DAY ONE: WOMEN'S RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS

WOMEN’S RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS

My first mid-day workshop was focused on women’s rights as human rights, specifically discussing cases from Africa, Caucasus, Europe, and the Middle East. We started the workshop by lighting candles that represented learning from the past, focusing on the present, and looking forward to the future.

As I listened to Ani Kalayjian, a United Nations representative of the Armenian International Women’s Association (AIWA), present the facts and statistics about different women’s rights around the world, images of Islamic women covered up from head to toe in 110-degree heat filled the screen in front of me. Although this information is not new to me, listening to first hand accounts from people fighting the struggle on a daily basis was overwhelming. It is apparent from the alarming cases that the violations that are occurring all over the world are not being properly addressed. There is a drastic need for positive activism.

The most compelling testimony came from Joyce Onetko, Founder and President of Mama na Dada Africa, a women’s NGO from Kenya, East Africa. Family heath and family planning, specifically mental health, nutrition, awareness, up-to-date information, and access to health services, were the prime areas of discussion. There is a lack of support in terms of peer learning and networking, accurate and relevant information, and capacity building. People in smaller communities, such as the Kunya village, do not understand the information correctly and form misconceptions, which yields unfavorable results. One way to help spread the word is to work with grassroots women along the Victoria basin. The most troubling health issues include malaria, malnutrition, HIV, and a lack of sanitation practices. According to Ms. Onetko, women’s health is ignored. In order to combat this she has organized a grassroots conference that highlights topics on health, food security, economic empowerment, capacity building, and most importantly to build confidence among the women. Typically, the media is not interested in covering conferences such as this, so there is no visibility of the issue at hand.
Her final thoughts included pleads of support and acknowledgment.

After the workshop ended I spoke with Joyce about my time in South Africa. She encouraged me to participate in an internship available with her organization. For more information on Mama na Dada Africa, please visit www.mamanadada.org and see how you can make difference as well.

Hi Heidi,

How do you suggest students get involved with this and how can we make a difference?