On March 17, the Campaign, MADRE and The Global Fund for Women hosted “What Does Success Look Like on the Ground: Women in Burma, Sudan, Haiti and the DRC are Organizing for Change” at the United Nation’s Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in New York, NY.
MADRE’s executive director Yifat Susskind moderated the panel, which included activists Leonie Wangivirwa (SOFEPADI, DRC), Julia Marip (Women's League of Burma) and Zeinab Blandia (Vision Association, Sudan).
“Often we find ourselves recounting the horrible stories—to the media and the general public—about sexual violence. But it is also important, equally important, to devote the same amount of attention to the solutions,” said Susskind in her opening remarks.
During her presentation, Blandia described her work to empower new human rights defenders; she is mobilizing displaced women from rural areas in Sudan to return home with community-building and rehabilitation skills. Wangivirwa leads a survivor organization that has helped other survivors navigate hospitals and courts, as well as gain leadership and personal finance skills. She's seen a marked increase in access to justice for the women she works with. Marip is working to empower Burmese women to become successful activists through network-building and skills training.
The panel concluded with a discussion on the challenges anti-violence activists are working to overcome, including ongoing threats to peace, barriers to women’s political participation and unsustainable peace agreements.
Tweets from the event:
At the UN #CSW this morning for a panel w @StopRapeCmpgn @MADREspeaks & Leonie, a survivor I wrote about here: http://t.co/Ezz5n6k0V1
— Lauren Wolfe (@Wolfe321) March 18, 2022
"When women are excluded from peace processes gender violence remains institutionalized." -Susskind at @MADREspeaks #CSW58 @StopRapeCmpgn
— Lauren Wolfe (@Wolfe321) March 18, 2022
The war doesn't only cause sexual violence but poverty in our country. Leonie Kyakimwa Wangivirwa, #DRC @NobelWomen #CSW58
— GlobalJusticeCenter (@GlobalJusticeC) March 18, 2022
Unsustainable #peace agreements did not stop ongoing sexual violence - Zeinab Blandia, Founder Vision Org #Sudan #CSW58
— GlobalJusticeCenter (@GlobalJusticeC) March 18, 2022
Activist from #Burma -we need at least 30% women's representation in parliament to make policy changes to #StopRape #CSW58
— Say NO - UNiTE (@SayNO_UNiTE) March 18, 2022
When #women have been raped they suffer twice: the rape & when they become pregnant & abortion is illegal - Julia Marip @womenofburma #CSW58
— Global Fund forWomen (@GlobalFundWomen) March 18, 2022
LEARN MORE
Check out photos (here) and videos (here) of the activists on our delegation to the Democratic Republic of Congo
Read our most recent call for peace in Sudan here.
Download the Women's League of Burma's latest report, “Same Impunity, Same Patterns” here.
