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| 17 Aug 2008 - 15:21 | Women's enews
URL: www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/ . . .
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Bhutto Protegee Tackles Sex Harassment in Pakistan
Run Date: 08/15/08
By Shahzada Irfan Ahmed
WeNews correspondent
A second-term member of the Sindh provincial assembly is pushing Pakistan's first effort to outlaw sexual harassment in the workplace. Two years ago her draft bill fizzled, but this time she thinks it could become law within a month.
LAHORE, Pakistan (WOMENSENEWS)--Humera Alwani drafted a workplace sexual harassment bill in 2006 when she was a first-term member of the Sindh provincial assembly. But as a member of the opposition Pakistan People's Party she didn't get very far.
This year, after taking her oath of office for a second term on April 5 and with her party now in control, she's confident the bill has a better future.
Sindh's chief minister has approved the draft law for presentation to the provincial cabinet, Alwani says. Within a month she expects it to be discussed in the Sindh assembly, where she's pretty sure it will get passed, since her party is now in power.
article continues
http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/3704
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| 16 Aug 2008 - 18:11 | K
krinaeae@gmail.com
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Hello there,
I have a suggestion that I wanted to make as a victim of sexual slavery and trafficking from Korea in regards to combatting trafficking and prostitution. I'd like an organization to create an online database for Johns who have abused and raped women based on the verbal testimonies given
by the identified victims of trafficking as well as information given by the
traffickers without the arrest record nor physical evidence of the
crime. I'd like their profiles, photos and identification to be revealed as
well as the brief summary of the crime they had perpetuated.
This is the ultimate goal I'd like to achieve to bring Justice to a crushed soul of mine and millions of other women who are not even on this earth anymore.
This is my attempt to ultimately bring healing and justice to the ones who have been brutally raped in front of camera, gagged, chocked and abused, and lost their chance of being woman and womanhood by having their fragile and precious womb violently demolished by these evil men.
I understand the difficulty of having men convicted or even arrested for
sexual assault. It's close to nearly impossible, as we all know. That is why I strongly feel the need to create an unofficial, regulated online-
database, different from the registered sex offender list.
Until we have a strong law that protect women and help them find the justice to the victims, meantime we need an alternative solution to stop the crimes from occurring and to stop one woman from violated by angry misogynistic johns.
Often times, convicted traffickers have a list of information for johns,
especially, high profile clients, regular johns, their names or their
addresses or their credit card information or their cell phone numbers. Law enforcement and some organization help would be necessary to organize these
data and regulate them.
Then there is a legal implications where most of these johns, often times powerful figures in our society, would do almost anything to take down their information as this is their biggest FEAR and insecurity next to getting ass-raped in jail. In order to decrease the demand, we need to target the insecurity of these men whose ego and reputation mean everything to them.
If identified victims have been raped by at least 100 men and she gave a
false testimony to have one guy included on the list, I personally do not see a reason why she would want to include his name on the list unless he has done something terribly wrong to her or her family to be listed. Therefore, I do not see a problem listing these men solely based on the information given by the victims of these severe crimes and the traffickers.
It's up to public to decide how they are going to view these men as some of them are normal husbands who wanted to try out nasty despicable fantasies on
these women that they can not try on their loving mother of his children.
It's up to public to decide if these men are rapists who should be thankful that they are not locked up in jail or just man who purchased sex from women.
It's up to public decide if these information published are credible as there is no physical evidence such as video tapes nor blood or sperms.
It's up to public to decide if they want to feel sympathetic to the victims
of these crimes and not look at it as false testimony given by the victims
with bad intention.
These women are the saddest human beings who need to have their justice served somehow. And I'd like to believe that men who simply had a sex with a prostitute knows deep in his heart that what he did was absolutely despicable act.
I understand that my logic has a flaw as people might think the information given by victims are not credible therefore, it's harming innocent man's reputation since people in our society does not have much respect for trafficked victims and prostitutes.
I believe these johns should feel thankful than upset for having their
profile published on the website instead of being locked up in Jail.
Some might say if what these men have done is TRUE, and then why not send them to jail.
