Wednesday, 28 October 2009

[creative-radio] The Soul Beat Issue 140: Communication and Gender-based Violence

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: The Soul Beat <soulbeat@comminit.com>
Date: 2009/10/28
Subject: The Soul Beat Issue 140: Communication and Gender-based Violence

The Soul Beat Issue 140: Communication and Gender-based Violence
October 28 2009

From SOUL BEAT AFRICA - where communication and media are central to
AFRICA's social and economic development

In this issue of The Soul Beat:

* PROGRAMME EXPERIENCES involving men and encouraging dialogue
* Lessons learned from EVALUATIONS of GBV campaigns
* Denouncing Gender Violence in the Media
* STRATEGIC THINKING around gender activism, adolescents, and women's rights
* MORE GENDER-RELATED INFORMATION on the Soul Beat Africa website
* RESOURCE MATERIALS to support communication and community involvement


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In anticipation of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence
which begins next month (November 24 to December 10), this edition of The
Soul Beat looks at the role of communication in programmes that deal with
gender-based violence (GBV). The newsletter includes programme experiences,
evaluations, strategic thinking documents, and materials related to
increasing awareness, dialogue, and activism to prevent GBV in Africa.

If you would like your organisation's communication work or research and
resource documents to be featured on the Soul Beat Africa website and in The
Soul Beat newsletters, please send information to soulbeat@comminit.com


===


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PROGRAMME EXPERIENCES
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/experiences.html


1. Men for Gender Equality Now (MEGEN) - Kenya
Initiated in 2001, Men for Gender Equality Now (MEGEN) Kenya is a network of
men and women activists who engage in community education work, advocacy,
and campaigning in order to put an end to gender-based violence (GBV) and
challenge unequal gender power relations and harmful definitions of
masculinity. Besides offering support services for victims of GBV, the
organisation also runs an artist programme in which a team of artists
develops skits, songs, and other forms of drama that deal with unequal power
relations between men and women, gender-based violence, and HIV and AIDS.
The team also do ambush-theatre on the streets and in market places,
followed by guided discussions on the topics covered.
Contact MEGEN mentomen@femnet.or.ke
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/304366/38


2. Musasa Project - Zimbabwe
The Musasa Project is a Zimbabwean non-governmental organisation (NGO) that
works to challenge cultural values and community attitudes that condone and
justify violence against women. The project provides shelter as well as
legal and counselling services to women and also works to create awareness
about domestic violence and its effects on the social and economic
development of Zimbabwe. To build awareness and change prevailing social
attitudes that support GBV, Musasa organises annual media campaigns,
conducts radio discussions, and offers gender sensitive training for
community representatives and service providers.
Contact Linda Musiyiwa director@musasaproject.co.zw
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/127450/38


3. Shukumisa - South Africa
Launched on November 2008 in South Africa, the Shukumisa (to stir and shake
up) Campaign is a national initiative launched by the National Working Group
on Sexual Offences calling on the state to account for its responses to
survivors of sexual violence. The project is a product of 26 organisations
working with adult and child survivors of sexual violence to ensure that
effective and appropriate laws around sexual offences are passed. The
purpose of the Shukumisa campaign is to monitor the implementation of laws
and policies relevant to sexual offences and hold service providers to
account for ineffective implementation.
Contact Lisa Vetten lisa@tlac.org.za
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/304386/38


4. Through Our Eyes - Guinea, Liberia
The American Refugee Committee International (ARC) and Communication for
Change (C4C) undertook a community-based media project designed to raise
awareness of, and help to prevent, gender-based violence (GBV) in
conflict-affected communities. Following a 2-week training workshop, local
teams comprised of ARC field staff and community members began producing
local-language videotapes on various forms of GBV, their consequences, and
ARC's prevention and response programmes. Through local screenings of these
tapes and accompanying discussion sessions, community members shared
experiences and gained information about available services, including legal
aid, counselling, and skills training programmes that are designed to foster
women's economic independence.
Contact Lauren Goodsmith lauren_goodsmith@hotmail.com or Connie Kamara
ConnieK@archq.org
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/134890/38


5. SASA! - Uganda
SASA! is a methodology and approach designed by the Uganda-based NGO Raising
Voices, which works with women and children to explore the gender aspects of
power and to address the link between violence against women (VAW) and
HIV/AIDS. Sasa is a Kiswahili word for "now!" and also serves as an acronym
for the key components of the programme: Start, Awareness, Support, and
Action. The programme seeks to prevent VAW and HIV by changing the attitudes
and behaviours that perpetuate power imbalances in relationships between men
and women. The programme provides organisations with practical materials and
information that they can incorporate into their existing HIV and VAW
programmes. In January 2008, Raising Voices, in partnership with the Center
for Domestic Violence Prevention, started using SASA! in four communities in
Kampala, Uganda.
Contact info@raisingvoices.org
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/270558/38


