Executive Director Anu Bhagwati of SWAN, Photo credit: Daily Kos

On May 8^th, Service Women’s Action Network (SWAN) hosted the first ever conference to advocate against military sexual violence. The full day summit in Washington, D.C. provided survivors and their families the opportunity to speak out in front of a panel of military law and policy experts and in front of members of Congress. Victims shared their stories and expressed their frustrations towards the impunity offenders receive.

The Department of Defense reported 3,192 cases of reported sexual assaults in 2011 alone. Only eight percent of reported cases make it to trail. If the accused are found guilty, roughly ten percent are allowed to resign and avoid any kind of trail all together.

“Truth and Justice: The 2012 Summit on Military Sexual Violence” focused on communicating the urgency of these crimes to officials. At the summit, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced that experienced officers and trained specialists will now take over sexual assault cases in the military.

SWAN plans to continue its work with Congress and the Department of Defense to improve uniformity between the military and the civilian justice system.

TAKE ACTION

Raise Your Voice! End the unfair VA benefits policy for survivors of military sexual trauma, SWAN, 2012.

LEARN MORE

Telling the Truth and Demanding Justice, Huffington Post, 8 May 2012.

Meet CHANTAL BILULU MYANGA.

Chantal is the Program Coordinator for Women and Children with Héritiers de la Justice in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).  She lives in the eastern Congo along the shores of Lake Kivu. The DRC is known as one of the worst places in the world to be a woman. Chantal helps women who have survived the extreme sexual violence far too common in the Eastern Congo—and works towards ending the impunity that enables it.

Last fall Chantal crossed Canada as part of KAIROS Canada’s Living Courage women’s tour. She shared stories of the intense bravery of women in the DRC. In the midst of the violence of war, mass rape as a weapon of war, and hunger, these Congolese sisters have come together to shape the future of the country.  They are working to pass laws against sexual violence, and to ensure that women’s participation in government is entrenched in the new constitution.

Chantal often talks about the negative “power of silence”—and the need to support women in opening up about their experiences.  Women often come to her after a rape experience. The survivor describes the violence, both as a way of documenting it for the courts, and as a way of breaking the shame and silence.

Sometimes the family of the rapist will try to buy the silence of the survivor’s family. Héritiers de la Justice discourages this in favour of bringing the matter to trial followed by seeking compensation from the perpetrator. This is one step towards a justice system that actually deals with sexual violence and takes the country’s new laws off paper and into the streets and villages.

Between the months of January and November of this year, HJ has documented more than 406 cases of rape perpetrated by a huge range of armed Rwandan and Congolese groups and authorities. The survivors ranged in age from 4 to 85 years.

The context for real change goes beyond women and beyond the DRC. Chantal spoke of the need for men to be involved, noting that “they are not the enemy and they need to be with us, taking responsibility.” She also spoke to her Canadian audience of the impact of Canadian mining operations in the eastern Congo, which take place in the midst of continued armed conflict and sexual violence that is designed in part to help armed groups seize control of the lucrative mineral trade. The act of rape carries with it chilling political and financial goals, and stopping it requires that the world understand this.

“We need to break the silence, seek synergy and build alliances with other organizations, and to do this without fear.” In the offices of Héritiers de la Justice there is a banner that reads, “Society without women is a society without peace and without development.”

We stand in admiration of Chantal—and the women who work everyday to bring sexual violence to and end.

READ MORE

Learn about the International Campaign to Stop Rape & Gender Violence in Conflict.

Visit Heritiers de la Justice.

Learn more about the Kairos Women of Courage tour that brought Chantal to Canada this fall.

Visit the Human Rights in the Congo blog for more about Chantal, and field reports from the DRC.

Discrimination against women is a critical issue in France: there is a 19% pay gap between men and women and female MPs make only 18.5% of the Parliament. Hollande promised to create a Ministry of Women’s Rights, as well as an independent body to fight against discrimination and promote equality. His political program also includes a new law against sexual harassment. In addition, influential socialist women are expected to hold key positions in the upcoming government.

Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy had also pledged equal representation of men and women in his government in 2007. His reign was disappointing however, as although female politicians did hold key positions, discrimination against women remained rampant.

Women’s rights do not seem to be on the agenda these days in Europe, with the EU member states deciding to remove a key provision on gender equality from the draft of the EU cohesion policy 2014-2020. This provision required the EU to promote gender equality in all funding programs to reduce the effects of the economic crisis.