Well, again, it's impossible to prove "rape" and classify each one of johns as sex offender.
But I do feel justified in action of having their story and profile
published for people to decide and make decision for themselves and bring awareness and implement fears to potential johns. If men can rape, abuse women and make pornography of their most dehumanizing and humiliating acts
and put them on internet without victim's permission for the world to see and get away with it, I do not understand WHY is it so difficult to put information of these johns (rapists) on internet for people to see without proper consent and permission? It's not like we are revealing their private parts and intimate sexual scene on Internet.
I believe this is the only way to bring some peace and justice in my soul
and millions of other crushed souls of women who have been trafficked.
It might be a dangerous attempt to ruin the reputation of these johns
especially the self-claimed innocent ones, but at least these men have not been raped, ass raped, chocked by some stranger and have to live with misery and suffering for the rest of their lives.
If they have no fear of having their reputation demolished, or getting ass raped in jail, they will continuously perpetuate the crimes, whether it be raping a young prostitute, dehumanizing these women in invisible confinement
in anyway they can.
If the man who claims to have never raped a targeted and identified victim, he's just in unlucky situation who might have done something wrong to her or her family. But if the victim is going to suicide and feel dead inside, why do we find it so difficult to make her dream come true? If her last wish is to have his name published??
I'd like an reaction and support from people who have suggestions and ideas to share on how do I go about executing this idea.
If you could kindly forward this e-mail to others who might have some interest in getting involved or ideas, I'd appreciate it very much.
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| 16 Aug 2008 - 10:19 | Universidad de Utrecht
Laehr@law.uu.ni
URL: www.law.uu.nl/laehr
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Estimad@s amig@s:
Encuentren a continuación el programa del evento "EL PAPEL DE LATINOAMÉRICA EN LA JUSTICIA PENAL INTERNACIONAL," organizado por la Universidad de Utrecht (Países Bajos) para los días 17 al 20 de septiembre del corriente año.
Para mayor información del evento, contacte Laehr@law.uu.nl o visite http://www.law.uu.nl/laehr
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| 15 Aug 2008 - 21:58 | anomalia
anomalia25@hotmail.com
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hola necesito ayuda vivo en en fort wortg tx ayer vine huyendo de mi esposo el cual me maltrata fisicamente y sicologica a mi y a mi hija de 3 anos ayudenme porfavor no se a donde acudir gracias ahora me encuentro en orlando fl.
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| 15 Aug 2008 - 20:31 | Igualdad Ya
URL: equalitynow.org/spanish/actions/action_2 . . .
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Urgente**: una mujer iraní corre riesgo inminente de morir lapidada*
Igualdad Ya acaba de publicar la Actualización de Acción Mujeres 29.2 para exigir la inmediata puesta en libertad de Kobra Najjar, quien corre el riesgo inminente de morir lapidada por prostitución. Su abogada nos ha comunicado que han agotado todas las vías
de recurso legales y que Kobra podría ser ejecutada en cualquier momento.
¡Entre en la Actualización de Acción Mujeres y actúe para detener la lapidación de Kobra Najjar! http://equalitynow.org/spanish/actions/action_2902_sp.html
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| 15 Aug 2008 - 20:27 | Equality Now
URL: equalitynow.org/english/actions/action_2 . . .
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Urgent: Iranian Woman Faces Imminent Threat of Stoning
*Urgent: Iranian Woman Faces Imminent Threat of Stoning*
Equality Now has just issued Women’s Action Update 29.2, calling for the immediate release of Kobra Najjar, who is at risk of imminent execution by stoning for prostitution. We have just heard from her lawyer that all legal appeals have been exhausted and she could be executed at any time.
Please go to the Women's Action Update and take action to stop the
stoning of Kobra Najjar! www.equalitynow.org/english/actions/action_2902_en.html
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| 15 Aug 2008 - 20:09 | Helen Benedict
URL: www.inthesetimes.com/article/3848/
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Why Soldiers Rape
Culture of misogyny, illegal occupation, fuel sexual violence in military
By HELEN BENEDICT
In These Times
AUGUST 13, 2008
http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/38 48/
An alarming number of women soldiers are being sexually
abused by their comrades-in-arms, both at war and at home. This fact has received a fair amount of attention lately from researchers and the press - and deservedly
so.
