International Women’s Day is in about a month (March and if YOU(th) want to work with young people in Asia Pacific to defend women’s rights, we need to start working NOW!

This year, we think we should deal with some unfinished business – the regulation that allows female genital mutilation by certain medical professionals in Indonesia. This is a discriminatory and painful form of violence against women and young women in Asia Pacific cannot stand by and do nothing about it!

©Volontaire

Around International Women’s Day, our friends at AI will handover signatures to the Indonesian authorities to demand them to repeal this regulation and we think it’s important to make sure that the Asia Pacific youth voice is represented in the petition – don’t you think so?

Any friends and organizations who will be in Indonesia at that time and would like to take part in handing over the petitions to the authorities with our friends at AI, please fill the form below.

What will I need to do?
Organize one activity in your local community to collect signatures for the petition to call on Indonesia authorities to remove the regulation that allows female genital mutilation by certain medical professionals in Indonesia. The activity needs to be organized fairly soon and all the collected signatures need to be delivered to APYN by Thursday, 1 March, 2012.

Here are some ideas:

• Invite your friends to a coffee shop and discuss the issue with them. Afterwards, ask them to add their names to the petition letter.
• Set up a small petition stall on your campus and ask your school mates to add their names to the petition letter
• Put the petition papers in your bag, and whoever you see, tell them about the issue and ask them to add their names
• Got other ideas? Leave a comment!

What is a Youth Campaign Team?

A small group of young people volunteering to organize activities in their local community on the same topic – here, the issue is female genital mutilation in Indonesia. After the activities are finished, the group may choose to expand and do a longer term campaign on the topic.

What are the preferred selection criteria for the taskforce?

• Passionate about the campaign issue
• Aged (ideally) between 18-25 years of age (but it’s OK if you are older!)
• Able to access the internet at least weekly.
• Able to commit AT LEAST 3-4 hours per week to organize the activity in your application below
• Respond to group emails and participate in discussions
• Able to engage at least 5 other young people (your friends) in the campaign (through networks) – or at least try too!
• Able to share skills with other young people (online skills, activist skills, design skills, creative campaigning ideas, translations, administration and many more!)
• Able to communicate in English, and (preferable) translate into local language

How do I apply?
Simply complete this form by Tuesday, 14 February 2012 and we will be in contact with you as soon as possible!

Interested but no time? Click here to add your name to the petition letter to the Indonesian authorities!

Please click here for Korean

What’s WRAP all about?

This is the most widespread, yet hidden, human rights abuse of our time. 写真キャプション：女性に対する暴力は私たちの時代においてどこにでも存在しながらも隠された人権侵害です。

WRAP stands for ‘White Ribbon Asia Pacific’, a growing movement of men and boys from throughout the Asia Pacific who pledge to never commit, excuse, or remain silent about violence against women (click here to read more about this). And we want YOU(th) to join us!

So what can YOU(th) do?

25 November is the UN’s International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. In 1991 a group of Canadian men – who were outraged at the 1989 shooting rampage targeting women at École Polytechnique – started a tradition of wearing a white ribbon at this time of year to show their opposition to violence against women. In the last twenty years, the white ribbon movement has spread throughout the world.

Join us by signing the White Ribbon Asia Pacific pledge below!

1. Sign the pledge!
2. Share the pledge – http://bit.ly/addyourname – with your friends on Facebook and Twitter.
3. Mention White Ribbon (and what it’s about!) in your online profile picture and status in the week leading up to 25 November
4. DO MORE!!! Perhaps you’ve got video making skills or translating skills? Maybe you want to send photos of your friends signing the pledge? Or, you are interested in long-term campaigning for WRAP? Sign up below!

Why violence against women? Why men?

Most guys don’t commit violence against women. Indeed, most agree that physical or sexual assault is completely unacceptable. Yet at least one in three of the women in our lives will be a victim of gender-based violence in their lifetime. This could be our sisters, our mothers, our partners, or our daughters. It could be our classmates, colleagues, co-workers, or our friends.

