English, women

Adopting international human rights conventions at the local level to improve women's rights

Lrubenstein — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 13:38:48 -0500

The Women’s Institute for Leadership Development for Human Rights (WILD) used the United Nations Convention to End Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) to advocate for human rights at the local level. WILD seeks to improve the lives of women and girls through human rights education and advocacy, and works with local, national, and international governments to ensure that these bodies are informed about gender issues in the United States. It also collaborates with other cities in the United States to help them adopt laws instituting the principles of the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).

WILD was founded in June 1996 as a response to the previous year’s United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing. After its inception, WILD began lobbying the city of San Francisco to become the first city in the United States to pass a law following the principles of CEDAW.

Because this Convention has not been ratified by the United States, it cannot be invoked on a national level. Seeking to make the international document binding on a local level, and use it to help combat issues such as discrimination and domestic violence within the city, WILD worked with government officials, public citizens, and members of advocacy groups focused on domestic violence, poverty, and health issues. Testimony on the relevance of CEDAW in the lives of local women was presented to government officials at a public hearing in the fall of 1997. In April 1998 the city passed the ordinance, requiring city departments to review budgets, employment policies, and the delivery of services within a context of gender and human rights, and allocating funds to help these departments put the ordinance into practice.

Because not all members of the community were familiar with the language of human rights, WILD worked to frame discussion of the ordinance in terms of discrimination, believing that people connect with this term and see its relevance in their everyday lives. WILD also held a public meeting in which community members were encouraged to publicly record their personal testimony in relation to the rights of women and girls, and their pledges to uphold the principles of the Convention. Through this meeting, WILD hoped to make community members feel important to the process of adopting the Convention, and personally committed to seeing the Convention’s principles upheld throughout the city.

WILD’s work extends beyond San Francisco, as the Institute works to improve the lives of women and girls throughout the United States, and campaigns for gender equality to be made a principle of government laws and policies. WILD staff members conduct conferences and workshops for educational, community, government, and civic groups, organize public hearings, and consult with national and international government organizations, including the United Nations. They are also advising organizations in several cities across the country about ways in which these cities may adopt the principles of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, as well as those of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.

For more information on WILD's campaign to pass CEDAW, or to order our step-by-step guide on how to impact public policy using a human rights framework on a local level, please see the publications page of WILD's website, located at:

http://www.wildforhumanrights.org/publications/index.html

Supporting non-governmental organizations in their use of international mechanisms to press government for change

Lrubenstein — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 12:57:29 -0500

The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) is a powerful legal instrument for articulating, advocating, and monitoring women's human rights. Until the mid-nineties, the UN was not open to the voices of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Now, however, NGOs play a vital role in making the Convention an instrument of women's empowerment, through advocacy and monitoring of governments’ implementation of the treaty. Sessions involving 23 members of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW Committee) are held every January and June. Eight governments which have ratified the Convention are called upon to report at each session; countries report to CEDAW every four years. One year before the sessions, the UN makes an announcement of the countries that are to present at the coming session.

In advance of CEDAW sessions, NGOs have the opportunity to distribute their own reports on the status of women in their country to CEDAW members. The actual sessions consist of presentations by government representatives. CEDAW members are then able to use the information provided to them by NGOs and others in the questioning period of the session where they can challenge government testimony. NGO reports provide a crucial balance to government testimony. Because the Convention's enforcement mechanism is based on a reporting system and allows NGO shadow reports, it is imperative that NGOs are informed and use the reporting mechanism effectively to maintain government accountability both inside the country and at the United Nations.

The International Women's Rights Action Watch (IWRAW), organized in 1985 at the World Conference on Women in Nairobi, Kenya to monitor implementation of the convention, responded to this communications need by developing a network of NGOs focusing on women. IWRAW has developed a database of over 5,000 organizations around the world and notifies NGOs within countries that will report at the coming CEDAW session. IWRAW compiles shadow reports based on research that include a broad range of contacts in each country and distributes these reports to CEDAW Committee members prior to sessions. It also offers NGOs flexible assistance on developing their own reports. Some NGOs request that IWRAW write the report for them and others request guidance on developing their own report. In order to expedite assistance to NGOs, IWRAW has a procedural guide on how to organize and convey NGO 'shadow reports' to CEDAW.