But the attention always focuses on the women: where they were when assaulted, their relations with the assailant, the effects on their mental health and careers, whether they are being adequately helped, and so on. That discussion, as valuable as it is, misses a
fundamental point. To understand military sexual assault, let alone know how to stop it, we must focus on the perpetrators. We need to ask: Why do soldiers rape?
Rape in civilian life is already unacceptably common. One in six women is raped or sexually assaulted in her lifetime, according to the National Institute of Justice, a number so high it should be considered an epidemic.
In the military, however, the situation is even worse. Rape is almost twice as frequent as it is among civilians, especially in wartime. Soldiers are taught to regard one another as family, so military rape resembles incest. And most of the soldiers who rape are older and of higher rank than their victims, so are taking advantage of their authority to attack the very people they are supposed to protect.
Department of Defense reports show that nearly 90 percent of rape victims in the Army are junior-ranking women, whose average age is 21, while most of the
assailants are non-commissioned officers or junior men, whose average age is 28.
This sexual violence persists in spite of strict laws against rape in the military and a concerted Pentagon effort in 2005 to reform procedures for reporting the
crime. Unfortunately, neither the press nor the many teams of psychologists and sociologists who study veterans ever seem to ask why.
The answer appears to lie in a confluence of military culture, the psychology of the assailants and the nature of war.
Two seminal studies have examined military culture and
its attitudes toward women: one by Duke University Law Professor Madeline Morris in 1996, which was presented in the paper "By Force of Arms: Rape, War, and Military
Culture" and published in Duke Law Journal; and the other by University of California professor and folklorist Carol Burke in 2004 and explained in her book, Camp All-American, Hanoi Jane and the High-And- ght: Gender, Folklore and Changing Military Culture (Beacon Press). Both authors found that military culture is more misogynistic than even many critics of the military would suspect. Sometimes this misogyny stems from competition and sometimes from resentment, but it lies at the root of why soldiers rape.
Article continues
www.inthesetimes.com/article/3848/
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| 15 Aug 2008 - 19:56 | Kimberly Hefling
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Military sexual assault coordinator to testify
By KIMBERLY HEFLING
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h13 3oGgNqjJTZs8BIUcSFtSpi0RwD92HLJOO0
WASHINGTON (AP) - The military's sexual assault prevention coordinator, barred by Defense officials from testifying before Congress last month, has
gotten permission to appear at a hearing on the topic, a House committee said Wednesday.
Defense officials notified the House Oversight and Government Reform
Committee that Defense Secretary Robert Gates has agreed to make Kaye Whitley, director of the Pentagon's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response
Office, available to testify, the panel said in a statement.
Whitley did not appear at a hearing on sexual assault in the military on
July 31 after she was told by her superiors not to do so, the committee said.
On Tuesday, Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., the Oversight chairman, and others sent a letter to Gates seeking compliance with a subpoena it issued seeking
Whitley's testimony.
Cynthia Smith, a DOD spokeswoman, said in an e-mail Wednesday that it is "inappropriate" to question Whitley about the program when Michael
Dominguez, the principal deputy under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness, is available and he's the decision maker for the program.
Dominguez testified at the July 31 hearing that he had instructed Whitley not to testify.
Smith said Gates would respond directly to the letter. Smith did not respond to questions about whether Whitley will now appear.
At the hearing, a report from the General Accounting Office was released that said the Defense Department and Coast Guard have established policies to prevent and respond to sexual assaults, but the implementation of it programs is hindered by factors such as the fact that not all commanders support them.
It also said the military services have not provided sufficient data to
facilitate oversight.
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| 14 Aug 2008 - 08:43 | Telegraph.co.uk
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Sexual harassment okay as it ensures humans breed, Russian judge rules
A Russian advertising executive who sued her boss for sexual
harassment lost her case after a judge ruled that employers were
obliged to make passes at female staff to ensure the survival of the
human race.
