence against women knows no geographical boundaries, no age limit, no class distinctions, no race, nor cultural differences. It manifests itself in multiple forms and involves a wide variety of perpetrators that range from intimate partners and family members, work colleagues and social or community acquaintances to strangers and institutional actors such as police, health, professional teachers, and soldiers. Yet male violence against women is still invisible and the voices of women victims are still silenced.

Although equality between women and men is guaranteed in the constitution of 139 countries and territories all too often women are denied justice and protection from violence.

Impunity concerning perpetrators of acts of violence is the norm, even if these acts have to do with Femicide. Femicide is an extreme manifestation of violence against women as it has to do with killing women only because they are women. Such acts an ultimate act of violence which is experienced on a continuum of violence, while a lack of accountability for such crimes is the norm.

The discrimination and violence that are reflected in gender-related killings of women encompass structural, institutional, interpersonal, and individual factors. Thus, an understanding of gender killing requires taking into account the political, social and economic context within which it takes place. This includes male responses to women’s empowerment, the political, legal and societal reaction to such killings, the principle of the continuum of violence and patterns of structural discrimination and inequality that continue to form part of the reality of women’s lives.

What is the most important concerning impunity to acts of violence, in particular, femicide which has become a global concern, is that it compounds the effects of this violence as a mechanism of control.

When the state fails to hold the perpetrators accountable, impunity not only intensifies the subordination and powerlessness of the targets of violence, but also sends a message to society that male violence against women is both acceptable and inevitable.

This explains the reasons why violence continues to be one of the most pervasive global problems in the world.

The most important reason why there is no progress in dealing with this global pandemic of alarming proportions is that violence against women as stated in the Beijing platform Action of 1995 is a manifestation of the historically unequal power relations between men and women which have led to domination over and discrimination against women by men and to the prevention of women’s full advancement.

Male violence against women refers to a structural system of patriarchal values by which violence against women and girls is tolerated, legitimized and even trivialized. It aims at ensuring men domination over women, through different forms and levels of violence, in order to control women and girls, their bodies and their sexuality. It is part of a broader system of patriarchy, where men establish and keep on developing strategies to control all sectors of society thus disempowering women.

The prevention and eradication of male violence against women rests on addressing women’s inequality and patriarchy. Women’s inequality is both cause and consequence of male violence against women and vice versa. Male violence against women shapes women’s place in society. At the same time, inequality between women and men creates the conditions for male violence against women and legitimizes it.

The structure of capitalism which brings different forms of exploitation and oppression also fuels patriarchal structures and men’s domination over women as it exacerbates economic inequalities and discrimination.

This situation is deplorable more so because, in recent years, we have had some very positive developments. We now have a powerful tool to combat this scourge. This is the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence. This Convention is the first international legally binding instrument open to any country in the world to provide for a comprehensive set of measures to prevent and combat violence against women and domestic violence. It recognizes violence against women as a violation of human rights and as a form of discrimination.

We all know that despite having strong instruments and analyses, we do not see change on the ground. We all know why. What is really needed is political will which is difficult to find unless it is a feminist political will and democratic processes. We need political will to accelerate implementation, change mentalities and ensure women’s and girls’ rights. The world community has agreed on new SDG’s, which comprise again a commitment to end violence against women. To transform this declaration into action, the UN system needs to play a bigger role and to hold member states accountable. The women’s organizations should be consulted at all levels and all steps and funded in a sustainable way. They should lobby governments for accountability on measures and policies adopted by them to combat this scourge.

Let us all, affiliate and associate organisations, members of the IAW, as well as individual members, try to hold governments accountable on their will to end male violence against women and girls.

The post International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls appeared first on International Alliance of Women.

Urgently calls on its membership to

• initiate projects and support initiatives that propagate monthly hygiene and provide the means for this including suitable underwear and reusable, washable sanitary pads, allowing girls to stay in the school system;
• increase its networking on the national and international level by strong advocacy addressing communities, governments, and also the private and public sectors
•  pressurize local authorities to
  • provide for separate toilets for girls including running water and soap in school areas in order to keep girls in the school system.

 Moved by

Gudrun Haupter, Ursula Nakamura,
IAW Commission on Health 

Seconded by
Airelle Wagenknecht

Read all resolutions:
Resolutions adopted at 37th Congress

The post Keeping girls in school during menstruation appeared first on International Alliance of Women.

There have been rapes equally brutal which have gone unnoticed or unpunished simply because they took place in the rural heartlands of the country where the people involved were too poor to protest. Children are raped, babies are raped, old women are raped and the word becomes a joke in the mouths of politicians.

The problem is the objectification of women and an underlying belief that they can be used as battering rams. In a country where daughters are destroyed, gender violence is a part of everyday life, a woman on her own is fair game to a patriarchal society, or even, as in the Nirbhaya case, a woman out in the evening with her boyfriend.  In the Nirbhaya case, the woman clung onto life demanding that her rapists be burned alive for destroying her life. Others have not been so fortunate – their violators have done an efficient job of killing them after the rape and disappearing into the night.

Where the criminals have been caught, courts have shown a vacillation in the sentencing. In February 2014, for example, even after the Nirbhaya case, Justices B S Chauhan and M Y Eqbal found a man guilty of raping his friend’s daughter and strangling her afterwards. Despite the fact that the girl called the rapist uncle, he was given 35 years in prison instead of the death penalty. In February 1999, a culprit was reprieved because his act was not intentional – he had found a minor girl on her own at night, raped her and in gagging her, caused her death. An Allahabad caught sentenced the man to death but a bench of Justices set it aside saying that it was not that rarest of rare cases which deserved death. In December of that year a four-year-old was kidnapped, assaulted and murdered – her rapist too went free because there were inconsistencies in the evidence. The Supreme Court in Haryana commented that for the most part decisions were judge-centric rather than principle based.

Over two decades, this indecisiveness has only served to strengthen the feeling that India’s women of a certain class are of no relevance. Two-year-olds, five-year-olds are all disposable in the scheme of things and pathetic bodies stuffed in gunnysacks are forgotten in a world obsessed for the most part with survival.  A spiritual leader Baba Asaram, also incidentally accused of rape, commented that Nirbhaya was as guilty as her rapists and should have called them her brothers and recited mantras to them. Another extreme Hindu Right supremo claimed that rapes occurred only in cities because women wore ‘less clothes’. While a third said broadly ‘boys will be boys’.

Has the Nirbhaya verdict changed anything for India’s women? Hardly. An eight-year-old was raped a week after the Supreme Court sentence in a recently inaugurated school in Patna. Nirbhaya is an ‘ideal’ that no one will apply to the rest unless India’s prominent women continue to protest publicly and vociferously – and even then the outcry will not touch the backwaters. God, a woman said, sees the truth and waits.

Anjana Basu

The post Wolves of Lust appeared first on International Alliance of Women.