The guide is available on IWRAW's web site (www.igc.org/irwaw/ngo/guide). Its text follows an instructive, coaching format, that surpasses cosmetic descriptions of requirements to guide the writer in considering questions of audience, specificity of content and argument. IWRAW also makes sample shadow reports available for NGOs that would benefit from a model.

In addition to providing support for NGO reports, IWRAW also invites a select number of NGO representatives to attend their country’s CEDAW session at the UN. Organizations generally fund their own travel expenses and IWRAW assists in some cases. The women who attend a CEDAW session not only heighten their organizations’ visibility but also raise their own individual status and the status of their fellow country women. Upon returning home, the attendee may hold a press conference to present the Committee’s recommendations to the public, thereby further expanding the visibility of women’s concerns.

Broader changes in perceptions of human rights have also occurred since the inception of IWRAW’s participation in the implementation of the Convention.

Zamir/Women

Lrubenstein — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 12:54:11 -0500

Zenska Infoteka is a women’s information and documentation center that was established in Zagreb in 1992 during the war in former Yugoslavia with the goal of helping women who had been exposed to violence and sexual assault during the fighting. The primary aim was to overcome obstacles of communication imposed by the war, and to help local grassroots groups establish international links.

During the conflict in the former Yugoslavia, communications links across former republics and with the outside world were severed. Zenska Infoteka therefore created an electronic news group for women, many of whom had already been working together on peace, humanitarian, and other related issues when the war started, and who had experienced a sudden break in communication between these groups, due to a suspicion towards other groups as a result of nationalistic propaganda. The establishment of a communications network was thus welcomed and many relationships were established or re-established. The aim with the network was to try to organize and give immediate help to women. One tactic involved turning international attention to the mass rapes that occurred in Bosnia and Herzegovina, by using the network to send out messages from women activists and eyewitnesses calling for international action and protests against the atrocities. In addition, at the initiative of Zenska Infoteka, an electronic newsgroup/conference was opened under the name of ZaMir/Women, and each month electronic conferences were held in local languages where women could discuss ideas, tactics, and experiences. At its peak in 1997, more than a thousand messages were posted.

Since the war has ended, Zenska Infoteka has changed its approach. Now, it focuses on preservation of knowledge about women's history and women's movements in Croatia, and also on promoting and supporting women's groups and individual women working to achieve equality. This is done through a database, a library, and publishing of books and articles related to women’s issues, such as women in war and politics, and also by organizing conferences and training seminars for women and women’s organizations.

Zenska Infoteka has been very successful in turning international attention to the atrocities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and also at providing people in the former Yugoslavia with information about the rest of the world. A great example of this was in 1995 during the United Nations General World Conference on the Status of Women held in Beijing. Normally, news of the conference would not have reached the former Yugoslavian states, but thanks to Zenska Infoteka news traveled through e-mail and the Internet to women’s groups as well as individual women, thus keeping people updated on the conference.

The case of Zenska Infoteka shows that this form of communication can be very useful during times of war, and the tactics used could perhaps be more easily implemented during times of peace in areas where communication networks are not used to their full capacity.

Coalition on Violence Against Women (COVAW)

Lrubenstein — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 11:26:47 -0500

The Coalition on Violence against Women (COVAW) engages chiefs and other local leaders to become women’s rights advocates and resources for victims. The program was formed because of the lack of women’s rights advocates for women who have been subjected to violence. Women who have been abused usually turn either to local hospitals/clinics or to their chiefs. However, none of these groups were able to adequately meet the women’s needs and the Coalition on Violence Against Women wanted to change this.