Violence against women and girls in all its forms – including beatings, abuse, sexual assault or unwanted touching, rape, sexual harassment, genital mutilation, murder,  financial or social control and manipulation – is the most widespread, yet hidden, human rights abuse of our time.

Violence against women is not just a women’s issue. Now more and more men and boys throughout the Asia Pacific are recognising the positive and crucial role that they too can play in ending violence against women. Because men very often look to other men as their role models, we need to stand up and speak out against violence and gender inequality. This includes challenging widespread violence-supporting attitudes that allow, and indeed encourage, a minority of men to be violent. When other men make jokes or degrading comments about women, these promote a culture of sexism and inequality which makes violence and violence-supporting attitudes towards women seem normal. Instead, by vocally challenging sexism and violence, we can show others that being a man shouldn’t mean better treatment than the female half of the population. Being a man shouldn’t mean sex on demand. Being a man shouldn’t mean bursting into fits of jealous rage when our partner socialises with other men, or wants to spend time with their family and friends.

Being a man should mean, not only that we won’t COMMIT violence against women, but also that we will not EXCUSE or REMAIN SILENT about violence against women.

Sign the pledge here!

ＷＲＡＰ：今こそ女性に対する暴力を終わらせるとき

ＷＲＡＰとは？

ＷＲＡＰとは、女性に対する暴力を決して行わない、許さない、沈黙しないと誓う、“White Ribbon Asia Pacific”運動に参加するアジア太平洋地域の男性を支持するキャンペーンです（この詳細についてはこちらをクリック）。あなたもその一人として参加してください！

あなたにできること。

11月25日は女性に対する暴力廃絶の国際デーです。1989年にエコール・ポリテクニーク（理工科学校）で起きた女性をねらった狙撃事件に抗議するカナダの男性たちが、1991年から女性に対する暴力反対を示すために白いリボンを身に着けたことが始まりです。20年後の今では世界中にこの運動は広がっています。

宣誓書に署名して私たちの運動に加わりましょう！

1. 署名をしよう！
2. フェイスブック、ツイッタ―で友だちに呼びかけよう。http://bit.ly/addyourname
3. プロフィール写真または書き込みで11月25日に向けてホワイトリボンを広めよう!
4. もっと貢献したい!!! ビデオ編集ができる方、翻訳ができる方、友だちが署名している写真を送りたい方、長期的にキャンペーンに関わりたい方は登録！

なぜ女性に対する暴力と男性なのか？

大半の男性は女性に暴力をふるいません。そして大多数の男性は肉体的・性的暴力は決して容認されるべきではないことに同意します。しかし、3人に1人の女性は一生のうちに性別を理由とした暴力の被害に遭います。それは私たちの姉妹かもしれないし、母親もしくはパートナー、娘かもしれません。そして私たちのクラスメート、同僚、友人かもしれないのです。

殴打、虐待、性的虐待、望まない接触、強かん、セクシャル・ハラスメント、性器割礼、殺人、経済的・社会的管理または束縛、どのような形であれ女性に対する暴力は私たちの時代においてどこにでも存在しながらも隠された人権侵害です。

女性に対する暴力は女性たちに限った問題ではありません。今、アジア太平洋地域の男性たちは自分たちも女性に対する暴力の廃絶に大きな役割を担うことができることを認識し始めています。しばしば男性は他の男性の行動を手本とすることから、私たちは立ちあがり、声に出して女性に対する暴力と不平等に異議を唱えなければいけません。これは一部の男性が暴力を用いることを容認または奨励する態度のまん延に異議を唱えることも含まれます。男性が女性について冗談や下品な発言をすることは性差別主義的な文化と不平等を助長し、暴力とそれを支持する態度が当たり前であるかのようにしてしまいます。それに対して声にだして性差別主義と暴力に反対することは、人びとに男性であることは人口の半分の女性よりも優位であるわけではないことを伝えることができます。男性であることは性的に主導権を握ることではありません。またパートナーが他の男性と話したり、家族や友だち時間を過ごしたりすることに対して嫉妬することでもありません。

男性であることは女性に対する暴力を行わないことだけではなく、それを許したり黙認したりしないことを意味します。

署名しよう！

포장은 무엇입니까?