By Adrian Blomfield in Moscow
Last Updated: 1:12PM BST 30 Jul 2008
The unnamed executive, a 22-year-old from St Petersburg, had been
hoping to become only the third woman in Russia's history to bring a successful sexual harassment action against a male employer.
She alleged she had been locked out of her office after she refused
to have intimate relations with her 47-year-old boss.
"He always demanded that female workers signalled to him with their
eyes that they desperately wanted to be laid on the boardroom table
as soon as he gave the word," she earlier told the court. "I didn't
realise at first that he wasn't speaking metaphorically."
The judge said he threw out the case not through lack of evidence but because the employer had acted gallantly rather than criminally.
"If we had no sexual harassment we would have no children," the judge ruled.
Since Soviet times, sexual harassment in Russia has become an accepted part of life in the office, work place and university
lecture room.
According to a recent survey, 100 per cent of female professionals
said they had been subjected to sexual harassment by their bosses, 32 per cent said they had had intercourse with them at least once and another seven per cent claimed to have been raped.
Eighty per cent of those who participated in the survey said they did not believe it possible to win promotion without engaging in sexual relations with their male superiors.
Women also report that it is common to be browbeaten into sex during job interviews, while female students regularly complain that
university professors trade high marks for sexual favours.
Only two women have won sexual harassment cases since the collapse of the Soviet Union, one in 1993 and the other in 1997.
Human rights activists say that Russian women remain second-class citizens and are subjected to some of the highest levels of domestic abuse in the world.
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| 14 Aug 2008 - 08:34 | Jason Peterson
jpeterson@socius.com
URL: www.socius.com
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* JOB * JOB * JOB
Executive Director
East Hartford, CT
Statewide nonprofit coalition seeking to end domestic violence through advocacy, education and social change is seeking an Executive Director. The Executive Director will lead the statewide organization and its efforts to provide cohesiveness and support to its member organizations.
The candidate for ED must have a minimum of ten years of relevant professional experience demonstrating performance in several of the following key competencies:
* Strategic and operational planning
* Ability to testify at legislative hearings with passion and competence
* Media relations
* Change management
* Ability to influence through assertive diplomacy
* Leadership, coaching and hiring
* Team building
Educational Requirements
* Bachelor´s Degree required
* An advanced degree is a plus
For more information see
http://www.socius.com/nonprofit/Soci us%20Leadership%20Profile%20-%20CCADV-%2 0ED%20-%20Final.pdf
Contact:
Jason Peterson, Managing Partner
jpeterson@socius.com
Sociu s Executive Search
1220 West Sixth Street
Suite 604
Cleveland, OH 44113
<http://www.socius.com/> www.socius.com
Jason Peterson
Managing Partner
socius | Executive Search
Direct 216.255.3388
Mobile 216.244.4105
www.socius.com <http://www.socius.com/>
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| 14 Aug 2008 - 08:27 | Jorge Medina
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Publicado en el diario "Página 12" el 13/08/2008
Un caso de violencia doméstica y negligencia del Estado, en Tucumán
Pidió ayuda, nadie la escuchó y la asesinó su pareja
La mujer, víctima de la violencia de su pareja, había hecho varias denuncias por amenazas ante la policía y la Justicia. Hasta llegó a pedir ayuda para “no aparecer en la tapa de los diarios luego de ser descuartizada”, según dijo a un medio de comunicación. Ayer apareció muerta en la habitación de un hotel alojamiento, cerca de la terminal de ómnibus de San Miguel de Tucumán. La había estrangulado su pareja, quien confesó el hecho a través de un mensaje de texto y luego se suicidó, en el cementerio de un pueblo vecino, junto a la tumba de sus abuelos. Otro saldo de la tragedia: cinco niños quedaron huérfanos
María del Carmen Pérez tenía 27 años, era empleada gastronómica y hace 11 años había formado pareja con Francisco Modesto Soraire, un albañil de 36 años, con quien tuvo cinco hijos y mantuvo una complicada relación.
Ayer, la mujer fue encontrada sin vida en una habitación del hotel Hallowen, que funciona como albergue transitorio, al que había ingresado en la madrugada de ayer acompañada por el hombre.
