Measures

IOM published a study on Gender and Labour Migration in Asia which addresses the impact of labour migration on gender roles and the gendered division of labour in the household in six countries, namely Bangladesh, China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Thailand. The study covers different migration scenarios (women “independent” migration, men outmigration and parental couples’s migration) and highlights how violence, whether of a physical, psychological, sexual or economic nature, can mark women’s migratory experience. IOM also published a study on Working to Prevent and Address Violence against Migrant Women Workers which presents the approach IOM adopts towards the protection and empowerment of women migrant workers. The publication seeks to better inform policymakers, practitioners and the public of the vulnerability of women migrant workers and of good practices for the protection of their human rights throughout the labour migration cycle. Hide

FAO has prepared a module to be included in the Junior Farmer Field and Life Schools (JFFLS) and Farmers Field Schools (FFS) Curriculum in order to include gender based violence prevention. This module is being tested in several FFS in Kenya and Uganda, and focuses on legal empowerment. This approach has been scaled up and is being used in the DRC, Burundi and Rwanda. Women farmers’ field schools have also been put in place with additional modules on GBV, reproductive health, rights and other issues.FAO supported the creation of community listeners clubs in Katanga (DRC), involving women and men of the community, including violence against women as a topic. The local community radios have aired several round tables and sketches on gender based violence.FAO’s Dimitra Project partner works on a programme entitled “Synergies of the women and men communicators against HIV-AIDS and sexual violence against women and girls in rural areas”, collaborating closely with rural community radios to raise awareness of women’s role and help women’s voices be heard in South Kivu. The first ever women’s radio, “Radio Bubusa”, has been created. Hide

FAO has organized trainings in DRC and Niger based on a module entitled “Communicating Gender for Development”, involving a wide range of stakeholders, during which GBV and how to address it was discussed, as well as the role community leaders and radios can play in combating domestic violence. Hide

UNRWA carried out a number of activities to build referral systems to improve victims’ access to services. The Lebanon Field Office began the implementation of their referral system in the Tyr Area and the Gaza Field Office drafted a referral system based on the services offered by the different programs. The West Bank Field Office is developing a family protection referral system and held several workshops to discuss principles and standards, also in 4 refugees camps (Dheisheh, Fawwar, Jalazon and Qalandia) in order to establish the referral system. The Syria Field Office is building the capacity of two legal advice offices in Yarmouk and Deraa camps to launch a “hotline” and offer social and legal aid to victims of domestic violence. Hide

UNRWA participated in the 16 days of activism campaign against gender violence. In Gaza City, 700 women were invited to an informative talk about gender-based violence. A series of activities were held in UNRWA’s schools and women’s centres throughout the West Bank, including creative workshops, documentary screenings and sessions on the adverse consequences of gender-based violence. UNRWA, along with other UN agencies in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, held a joint event. In Syria, public events were organized in Damascus, Hama and Homs, including testimonies from victims, paintings, lectures and marches. Targeted audiences included youth, women, men, community leaders and religious leaders. Hide

UNRWA is strengthening the capacity of its counselors in the health centres, its lawyers in legal advice offices, and its social workers in the women program centres to offer a more targeted intervention to victims in Gaza and West Bank through the Community Mental Health, the MDG-Gender and the Equality in Action programs. Hide

In October 2009, the “Sakhli Advice Centre for Women”, an NGO and partner of UNHCR in Georgia, published a booklet on IDPs and the Problem of Violence, which is based on surveys on sexual and gender- based violence among IDP affected communities. Hide

UNHCR and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) are working on a population-based survey to understand the magnitude of sexual and gender-based violence and the barriers to protection and other services among refugee populations. Hide

UNHCR, in cooperation with UNFPA and WHO, published an e-learning tool on the clinical management of rape. UNHCR’s Handbook for the Protection of Women and Girls has been translated into Arabic, French, Russian and Spanish and a CD-ROM version in Arabic, English, French and Spanish has been produced. Hide

During 2009, UNHCR organized a session for staff at Headquarters to raise awareness about Security Council resolutions 1820 and 1888, and also held a lecture on Revisiting Strategies of Inclusion and Violence against Women. UNHCR commemorated the 16 days of activism campaign against gender violence at Headquarters and in the field with a variety of activities, including a demonstration of solidarity by UNHCR staff in joining the “Get Cross” campaign of UN Action Against Sexual Violence in Conflict. Hide