WRAP는 White Ribbon Asia Pacific의 약자입니다. 아시아 태평양 전역에서 이루어지고 있는 이 운동은 남성들이 여성에게 절대로 폭력을 가하지 않고, 또 이런 폭력에 대해 침묵하지 않겠다고 맹세하는 운동입니다. 여러분의 도움이 필요합니다! (더 상세한 정보는 여기를 클릭)

여러분이 할 수 있는 일은 무엇이 있을까요?

11월 25일은 UN에서 정한 세계여성폭력반대의 날입니다. 1989년 에콜레 폴리테크니크 (이공계학교) 에서 일어난 여성을 대상으로 한 총살 사건에 분노를 터뜨린 캐나다 남성들이1991년 여성폭력을 반대한다는 의미로 하얀 리본을 착용함으로써 시작되었습니다. 이 때 시작된 하얀 리본 운동은 지난 20년간 꾸준히 전세계로 펴져나갔습니다.

서약서에 서명을 하고 운동에 참여합시다!

• 서약서에 서명하세요!
• 페이스북과 트위터를 통해 친구들에게 퍼뜨려주세요! http://bit.ly/addyourname
• 매년 11월 25일이 포함된 주에 프로필 사진에 하얀 리본이나 관련사진을 올려 널리 퍼뜨려주세요!
• 훨씬 더 많은 일을 할 수 있습니다! 비디오 촬영이나 번역을 하실 줄 아시나요? 여러분의 친구들이 서약하는 모습을 사진에 담아 보내주세요! 또 하얀 리본 캠페인에 계속해서 참여할 의향이 있으신가요? 아래의 정보를 채워주시고 등록하세요!

Teman-teman Indonesia yang Mendukung Kampanye ini

(Click here for English)

(按此看中文版)

Ambil Tindakan untuk Minta Pemerintah Indonesia untuk Hapus Peraturan Baru yang Memungkinkan mutilasi kelamin perempuan!

Di Indonesia, peraturan terbaru yang disahkan oleh Menteri Kesehatan memperbolehkan mutilasi kelamin perempuan dengan syarat dilakukan oleh ahli kesehatan, seperti dokter, bidan, dan perawat.  Praktek sunat peremuan ini didefinisikan sebagai” Tindakan menggores kulit yang menutupi kulit bagian depan klitoris, tanpa melukai klitoris.”

Mengapa anak-anak muda seperti anda  harus mengecam keputusan ini?

Mutilasi kelamin perempuan tentu saja bukan sekedar “menggores kulit”- tetapi ini adalah salah satu bentuk kekerasan dan diskriminasi terhadap perempuan.

©Volontaire

Teman-teman di AI memberitahu kita bahwa secara umum, masyarakat memutuskan untuk mutilasi kelamin perempuan mereka karena beberapa alasan, seperti agama, menjamin “kebersihan” perempuan, menghindari penyakit, melanggengkan praktik budaya atau lokal ataupun untuk mengatur dan menekan hasrat kaum perempuan atas “aktivitas seksual” padamasa dewasanya kelak.

Peraturan baru ini juga bertentangan dengan hukum di Indonesia! (Klik di sini untuk detail)

Anda hanya punya waktu 3 detik saja?
Tolong kirimkan permohonan berikut ke pemerintah Indonesia untuk secepatnya mencabut peraturan Menteri Kesehatan tentang sunat perempuan-cantumkan nama anda di bawah ini!  Kami berharap dapat menyampaikan semua surat-surat anda(seperti terlampir di bawah ini) secara langsung sebelum tanggal 8 March 2012, pada Hari Perempuan Internasional.  