 LEARN MORE:

Vive la Femme? The Guardian, 7 May 2012

EU countries scrap ethics clause in EU funds, EUobserver.com, 25 April 2012

Tanzanian mother, Photo credit: International Rescue Committee

Most of us are probably scrambling around last minute to come up with the perfect gift to express our gratitude to the most important woman in our life.

This Mother’s Day show your gratitude in a more profound way. Promise your mother that you pledge to protect other mothers around the world from Rape & Gender Violence in Conflict.

Rape is used as a weapon of war to humiliate individuals and tear apart communities. Rape is used on sisters, daughters and mothers. Nobel Peace Laureate Leymah Gbowee says it best:

“If you think rape and abuse is a women’s issue or a feminist issues I want you to think twice. Think about that little girl in your house you call your daughter or that little girl in your house you call your sister or maybe that women that you share your bed with you call your wife. And just think about some of the horrifying things that you see on the news about rape and violence against women.” -Leymah Gbowee, 2012.

We ask people to reflect on the sexual violence occurring around the world today and remember that somebody else’s mother is suffering. Take the pledge and encourage your mother to join as well.

TAKE ACTION

Join the International Campaign to Stop Rape & Gender Violence in Conflict, Nobel Women’s Initiative, 21 November 2011.

On Sunday the first kickoff event was held in the City of Women in Cartagena, Colombia. Organized by Liga de Mujeres Desplazadas and Red Nacional de Mujeres, the event brought more than three generations of women together. “It is time to end the shameful silence regarding how rape is used as a weapon of war in Colombia. Rape is routinely committed by legal and illegal perpetartors. It is time to end the impunity,” said Patricia Guerrero, founder of Liga de Mujeres Desplazadas.

In other parts of the world, people are virtually participating in the Week of Action by making public pledges of what they will do in their own community to help stop rape in conflict. Supporters have been uploading pledge photos to twitter, flickr, and facebook, and sharing them among their networks.

The Campaign is quickly picking up speed. Heavyweight international human rights groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch are working alongside targeted national groups such as the Women’s League of Burma and Sonke Gender Justice Network in South Africa. The United Nations Secretary General’s Network of Men Leaders has also endorsed the initiative, complementing the Campaign’s focus on male and female survivors of rape and gender violence.

In the five days since the launch, the Campaign has garnered over 1,500 supporters from more than 100 countries around the world!

Stay tuned for news of events in Sudan, Congo, and Kenya later this week!

To make YOUR pledge and join the campaign, visit www.stoprapeinconflict.org

Iranian protesters - flickr.com/garryknight.cc

Iranian journalist and activist Narges Mohammadi has been sentenced to six years in prison. Mohammadi was first convicted in September 2011 in Tehran for reporting on human rights violations and for being a member of Iran’s Defenders of Human Rights Centre (DHRC). She worked closely with the president of the organization, Nobel Peace Laureate Shirin Ebadi.

Mohammadi is a mother of two and wife to journalist-in-hiding Taghi Rahmani. Mohammadi’s family is concerned for her deteriorating health. She has developed severe muscular spasms that worsen when faced with stress.

Iranian authorities have also arrested Mansoureh Behkish on 3 April 2012. They have sentenced her to four and a half years in prison for “propagating against the regime” and “conspiring against national security”. Mansoureh Behkish was targeted for visiting the graves of executed prisoners and for being a supporter of the Mourning Mothers.

Iran’s Mourning Mothers is composed of mothers of all ages who publicly speak out against human rights violations.  Many of the Mothers’ children are detained, missing or dead. The group has been bringing attention to the country’s tortures, massacres and rapes for over thirty-one years. The Iranian authorities have covertly executed hundreds of prisoners and will persecute those who bring attention to the dead.

Both arrests have sparked outrage among human rights groups. Petitions are being circulated to urge supporters to take a stand against these unjust imprisonments.

TAKE ACTION

Free Nargess Mohammadi, Go Petition.

Repeal The Prison Sentence of Mansoureh Behkish, Go Petition.

LEARN MORE

News: IRAN: Human rights defender and journalist Nargess Mohammadi (f) summoned to serve out a six-year sentence; serious health concerns, Pen International, 25 April 2012.