6. Intercultural Dialogue on Violence against Women - Cyprus, Egypt, Greece,
Morocco, Spain
In 2007, the Mediterranean Institute of Gender Studies (MIGS) carried out a
project designed to enhance the active participation of women in
intercultural dialogue about violence against women, as well as to develop
and diffuse strategies for overcoming discrimination and violence against
women in the Euro-Med region. With funding from the Anna Lindh Foundation
for the Dialogue between Cultures, MIGS and 4 co-participating organisations
from the 5 countries in the region each identified 5 women from diverse
backgrounds to discuss and identify areas of common concern.
Contact Rania Tollefson rania@medinstgenderstudies.org
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/272784/38


EVALUATIONS
http://www.comminit.com/africa/evaluations.html


7. Stop The Bus! I Want To Get On: Lessons From Campaigns to End Violence
Against Women in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Ghana
By Kathleen Dey, Judith Chiyangwa, Netsy Fekade Odoi, Rachel Carter, and
Kanwal Ahluwalia
This report from 2008 offers lessons learned from the "Stop the Bus"
campaigns which were run in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Ghana to raise
awareness about and contribute to a reduction in violence against women. The
report includes lessons and guidelines for NGOs and community-based
organisations (CBOs) to encourage community awareness and understanding of
gender-based violence, as well as to help those organisations build campaign
strategies, and monitor their impact effectively. The report highlights the
fact that community involvement and ownership of the campaign initiatives is
essential to their long-term success.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/304371/38


8. Changing Gender Norms Among Women and Men in Uganda: A Report on the
Evaluation of African Transformation
By Carol Underwood, Jane Brown, Donna Shrard, Basil Tushabe, and Afeefa
Abdur-Rahman
This report from 2007 documents the findings of a study that evaluated the
effects of participation in the African Transformation (AT) programme in
Uganda. The programme is designed to promote gender equity, participatory
development, and community action, and comprises a kit containing a series
of video profiles of women and men who overcame gender barriers and
challenges in their own lives and became role models to others. Participants
view and discuss the profiles during interactive community-based workshops
led by trained facilitators. The report notes that while gender norms are
influenced positively by participation in the workshops, transforming
deep-seated norms takes time. The authors found that those who participated
in more sessions registered greater change, suggesting that participation
over a series of sessions is needed to allow for the penetration and
exploration of ideas.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/289309/38


===


Denouncing Gender Violence in the Media

From November 25 to December 10, the Women's International Network of the
World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC-WIN) will
participate in the 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence with an
internet campaign designed to denounce gender violence in the media and
transform media into a catalyst to end violence against women. For more
information and to download audio files go to
http://www.comminit.com/redirect.cgi?m=09c8be7db0e6d4644b2b176b95ce4009


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STRATEGIC THINKING
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/strategicthinking.html


9. Communicating Change: Learning from Women's Rights Activists' Campaigns
for Legal and Policy Change
By Alexandra Pittman and Anna Workman
This resource report analyses activists' experiences in communicating change
for women's equal rights. Seventy women's rights campaigns that intended to
achieve legislative or policy change at the local, national, or
international levels were studied. This Global Strategies for Change (GSC)
project was inspired by the Association for Women's Rights in Development
(AWID) International Forum in 2005 and was conducted from May 2006 to May
2008 with the support of an AWID Forum seed grant.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/300488/38


10. Early Sexual Debut, Sexual Violence, and Sexual Risk-Taking among
Pregnant Adolescents and Their Peers in Jamaica and Uganda
By Maxine Wedderburn ,Jennifer Wagman, Cynthia Waszak Geary, Joy Noel
Baumgartner, Heidi Toms Tucker, and Laura Johnson
From the Youth Research Working Paper Series of Family Health International
(FHI), this eighth Working Paper, published in 2008, focuses on early sexual
début and experiences of sexual coercion/violence as they relate to each
other and to unintended adolescent pregnancy. The purpose of the project was
to identify risk factors for adolescent pregnancy in order to inform
culturally appropriate programs that aim to prevent unintended adolescent
pregnancy. The research showed that for many of the participants, their
first sex was coerced, and that therefore the timing of their sexual début
was not a choice.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/303264/38


11. Women's Property Rights, HIV and AIDS, and Domestic Violence: Research
Findings from Two Rural Districts in South Africa and Uganda
By Hema Swaminathan, Kimberly Ashburn, Aslihan Kes, Nata Duvvury, Cherryl
Walker, Michael Aliber, Busi Nkosi, Margaret A. Rugadya, and Kamusiime
Herbert
This report, published in 2007 by the International Centre for Research on
Women (ICRW) in collaboration with the Human Sciences Research Council in
South Africa and Associates for Development in Uganda, explores the links
between women's ownership of housing and land and their vulnerability to
domestic violence and HIV and AIDS. Based on in-depth interviews with 120
women from sites in Uganda and South Africa, the report argues that while
property ownership is not easily linked to women's ability to prevent HIV
infection, it may help mitigate HIV/AIDS' social impacts by allowing women
to leave violent or unpleasant situations.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/303185/38