Anda punya waktu 3 menit saja?
Kirimkan laman ini http://bit.ly/nofgm ke 30 teman anda dan juga jangan lupa untuk mencantumkan nama mereka di surat berbahasa Indonesia di bawah ini.

Anda memiliki waktu luang?
Hubungi kami di apynaction@gmail.com untuk terlibat lebih jauh.

Apa hukum Peraturan Menteri Kesehatan Nomor 1636/MENKES/PER/XI/2010 tentang “Sunat Perempuan” melanggar?

• UU No. 7/1984 mengenai ratifikasi Konvensi Internasional Penghapusan Segala Bentuk Diskriminasi terhadap Wanita(CEDAW)
• UU No. 5/1998 mengenai ratifikasi Konvensi Menentang Penyiksaan(CAT)
• UU No. 39/1999 mengenai Hak Asasi Manusia
• UU No. 23/2002 mengenai Perlindungan Anak
• UU No. 23/2004 mengenai Penghapusan Kekerasan dalam Rumah Tangga
• UU No. 23/2009 mengenai Kesehatan

Keputusan ini juga berlawanan dengan surat edaran pemerintah tahun 2006 No. HK.00.07.1.3. 1047a, ditandatangani Dirjen Bina Kesehatan Masyarakat, yang secara khusus memperingatkan dampak negatif kesehatan mutilasi kelamin pada perempuan.

AMBIL TINDAKAN SEKARANG

Anda tidak sendiri dalam perjuangan ini-beberapa organisasi lain!

Take Action to Ask the Indonesian Authorities to Remove the New Regulation that Allows Female Genital Mutilation!

In Indonesia, a new regulation by the Ministry of Health allows female genital mutilation (FGM) by certain medical professionals, like doctors, midwives and nurses. It defines the practice as “the act of scratching the skin covering the front of the clitoris, without hurting the clitoris”.

Why should YOU(th) take action?

Female genital mutilation is definitely NOT just “a scratch on the skin” – it is a discriminatory and painful form of violence against women!

Our friends in AI tell us that some of the reasons people chose female genital mutilation for their baby girls are for religious reasons, to ensure the girl’s “cleanliness”, to avoid diseases, to perpetuate cultural or local practices or to regulate or suppress the girls’ urge towards “sexual activity” during adulthood.

This new regulation also violates a whole list of Indonesian laws! (Scroll down for the entire list)

Got 3 seconds?
Please ask the Indonesian authorities to immediately repeal the 2010 Regulation of the Minister of Health on “female circumcision” (“sunat perempuan”) by sending a letter to them – just add your name below! We hope to deliver all the letters by hand (appearing with your details like below) on or before 8 March 2012 – International Women’s Day.

Got 3 minutes?
Send this link - http://bit.ly/nofgm - to 30 of your friends and ask them to add their name to the letter in Indonesian.

Got more time?
Contact us at apynaction@gmail.com about getting further involved.

What laws do the Regulation of the Minister of Health No. 1636/MENKES/PER/XI/2010 on “female circumcision” (“sunat perempuan”) violate?

• Law No. 7/1984 on the ratification of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)
• Law No. 5/1998 on the ratification of the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT)
• Law No. 39/1999 on Human Rights
• Law No. 23/2002 on Child Protection
• Law No. 23/2004 on the Elimination of Domestic Violence
• Law No. 23/2009 on Health

It also contradicts a 2006 government circular, No. HK.00.07.1.3. 1047a, signed by the Director of Community Health, which specifically warned about the negative health effects of female genital mutilation on women.

YOU(th) are not alone in this battle – many organizations are in on this too!