Thirty-five chiefs from different communities, seeing the proposed project as an opportunity to improve their local reputation, volunteered to participate. Because COVAW had gained clearance from the government to work with the chiefs, the entire project had the law behind it, thus making it possible for the chiefs to perform their duties and defend their actions locally with support from human rights law. Two workshops were created: one that worked with the chiefs and the hospitals/clinics separately, and another that brought the two groups together to coordinate their efforts to advance women’s rights in their communities. After the workshops, the local chiefs became monitors and reporters. They now write down specific information relating to the cases of abuse and what steps they have taken to resolve the situation. Once each month they report to the Coalition, during COVAW site visits.

Although hindered by challenges such as lack of resources on the local level, and the chiefs’ preference for sharing information verbally rather than in written form, the tactics have been useful to women and their local communities in Kenya. Women are treated better and more likely to receive the needed help. An interesting aspect of this tactic is the use of local resources and people ostensibly in power who, though previously unable to help the women, have through training become advocates of women’s rights. Another strength of the project is that since the chiefs benefit as well as the women, they are willing participants, helping to advance the tactic.

Summary completed February 4, 2003.

Using interactive theater to break the silence around violence against women

Lrubenstein — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 15:05:41 -0500

Established in 1989, Africa Network for Integrated Development (RADI) employs female paralegals and well-known actors to demystify laws around violence against women by using educational theater routines. RADI first recognized the need for legal education following national civil law reform in 1999 that gave recourse to vulnerable people (i.e., women and children).

RADI took advantage of existing support groups, called mbottayes, where women throughout Senegal meet weekly to discuss issues that affect their daily lives. Mbottayes encourage participation by imposing fines on women for non-attendance. RADI drew additional audiences to mbottayes by promoting popular comedic entertainers who perform sketches about violence against women and other human rights abuses.

Female paralegals and comedians meet with mbottayes to identify and understand human rights issues. In order to break the silence around abuse, the actors first use jokes and amusement to convey legal and human rights messages in a comfortable, non-threatening setting. Comedians then interact with audience members and select one or two participants to perform in a series of role-play exercises.

The audience participants spend 10-15 minutes with the paralegal and comedians planning and rehearsing a role-play sketch. Role-play activities focus on real-life situations and highlight the dynamics of family violence. During this planning time, the paralegal presents participants with new changes in civil rights law and alternative behaviors to address violence against women. The actors, on the other hand, creatively develop dialogue, plot and presentation.

After the sketch is performed, the paralegal engages the audience in a discussion emphasizing issues raised by role-playing in addition to legal recourse and human rights awareness. Women are then given time to debate these topics and give feedback on their impressions of the sketch. At the end of the meeting, the paralegal again presents the group with information on reformed laws and how women can use these changes effectively.

Women who have attended these performances go back into their communities and homes and share new information about their legal rights with others. In particular, many women promote the sketches by word of mouth, noting the fun and creativity experienced by working with well-known actors.

Another strength of this tactic is that it reaches women in rural areas and informs them of changes in civil law. The comedic role-plays also equip women with the ability to use the law when their human rights have been violated. As a result, the number of women confronting violence against women is increasing and some women have even taken their cased before the Senegalese Supreme Court.

Using non-formal distance education to give marginalized groups the tools to survive

Lrubenstein — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 13:49:23 -0500

The Mongolian government, with the financial help of UNESCO and the Danish International Development Assistance (DANIDA), utilized non-formal education tools such as the radio, printed materials, and visiting teachers in its Gobi Women’s project, which took place from 1992 to 1997, to reach out to marginalized and vulnerable Gobi women and enable them to acquire skills and practices needed for their survival during political and economic transition in the country. The project provided needed opportunities that without them, would have led to the desperation and downfall of the Gobi women given the major political and social transition occurring in the country.

The 1990s brought about sudden and dramatic changes in Mongolia, one of which was the shift from a centralized state-run economy to a free-market economy. Under the Soviet-style communist government that had existed in Mongolia since 1921, the USSR had handled most of the country’s trade and provided 30% of its income. The state had managed herds of animals, paid regular wages regardless of productivity, and cushioned the impact of livestock disasters to the 30% of people who lived in a nomadic or semi-nomadic way of life in Mongolia. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990 though, Mongolia saw 95% of all livestock becoming privately-owned, families being responsible for obtaining their own herds, and households being in charge of producing their own goods and services and market their own products. As a result of the country’s political and economical transition, the Gobi Desert women became the most vulnerable and marginalized group in Mongolia, living in an extremely harsh climate with the poorest communication and transportation system and having to deal with newly-arisen demands that they had never experienced.