Iran: Sentencing of human rights defenders Ms Mansoureh Behkish, Front Line Defenders, 17 April 2012.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sabine01/717902461/

Honduras journalist and human rights activist, Dina Meza, has received threats of sexual violence. Meza reports for Defensoras en Linea and works with the Committee of the Families of the Detained and Disappeared in Honduras. The risk is high for journalists in Honduras who report on human rights abuses. She writes, “I never imagined that speaking, writing, and telling the truth about what is happening could mean walking the line between life and death“.

Dina Meza started receiving threats in February 2012. On February 22, two text messages were sent to her, both in reference to sexual violence. On April 6,  Meza was photographed with her children while walking in the neighborhood.  More recently, on April 14, Meza received four calls; three were silent and the fourth was very brief. Meza called back to find out who this person was and why he was calling. The caller claimed it was a wrong number but ended the call by sexually threatening Dina Meza.

Meza is a beneficiary of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) precaution measures to safeguard her security. However, the authorities have not yet implemented the orders. Amnesty reports that since the coup d’etat in 2009, 20 journalists have been killed. The cases remain unsolved and impunity prevails.

TAKE ACTION

Write to the Honduran Authorities. Urge them to investigate thoroughly the threats received by Dina Meza and call for the IACHR’s safety orders to be implemented. Amnesty International.

LEARN MORE

If I Keep Quiet, Impunity Wins, Amnesty International, 2 May 2012

Honduras- Dina Meza, Journalist, Receiving More Threats, Rights Action, 24 April 2012

From Congo and Kenya to Burma and Colombia, rape is used as a weapon to humiliate people and tear apart communities. Join us as the International Campaign to Stop Rape & Gender Violence in Conflict launches May 6 with a Week of Action.

The Nobel Women’s Initiative is a proud founding member of the Campaign which is the first ever global collaboration between Nobel Peace Laureates, international advocacy organizations, and groups working at the regional and community levels in conflict areas. The Campaign unites the organizations and individuals that have worked tirelessly at the frontlines to stop rape into a powerful and coordinated effort for change!

We will demand urgent and bold political leadership to prevent rape in conflict, to protect civilians and rape survivors, and call for justice for all-including effective prosecution of those responsible.

TAKE THE PLEDGE and join the Campaign now!

During the Week of Action May 6-13 there will be events in countries around the world and you make sure to connect with the Campaign online.

Share your personal #IPLEDGE of the action your organization or what you as an individual commit to undertake within your community in support of the Campaign. If you can, take a photo of your #IPLEDGE and share it with us!

Want some inspiration? Check out what others around the world are pledging to do. And don’t forget to tell your local government official about your #IPLEDGE to Stop Rape in Conflict!

TWITTER:

Use the hashtag #IPLEDGE to connect with members and encourage others to join the Campaign. Tweet your MP. Always make sure to include @stoprapecmpgn in your Tweet!

Sample:
#IPLEDGE to demand leaders prevent rape in conflict, protect civilians, prosecute perpetrators. Join @stoprapecmpgn http://bit.ly/IPLEDGE

FACEBOOK:

Post the pledge, and photo of your pledge, to the StopRape in Conflict wall:
On the Campaign Facebook page choose “Upload photo or video,” find your file, add #IPLEDGE & your country in the text, and share!

Sample:
#IPLEDGE to demand bold political leadership to prevent rape in conflict, to protect civilians and rape survivors, and call for justice for all – including effective prosecution of those responsible. Take the Pledge and join the International Campaign that unites us to Stop Rape in Conflict! http://bit.ly/IPLEDGE

Take the Pledge and join now!

Organizations and individuals have worked tirelessly to amplify the voices of survivors and stop rape. The International Campaign to Stop Rape & Gender Violence in Conflict unites us into a powerful and coordinated effort for change.  Take the Pledge and join now!

The Campaign will demand urgent and bold political leadership to prevent rape in conflict, to protect civilians and rape survivors, and call for justice for all–including effective prosecution of those responsible. The Campaign’s Week of Action May 6-13 celebrates our launch with events around the world and online.

Watch the just released Campaign #IPLEDGE video, visit the brand new Campaign website to join the organizations and individuals around the world Taking the Pledge. Make sure to connect with the Campaign online during the Week of Action May 6-13 to share your #IPLEDGE !