請即行動！要求印尼當局廢除允許切割女性生殖器新條例！

印尼衛生部公告了一項新條例，允許由專業醫療人員，如醫生、助產士及護士切割女性生殖器 ，並定義為 「刮掉覆蓋陰蒂前面的皮膚, 而不傷及陰蒂」。

為什麼你要採取行動？

切割女性生殖器是痛苦及針對婦女的暴力行為，而並非「在皮膚上的划痕」。

AI的朋友告訴我們，有些人切割自己初生女兒的生殖器 ，是出於宗教原因，確保女孩的「潔淨」、避免疾病、延續本土文化或風俗、或控制或抑制少女在成年其間的性慾。

這項新條例，也違反了印尼多項法律條文 ！（如看條文, 請向下捲動頁面）

三秒鐘行動

請去信要求印尼當局立即廢除2010年衛生部有關切割女性生殖器的條例。

你只需於以下信件中加上你的名字！我們希望於2012年3月8日（國際婦女節日）或之前，親手提交所有信件。

信件將會顯示你的姓名、年齡、性別、及國家，以印尼文發出。

三分鐘行動

呼籲更多人一起行動！請傳送連結 http://bit.ly/nofgm 給最少三十位朋友。

想進一步參與行動?

請電郵致apynaction@gmail.com與我們聯絡。

衛生部有關切割女性生殖器的條例(條例編號:1636/MENKES/PER/XI/2010)違反了哪些法律條文？

• 《消除對婦女一切形式歧視國際公約》第7/1984條
• 《禁止酷刑和其他殘忍，不人道或有辱人格的待遇或處罰公約》第5 /1998條
• 人權法第39/1999條
• 兒童保護法第23/2002條
• 消除家庭暴力法第 23/2004條
• 衛生法第23/2009條

這也違反2006年由社區衞生署署長簽署之政府通告第HK.00.07.1.3.1047a條，當中特別提出女性割禮對女性健康所帶來的負面影響。

你並不是單獨行動！許多組織都參與反對切割女性生殖器！

Widney Brown: Egyptian Revolution sidelining women
Recently, our friend Widney Brown – AI’s Senior Director of Law and Policy – wrote an op-ed: Egyptian Revolution Sidelining Women. When we read it, we were sad to learn that although women marched side by side with men calling for change, they were not included in a new national committee that was formed to write the new Egyptian constitution.

She says:

“Women stood beside men, demanding an end to political repression and calling for root and branch reform. Both women and men have suffered under these repressive governments. But women have also had to cope with discriminatory laws and deeply entrenched gender inequality. women and men are both victims of these repressive governments, but women in general, suffer more than men because of discriminatory laws and gender inequality.”

“So it’s no wonder that women took to the streets. That they cheered loudly when Mubarak fell. Or that they wanted to believe the promise of new dawn in Egyptian politics. But it remains to be seen how much will really change for the women of Egypt.”

“As existing governments scramble to change and new governments emerge, they must all commit to respecting women’s equality, both in law and in practice. But women will only have that equality if they can actively engage in all the negotiations and decisions taking place during this time of transition.”

YOU(th) can do something!
Our friends at AI wants to see if YOU(th) can do something about this. Click here to sign a petition to the Leader of the Supreme Military Council – Field Marshal Muhammad Tantawi to tell him that women must not be excluded from the shaping of the future of Egypt.

Want to do more?
Egypt is only one of many countries where women are excluded from decision making. In fact, gender inequality is not limited to decision making.

As we celebrate 100 years of International Women’s Day, women in the Pacific are suffering from domestic and sexual violence – a very serious human rights violation that the Pacific leaders have done little – or close to nothing – to address.

In the next 100 years, we must continue to advocate gender equality and YOU(th) have a special role to play. YOU(th) can start today by joining or following us on Facebook to take part in advocating women’s rights and gender equality alongside young people in Asia Pacific!

Did YOU(th) know that the Pacific region has the highest levels of domestic and sexual violence IN THE WORLD?!