    Along with the financial assistance from UNESCO and DANIDA, the Mongolian government sought to prevent the Gobi women from falling into a desperate economic situation where their survival would be at greatest risk. A community planning forum was held inviting all Gobi women to attend and participate in the planning. Bulletin notices and announcements informed the Gobi women of the event. The solution that they arrived at was non-formal distance education.

    The Gobi Women’s project used the following selection criteria to ensure that the most marginalized women could have access to the project. These criteria were:

Single mother
At least 3 children
Access to radio
Some education, able to read and write (in the case of the Gobi women, there was a 98% literacy rate because of the previous government’s emphasis on education)

    The Gobi Women’s project used distance education to empower women by providing them with learning opportunities. The project aimed at intervening before a desperate human rights situation occurred. The project used radio programs to cover areas based on the needs-assessment made by the government with the help of the communities themselves, which included topics such as survival generation (producing wool, refining camel fleece, making felt/camel saddles/traditional garmets/boots), health issues (family planning, hygiene, nutrition, first aid), commercial skills (price negotiating, planning, production), how to take care of animals, traditional crafts and environment issues, and job skills. Radio programs were broadcast twice a week at times most convenient for the women, usually during the evening. If any of the women could not listen to the radio, learning centers in the project areas had cassettes available to listen to the radio program that was missed. In addition to the radio, the project provided the Gobi women with booklets to follow along with the radio programs. Visiting teachers also assisted the women by checking their progress, helping them with any problems, and giving them supplementary materials.

    The project helped nomadic women cope with the life-altering changes of political and economic transition that could have led to devastating situations such as poverty, hunger, malnutrition, and eventually, violence and abuse. With its non-formal distance education approach, the project created change, better opportunities, and enabled women to learn a number of urgent and valuable skills when crisis was at its peak. At the same time, the impact affected the women as well as their husbands and children. Challenges that the project faced included access to transportation and tardiness in delivering booklets.

    In thinking about implementing this tactic of non-formal distance education to prevent human rights situations from escalating, the following is important to remember: 1) ensure that curriculum and materials are appropriate to lifestyle, customs, and culture of target group, 2) funding, 3) technical support from outside the country, 4) the support from the government is needed, 4) involvement of the community, 5) following up on the project is important, and 6) learning programs are learner-based. This tactic of using non-formal distance education becomes an example for tackling other social issues such as children’s rights, since this is becoming a serious issue in Asia.

Completed July 11, 2003.

Using Popular Theater to Break the Silence Around Violence Against Women

bharris — Fri, 25 May 2007 20:08:20 -0500

By Oulimata Gaye

Download full notebook below.

In this notebook, Oulimata Gaye explains how she and her organization are breaking the wall of silence surrounding violence against women in Senegal, just as it is happening in numerous other countries and cultures. How are we to begin to "regulate" human rights problems when people will not talk about them? How are we to get people to talk? The tool that we use here is theatre. Sometimes funny, sometimes sad, the plays engage the public, both literally and metaphorically, in familial situations. The public sees these situations set on stage and they also have the chance to play a role and to discuss what they saw. As a result, people begin to recognize abuse that they have wanted to hide or to silence: it is a first step to stopping this abuse.

