November 2016 Update
November is a critical month for gender equality!
This month marks the start of the 16 Days of Activism that starts on 25 November, the International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Women, and ends on 10 December, International Human Rights Day. Everything we do in between – and in fact everything we do EVERY DAY – is dedicated to this goal!
This year’s theme is Make Education Safe for All. We know that access to education is a fundamental right – but also one that could present great risks, especially for women and girls. Further, social norms often keep girls at home and not attending school. In emergency settings, girls face risks while travelling to and from school, and in school itself – sometimes even from teachers. Education must be safe and accessible for ALL. And in education settings, we all have a responsibility to ensure that our learning is built on human rights and gender equality – it is everyone’s right.
For the 16 Days of Activism, AiW is working in partnership with ESCWA, ABAAD, and UN Women to promote awareness against gender-based violence, through an online video competition which invites Arab youth to create a short video to show their solidarity with the 16 days of activism campaign. Additionally, we are organizing in collaboration with our partners a panel discussion on “Estimating the cost of violence against women in the Arab region”. The discussion aims at raising awareness and galvanizing action to ensure safe spaces for all, which will be held at ESCWA on December, 9, 2016. Finally, we are celebrating the closing of the 16 days of activism campaign at the Monroe Hotel-Ein Mraisseh, on the 10th of December which will coincide with the launch of ABAAD’s Video music.
This month started with a visit from two internationally-recognized GBV experts - Sarah Martin and Megan Norbert. Sarah Martin is a gender-based violence in humanitarian emergencies expert and author of Must Boys be Boys: Ending Sexual Exploitation and Abuse by UN Peacekeepers and Megan Nobert is the Founder and Director of Report the Abuse, a NGO dedicated to addressing the problem of sexual violence against humanitarian and development workers. Their visit to Lebanon was to discuss the problem of sexual harassment, sexual exploitation, and sexual violence in humanitarian and developing settings.
We know that unfortunately sexual violence in humanitarian and development settings is not a new issue. It is a problem that has been quietly discussed for years. Recently, the silence has been broken - sexual violence is an issue for all women in natural disasters and conflicts. It is also a problem for female aid workers neglected by their organizations. This effects women at all levels in all organizations, both national staff and expatriates. Sarah and Megan were here to understand how these issues are being addressed in Arab countries. We were able to take advantage of their presence and organize student meetings and discussions in Beirut and Byblos. We were delighted to host them for this important mission – and will continue to partner with them for future work!
In addition, we continued our preparations for the training of 35 officers from the General Security and the Internal Security Forces for the Capacity Building for Law Enforcement Personnel on Gender-Based Violence Prevention and Response project.
And we are proud to announce that internationally recognized GBV expert Sarah Martin has recently joined the team working on this project.
Sarah brings over 20 years of experience in research, advocacy, training and project management with international organizations. She specializes in strengthening gender-based violence prevention and response in humanitarian settings and has worked with many organizations all over the world such as UNICEF, UNFPA, WHO, UN Women, the International Rescue Committee, Médecins Sans Frontières – Holland (MSF), and many more. She is an expert, an author, an activist, and her work on sexual abuse in UN peacekeeping led to her being recognized as “Glamour Magazine’s Hero of the Month” for June 2006!
On November 13, the Beirut Marathon Association gathered runners, believers, supporters, and just about everyone in Lebanon for their annual Beirut Marathon – and of course AiW was there too!
AiW is aligned with BMA’s vision to inspire unity, bring positive change, promote wellness, and ultimately foster peace. As BMA Founder and AiW Board Member May El-Khalil says “”peacemaking is not a sprint, it’s a marathon”! Same for our quest for gender equality and human rights – we’re in it for the long haul!
AiW’s belief in a peaceful society is fueled by gender equality as a critical precondition. After all, the strongest indicator of peace is how a country treats its women! Our belief was reflected on an enormous screen, where more than 40,000 runners and participants enjoyed our animated song, “In My Hand”, Bi Ideh! The point is this: positive change is indeed in our hands!
Meanwhile, AiW’s awesome Myriam Sfeir attended the 2016 Middle East Studies Association conference in Boston that celebrated 50 years of scholarship since 1966. The conference hosted scholars, researchers, students, and activists from all over the world working on Middle East Studies. She also attended the dinner reception organized by the Association for Middle East Women’s Studies (AMEWS)honoring Suad Joseph, another incredible AiW Board Member and ally!
Myriam also participated in the Musawah course on Islam and Gender Equality and Justice that took place in Jordan from November 21-27. The course was conducted within the framework of the UN Women Programme Men and Women for Gender Equality, funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA). The course is designed for human rights activists from Muslim countries and communities throughout the world who wish to play a critical role in building a tradition of public debate on Islam, and shaping a public discourse that recognizes women’s rights in the context of gender equality and justice. We were delighted that Myriam joined this course - given that the application process was highly selective with only 25 slots available!
Meanwhile, I was in Cairo for the annual meeting of UNFPA Country Directors from Arab States along with senior management from New York to support the creation of UNFPA’s regional 2017 strategy. I served as a discussant for one of their four objectives: gender equality and empowerment. This was an excellent opportunity to address regional challenges and identify synergies in the work of UNFPA and AiW! And now I’m in London for the TrustWomen Conference – an annual event that brings together global corporations, lawyers, government representatives, and pioneers in the field of women’s rights and anti-slavery. Trust Women is committed to find real solutions to empower women worldwide – I’ll report back next month!
Keep moving!
Lina