»See where violence against women is happening in the Pacific in a larger map

Violence against women is a very serious human rights violation and it has devastating impact on both victims and communities. Recent surveys say that the Pacific has one of the highest levels of domestic and sexual violence in the world.

Broken promises are not enough
So what have the Pacific leaders done to stop violence against women? To start, they met up in 2009 at the Pacific Islands Forum and promised that they would wipe out such violence and ensure that everyone has equal protection of the law and access to justice.

Nothing has really happened after that except its recommendation to set up a reference group, but a date hasn’t even been specified! These broken promises are not enough!

What can YOU(th) do?

On International Women’s Day, let’s join forces and do something for these women. YOU(th) need to tell the Pacific leaders that enough is enough! It’s time for them to live up to their promises and obligations under international law – they need to play their part to get rid of violence against women in the Pacific!

• Add your name to this existing campaign – only your full name and email will be added to the petition
• Share this action with 100 friends to celebrate 100 years of International Women’s Day (click here to find out more about this special day!)

For information on Code of Conduct, Terms and Conditions and Privacy and Information statements see here.

Around 200,000 young women and girls were forced into sexual servitude by the Japanese Imperial Army during the Pacific War. They survived years of rape and harsh treatment. Sixty-five years on, they are still campaigning for justice.

Send your e-butterfly message to the Prime Minister of Japan!

◄ Back

Next ►

Picture 1 of 7

Dear Prime Minister,

I am one of thousands of young people from across the Asia Pacific region who support the survivors of sexual slavery by the Japanese Imperial Army in their demand for justice.
I call on your government to:

• Accept full responsibility for the grave violations of the survivors’ human rights
  during the Pacific War;
• Make an official apology to these women for the crimes committed against them;
• Provide adequate compensation to survivors and their families;
• Accurately depict the sexual slavery system in all educational text books on the Pacific War.

These crimes against humanity will not be forgotten. We must address past injustices to prevent such crimes from happening again.

Find out more about this APYN campaign:

• Check out the Quiz we made to raise awareness about this issue
• Share your comments and feedback on the Quiz Wall or Discussion Board
• Let us know what you think of the Quiz by taking 20 seconds to do a Review
• Check out the more than 1000 pics on the butterfly photo petition
• And.. join the Asia Pacific Youth Network here

Image: Survivors of Japan’s military sexual slavery system demonstrate outside the Japanese Embassy, Seoul, March 2005. © Paula Allen

SCARS THAT NEVER HEAL

Lola Pilar, a survivor from the Philippines, talked about the abuse that she suffered during the war. “I was tied to three other women”, she said. “There was a distance of 0.5 meters between us so we could do chores. We all had to go to the toilet and wash together… At night all four of us were raped. Five men a night raped me… If I refused they’d slap and hit me.”

Choi Gap-soon, a survivor from Korea, was taken to Manchuria at the age of 14 and was enslaved for 12 years. ” Some [soldiers] kicked and punched me in the face; I lost some teeth. I was kicked in the vagina and when I refused to serve the soldiers I was beaten by my boss… From 5pm until 8am the second shift began… I had to serve 40-50 men per day. I was in extreme pain all the time.”

The women have been carrying the emotional and physical scars of what they have been through ever since. Lee Ki-sun was kept in a “comfort station” for seven years. She was raped every day. After the war, she was unable to have children and never married. “Whenever I see other people visited by their grandchildren, I wish I had some, I feel envious of them… I feel lonely.”

Jan Ruff O’Herne, born in Indonesia, was 21 years old when she was forcibly taken to a “comfort station”. ”For us the war never ended… we carried this horrific shame… you feel dirty, you feel sorry, you feel different, you feel unworthy, they took away my youth, my possessions, my dignity.”

WHAT DO WE WANT? JUSTICE. NOW.

Many of the courageous survivors of the Japanese Imperial Army’s sexual slavery system continue to campaign for justice. The Government of Japan has so far failed to acknowledge its responsibility or legal liability for the enforced sexual slavery system during the Pacific War.