What can be done so that people examine subjects they do not want to face? How can a cultural taboo that is not discussed, but from which numerous people are suffering, be overcome? Human Rights problems are, at times trendy – and the public can come to life and rally around a particular cause by which it’s affected. However, sometimes there are threats to human rights that remain concealed. We consider them given facts that are part of daily routine, that which is normal. These abuses are often the most difficult ones to address, because society refuses to consider them as authentic abuses. RADI, a human rights organization in Senegal, found a way to break this silence: using the people’s theater. Thanks to their years of experience in raising awareness about human rights issues for groups of women, RADI paralegals knew that conjugal and sexual violence against women were part of these disregarded abuses; a taboo subject about which even the victims themselves did not want to speak. This violence is justified as a "family problem", it is perceived as a male prerogative in a patriarchal society, where victims are convinced that it is they who are to blame – or that there is nothing wrong with the violence to which they are subject. And no one speaks nor doubts this state of things. Through a campaign that incorporates professional actors into groups of women in order to perform sketches on the theme, RADI succeeded in opening a public dialogue about violence against women in numerous communities. The women were themselves, invited to participate in the sketches, which gave them the opportunity to play roles side by side with well-known actors of the region. The sketches were both amusing and serious, breaking the silence surrounding this question. For the first time, communities were able to recognize the severity of this problem, its consequences from a human rights standpoint, and the search for solutions. People’s theater is a former method of political education. There is also street theater, union theater, political theater and many others. This practice had remarkable effects in terms of discrimination, war and peace, and all types of injustices. Each culture has a theatrical tradition – and many are those that think that one of theater’s principal functions is to stimulate the people’s political and social awareness. The traditional human rights movement is learning that in order to change behavior, it does not suffice simply to tell them what is wrong. It is necessary to touch the heart, through laughter and tears, so that they reflect upon that which seems "normal" to them in their society. In Senegal, RADI gives us an example of this strategy that is both practical and inspiring.

*Note: You need Adobe Acrobat Reader to open the files marked with an asterisk (*). You can download a free version of this program from www.adobe.com.

The Human Rights Education Program for Women in Turkey

bharris — Fri, 25 May 2007 20:08:18 -0500

The Human Rights Education Program for Women in Turkey

By Liz Ervecik Amado
Download full notebook in english and a brief summary of the notebook in Russian and Armenian below.

In this notebook we learn about how effective and beneficial building collaborative relationships with government institutions can be to advancing human rights education. Women for Women’s Human Rights (WWHR)-New Ways in Turkey gained the support and use of government resources for furthering human rights education of women at the local level.

WWHR-New Ways developed a highly successful human rights education curriculum for women but needed an accessible, structured and sustainable way to reach women in need of learning about their rights. They found and developed an excellent partnership through government run, local level community centers. These community centers offered not only professional social workers who could be trained by WWHR-New Ways in facilitating the human rights education curriculum, but also a safe and accessible place for women to learn about their rights. We hope this notebook will provide ideas and insights for others as they seek opportunities for building mutually beneficial and sustainable relationships with government bodies for furthering human rights efforts.

*Note: You need Adobe Acrobat Reader to open the files marked with an asterisk (*). You can download a free version of this program from www.adobe.com.

Familiar Tools, Emerging Issues

bharris — Fri, 25 May 2007 20:08:02 -0500

Familiar Tools, Emerging Issues

by Jennifer Prestholdt

Download full notebook below.

Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights uses traditional human rights monitoring methods to document human rights abuses, but in this notebook we will learn how the group has also made a practice of adapting this methodology to emerging human rights issues. Minnesota Advocates has identified and developed practical and sustainable strategies for adapting human rights monitoring methods to address domestic violence (in Eastern Europe and the U.S.), child survival (in Mexico, Uganda and the U.S.) and transitional justice (in Peru).

With the help of hundreds of volunteers, Minnesota Advocates has monitored human rights conditions and produced more than 50 reports documenting human rights practices in more than 25 countries. Minnesota Advocates uses traditional human rights monitoring methods to document human rights abuses, but has made a practice of adapting the methodology to address cutting-edge human rights issues. The findings on violence against women in Mexico, Nepal, Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States have been published in reports that include an analysis of each country’s legislation related to women’s rights and the local law enforcement system, as well as recommendations on how to bring laws and practice into conformity with international human rights obligations.