12. Understanding Men's Health and Use of Violence: Interface of Rape and
HIV in South Africa
By Rachel Jewkes, Yandisa Sikweyiya, Robert Morrell, and Kristin Dunkle
This report, published by the Gender and Health Research Unit of the Medical
Research Council (MRC) in 2009, is based on research that sought to
understand the prevalence of rape perpetration in a random sample of
community-based adult men, to understand factors associated with rape
perpetration, and to describe intersections between rape, physical intimate
partner violence, and HIV. The authors argue that high levels of rape are
rooted in negative conceptions of masculinity and that the problem cannot
solely be addressed through criminal prosecution, but requires a broader
approach that addresses these conceptions of manhood.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/302538/38


13. Women Building Peace and Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict-Affected
Contexts: A Review of Community-Based Approaches
By Annalise Moser
This United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) document focuses on
specific thematic areas of good practice in the prevention of sexual and
gender-based violence (SGBV) and women's participation in peacebuilding. The
study was developed as a background document to inform programming and
advocacy within the context of UNIFEM programming, and builds on
country-level visits conducted in early 2007.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/302128/38


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MORE INFORMATION ON GENDER ON THE SOUL BEAT AFRICA WEBSITE

For more information on gender and gender-based violence on the Soul Beat
Africa website go to http://www.comminit.com/en/taxonomy/term/38,96


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MATERIALS
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/materials.html


14. Empowering Messages - What You Should Know: Strategic Communication and
Gender-based Violence
This guide, published by Media Monitoring Africa in 2009, is designed to be
a comprehensive resource that specifically addresses the development and
implementation of communication around issues related to gender-based
violence. The guidelines are a tool for those involved in work against
gender-based violence and include core concepts such as understanding your
intended audience and how to approach monitoring and evaluation.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/293197/38


15. Nobody Is Immune: Gender Against Men [Documentary]
Produced by the Refugee Law Project in June 2009, this documentary explores
"the hidden world of sexual and gender-based violence against men in the
conflicts of the Great Lakes region." According to the producers, it is a
movie about men, violence, and the inability of society to recognise or
address male vulnerability in times of conflict. The movie is intended to
raise as many questions as it gives answers in its quest for an honest
examination of the gender stereotypes underlying mainstream approaches to
sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV).
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/298346/38


16. Addressing Gender-Based Violence Through Community Empowerment
This publication was written for community members who attended workshops
held by the Gender Research and Advocacy Project of the Legal Assistance
Centre in Namibia during 2008. The workshops were held across the 13 regions
of Namibia in an attempt to identify some of the root causes of gender-based
violence and help communities identify preventative actions they could
implement, based on their understanding of the underlying issues in their
community. It was written to serve as a record of the information discussed
and the ideas generated during these workshops and to communicate this
information to community members unable to attend.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/301439/38


17. Programming to Address Violence Against Women: 10 Case Studies
This 106-page volume documents the experience of the United Nations
Population Fund (UNFPA) with addressing many forms of violence against
women. Intended primarily for development practitioners and others seeking
to change attitudes and practices, it offers lessons that can help scale up
responses and confront the problem on a wider scale. The lessons are gleaned
from case studies of the following 10 countries: Bangladesh, Colombia,
Ghana, Kenya, Mauritania, Mexico, Morocco, Romania, Sierra Leone, and
Turkey. The 2007 review is part of a series of explorations that UNFPA has
undertaken over the past several years to look at the cultural dimensions of
gender equality and reproductive health and rights.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/290354/38


18. Defying the Odds: Lessons Learnt from Men for Gender Equality Now
This book contains experiences and lessons learned from gender justice
activists involved in Men for Gender Equality Now (MEGEN) in Kenya. In the
book, men share their personal experiences as individuals and as
changemakers. Besides personal stories told by activists, this 2008
publication also includes short briefs on the work of MEGEN Kenya,
highlighting the challenges, successes, and lessons learnt in different
programme areas.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/304315/38


===


For more gender-related previous issues of The Soul Beat newsletter see:

The Soul Beat 110 - Involving Boys and Men
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/soul-beat-110.html

The Soul Beat 93 - Gender and Gender-based Violence
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/soul-beat-93.html

The Soul Beat 51 - MDG 3: Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/soul-beat-51.html


To view all archived editions of The Soul Beat Newsletter see
http://www.comminit.com/africa/soul-beat-archives.html


===


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soulbeat@comminit.com

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