Time does not heal injustice. Youth are agents of change and we stand in solidarity with these courageous survivors, many of whom are now in their eighties; we are inspired by their campaign for justice and we will not allow this crime to be forgotten.

ACT NOW

Join us! Become part of the chorus of youth voices from the Asia Pacific region demanding justice for sexual slavery survivors.

International Human Rights Day commemorates the United Nations General Assembly’s adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on 10 December 1948.
There are many ways to recgonise Human Rights Day , take action today!

• sign an online petition
• update your facebook or twitter status,
• join with APYN,
• volunteer for specific campaigns or initiatives ,
• attend local events in your area by human rights organizations
• tell a friend about what you do to defend human rights or share this
• create a response to ‘what does living with dignity mean to me?’ (like the one above!) and email it to APYN : add your voice
• start a discussion at work or school about why human rights are important

… and so many more ways.

Leave a comment below on how you have recognized Human Rights Day today!

In the Philippines, the government’s policies on sexual and reproductive health services, in practice limit the opportunities of women to have control over whether and when to become pregnant and effectively deny them enjoyment of their sexual and reproductive rights. Women living in poverty are the most affected by these policies, which fail to support them in preventing mistimed or unwanted pregnancies, drive them further into poverty, and lead to harm to their health and wellbeing.

Government policies prioritise ‘natural’ family planning methods (periodic abstinence or withdrawal). Abortion is a crime in all circumstances. The Catholic Church strongly influences the government’s policy on contraception, leading the government, for instance, to ban the emergency contraceptive Postinor in 2001 as a result of scientifically false claims that Postinor induces abortion.

The example of Manila illustrates how, in the absence of national legislation regarding reproductive health, local government policy can lead to denial of access to reproductive health information and services. In 2000, an executive order by the mayor of Manila promoting ‘natural’ family planning led to an end to the provision of free condoms and contraceptive pills at city health centres and hospitals.

Denial of access to contraception provided free of charge by the government hits a larger number of individuals at a time of economic crisis which results in prices of all goods and commodities rising, impacting disproportionately on women.

Three quarters of sexually active adolescents do not use any contraceptive method. Even though many of them may be unwilling and ill unprepared to become parents, many do not have adequate information on how to prevent pregnancy. One in four girls and women begin childbearing before they reach the age of 20. 20% of Filipino women who die a maternal death are teenagers, and in 17% of foetal deaths the mother is a teenager.

According to the government, 400,000 Filipino women resort to clandestine abortions each year, though other estimates are higher. Many abortions are carried out by persons lacking the necessary skills or in an environment lacking minimal medical standards or both.  According to the latest estimates, around 800 women per year die from complications of unsafe abortion. The government also states that 17 percent of women aged 15-24 have had at least one abortion. According to research from 2006, 54% of women who end an unintended pregnancy by abortion were not using any family planning method when they conceived. Three-fourths of those using contraception at that time were using a ‘natural’ or folk family planning method.

About ten Filipino women die everyday from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth, according to the Senate of the Philippines. Fourteen per cent of all deaths of Filipino women aged 15-49 are maternal deaths. The national maternal mortality ratio is 162 per 100,000 live births but for some regions the figures are much higher. The Philippines will likely not meet its Millennium Development targets on maternal mortality reduction. The large majority of the women affected live in poverty and are in the prime of their lives.

Likhaan is one of the organizations working at the grassroots level with women in marginalised communities to make reproductive rights real. The organisation runs community-based primary health care projects directed at women and young people. Helping women to organize their own advocacy for access to health care, Likhaan lobbies health policy makers to become responsive to the needs and rights of people in marginalised communities. The organisation also raises health care providers’ awareness of the rights of the women and trains them in the provision of women-centred primary health care. The organisation’s priority concerns for advocacy include access to contraception, maternal health, sexual and reproductive health services for young people, post-abortion care, therapeutic abortion and making the health system equitable.