We have recently adapted the methodology used overseas to help us investigate and document the difficulties that refugee and immigrant women in our own community face in obtaining services and protection from domestic violence. Minnesota Advocates also used traditional human rights monitoring methods to document excessive and preventable child mortality as a human rights violation in three countries, each representing different levels of development: the United States, Mexico and Uganda. We then published a report, Global Child Survival: A Human Rights Priority, using these case studies to illustrate that certain groups of children, minority children for example, suffer systematic violations of their rights. Underlying economic and social factors linked to child survival must be addressed in order to effectively combat high rates of preventable child deaths.

Most recently, we have adapted our methodology to monitor transitional justice mechanisms and processes. Countries such as Peru and Sierra Leone are in the process of transitioning from violence and repression to peace, justice and reconciliation; the growing momentum for transitional justice marks a new era in human rights work. More and more frequently, that shift involves confronting past human rights abuses and making institutional reforms in order to protect human rights. Human rights monitoring is one way to help ensure that transitional justice processes move forward.

Using this tactic of monitoring and reporting, we feel that we have been able to make some significant longterm improvements in human rights. This notebook will discuss how Minnesota Advocates identifies and develops practical and sustainable strategies for adapting human rights monitoring methods to emerging human rights issues. By documenting the tactic in this notebook, we hope to spark some creative applications of common human rights monitoring methods in order to improve human rights in different contexts.

*Note: You need Adobe Acrobat Reader to open the files marked with an asterisk (*). You can download a free version of this program from www.adobe.com.

Engaging the Media: Building support for minimum wage reform

bharris — Fri, 25 May 2007 20:08:01 -0500

by Jee Hyeon Kim, Korean Women Workers Associations United (KWWAU)

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The KWWAU and its partners effectively engaged media to raise public awareness and concern regarding the minimum wage system, thereby assisting in the creation of a social movement that has succeeded in changing the minimum wage law to afford greater protections for workers, especially for women.

This tactical notebook shares the efforts of Korean Women Workers Associations United (KWWAU) to engage the South Korean media to build public awareness about South Korea’s unjust minimum wage system. As you will see, this was one of many coordinated tactics employed in their campaign to change the minimum wage law and system in order to provide living wages to the most vulnerable workers.

Successful engagement of the media most often requires many other supporting tactics. KWWAU shares the approaches they found were most helpful in engaging the media: credible documentation of the problem, petitions to demonstrate public interest in the issue, and visually engaging performances and demonstrations that are easily captured by the media. With media interest, our campaign was able to expand, bring in new supporters, and provide us with leverage in our negotiation and lobbying efforts.

In the aftermath of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) crisis in 1997 there was a swift increase in the numbers of poor workers in South Korea and the minimum wage re-emerged as a social issue. The greatest victims of globalization in South Korea were women, like other countries funded by the IMF, many Korean workers were laid off and transformed into irregular workers.

Prior to the use of this tactic, the KWWAU was involved in organizing subcontract women workers to advocate for their rights. In the process of their labor organizing work with this segment of irregular workers in 2000, they discovered the problem of the minimum wage system. The low minimum wage had become an urgent problem, particularly among subcontract workers in South Korea. KWWAU determined they needed to work to raise the increment of the minimum wage so subcontract women workers would benefit. KWWAU began organizing nation-wide campaigns in nine cities, resulting in the first challenge to the Korean minimum wage system since its inception in 1988. Beginning in 2002, other organizations joined the KWWAU in advocating for improvements in the minimum wage system. A "minimum wage network" was established. The campaign expanded to other regions, focusing on raising the minimum wage and transforming the minimum wage system itself.

The KWWAU’s efforts have resulted in significant changes to the minimum wage law that improves working conditions for minimum wage earners. Their efforts have also transformed the annual decision of the Minimum Wage Council into an important social issue in South Korea. The KWWAU and its partners succeeded in raising public awareness and concern regarding the minimum wage system, and creating a social movement that has made it possible for many poor women to benefit from increasing minimum wages and greater protections.

*Note: You need Adobe Acrobat Reader to open the files marked with an asterisk (*). You can download a free version of this program from www.adobe.com.