In 2008, 20 people from some of Manila’s poorest communities, both men and women, filed a constitutional challenge against the Manila mayor’s executive order on family planning, relying on the findings of research by Likhaan and the Center for Reproductive Rights on how this order leads to violations of women’s human rights.

Likhaan and a broad range of other organisations and individuals are advocating for the government to pass a Reproductive Health Bill aimed at helping women avoid unplanned, mistimed and unwanted pregnancy. The Bill promotes both natural and modern family planning methods and post-abortion care as well as various maternal health measures and reproductive health education. A recent legislative victory for women’s human rights, the ‘Magna Carta of Women of the Philippines’ of August 2009, which requires the government to take measures towards the substantive equality of women and men, also has implications for women’s reproductive rights: in accordance with this law, discriminatory laws affecting women have to be amended or repealed within three years.

“What is also part of poverty is that people lack confidence in themselves. They do not see their social institutions as responding to them. They don’t know how to deal with social institutions. They do not have the skills that will make the local government officials or local government agencies accountable to their needs. It doesn’t matter if people are poor, in poor communities. They deserve the best possible health service that we can give then”, says Sylvia Estrada-Claudio, Likhaan co-founder and Chair of the Board. “Poverty is not a reason for second-grad health service.”

‘Filipino women claiming reproductive rights’ video highlights a broad range of sexual and reproductive rights issues in the Philippines through the lens of Likhaan’s work. The video is based on interviews with Likhaan activists and service providers, and women who have received the organization’s services. The women speak about both the transformative power of reproductive rights activism for women in marginalized communities and the challenges they encounter at family, community and government level.

We  support the work by Likhaan and other organizations that work for gender equality, sexual and reproductive rights and effective participation in decision-making and their call on the government to pass the Reproductive Health Bill and undertake all other measures required for individuals’ enjoyment of their reproductive rights.

Josephine’s partner beat her and her stepsons regularly. He beat them when he got drunk.
He beat her when she refused to watch him have sex with his girlfriends. Most of the time he beat her to force her to have unprotected sex with him so she could have his child.
In 2007, Josephine (not her real name) fell pregnant. She left her stepsons and her partner, seeking shelter with her parents. She was HIV-positive. After her baby was born, Josephine’s family discovered her HIV-status. Since then, she has received regular beatings from her brothers. Josephine desperately needs a place to stay. There are only three safe houses in the capital, Port Moresby, where she lives – each run without government assistance, and each struggling from a lack of resources. The situation is even worse outside the capital. There is an urgent need for more shelters for women fleeing violence in Papua New Guinea. Until then, Josephine will suffer the daily brutality meted out by her family members because she has nowhere safe to go.

DO SOMETHING!

PLEASE SIGN AND SEND THIS POSTCARD TO THE PRIME MINISTER OF PAPUA NEW GUINEA, URGING HIM TO PROVIDE MORE SHELTERS FOR WOMEN SUFFERING FROM VIOLENCE IN THE HOME.

PNG_postcard action

OR sign action online

Download, print, sign and send this postcard action calling for more shelters for women fleeing domestic violence in Papua New Guinea
Women suffering from violence in the home in Papua New Guinea do not have protection because there are too few shelters available. The few shelters that exist are by and large run without government assistance, and they have to rely on donors’ funding or international NGOs for resources. The severe lack of shelters for women in Papua New Guinea is a prime example of the government’s chronic inaction and failure to meet its obligations to protect women’s human rights in the country.

Call for action:
There is an urgent need for more shelters for women fleeing violence in Papua New Guinea. We can support the work of local activists who provide shelter support to women suffering from domestic violence by calling on the Papua New Guinean government to:

• Set up at least four new shelters across the country before the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on 25 November 2010 and expand funding for existing private shelters;

• Equip these shelters with a 24-hour hotline and counselling services.