Soraire se encontraba apartado del hogar por orden judicial luego de varios intentos y amenazas de muerte contra su pareja, pero el domingo por la noche logró encontrarse con ella, la llevó al hotel y allí la estranguló aparentemente con una soga de las que utilizan los albañiles para mensurar.
El lunes a la mañana, la abogada de Soraire, Lilian Vargas, se presentó en la comisaría segunda para denunciar que su cliente le había enviado un mensaje de texto en el que le informaba: “La hija de puta no va a joder más”. Además, en el mensaje dijo que ella se encontraba en la habitación 20 del hotel, que había dejado “solos” a sus hijos y que la llave de la vivienda se encontraba “en el pantalón”, según informaron fuentes de la investigación. Tras confesar el crimen, Soraire se trasladó a la localidad de Campo Azul, en Leales, donde visitó la tumba de sus abuelos y allí se disparó con una escopeta.
En su edición de ayer, el noticiero de Canal 10 de Tucumán puso al aire una nota de archivo realizada en abril, donde María del Carmen pedía ayuda a las autoridades policiales y judiciales a raíz de agresiones y amenazas recibidas por parte de su pareja.
“Hace cinco meses que decidí separarme porque él intentó asesinarme dos veces y nadie hace nada”, había expresado la mujer en la nota periodística. Luego relató que hizo la denuncia en la Fiscalía I en lo Penal pero, según sus palabras, “no hacen nada” para ayudarla.
“El siempre fue violento, pero desde hace dos años comenzó a amenazarme y a los chicos –los hijos tienen entre dos y nueve años– les dice que me va a matar”, relató. “El 25 de diciembre pasado me desfiguró a golpes y luego me dijo que estaba arrepentido por no haberme matado directamente”, contó la mujer en la entrevista.
Recordó que hizo la denuncia de la agresión en la comisaría novena. “Allí me dijeron que lo iban a notificar, pero él sigue entrando y saliendo de la casa cuando quiere”, explicó. “También pedí custodia policial, pero no me la dieron. Les pido una solución porque no quiero aparecer en la tapa de los diarios descuartizada”, advirtió Pérez hace cuatro meses. Por último, la mujer señaló que “la Justicia no tomó ninguna medida cuando él fue a declarar”.
“Sé que a los niños no les hará nada, porque son sus hijos, pero a mi sí”, vaticinó la mujer golpeada.
Los restos de Pérez fueron inhumados hoy y en el velatorio, su prima Roxana Avila lamentó lo sucedido y señaló que Soraire “no pensó que destruyó a una familia ya que quedan cinco chicos de-samparados”. “Ella vivía con temor y casi no dormía. Yo esperaba este desenlace y lamentablemente no me equivoqué: ahora la estamos velando”, indicó Avila.
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| 13 Aug 2008 - 10:12 | Roxana Jurado Tello
politica@calandria.org.pe
URL: www.calandria.org.pe
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Agradecemos su difusión
_____
NOTA DE PRENSA
FORO PÚBLICO
PERIODISMO Y VIOLENCIA DE GÉNERO
¿Qué papel debieran cumplir los medios en el tratamiento informativo de esta problemática?
Comunicadores españoles y peruanos analizarán el tema
Uno de los frentes de lucha más relevantes al afrontar el problema de la violencia contra las mujeres es el tratamiento mediático. Éste condiciona en gran medida el modo en que una sociedad percibe este problema y, consecuentemente, diseña e implementa estrategias para afrontarlo. Por ello, los medios son responsables indirectos de que sus conciudadanos perciban el
problema, lo obvien, lo minimicen, lo justifiquen y lo acepten, o por el
contrario, tengan una actitud de denuncia, de compromiso, de lucha activa, de solidaridad con las víctimas, de intolerancia ante este tipo de abusos, de persuasión sobre su gravedad y de mayor exigencia ante la clase política
peruana.
En ese sentido, la Universitat Jaume I de Castelló (España), y la Asociación de Comunicadores Sociales CALANDRIA, presentan el Foro Público Periodismo y
Violencia de <http://www.calandria.org.pe/foropublico .htm> Género,
Tolerancia Cero, evento que tiene como objetivo aumentar la sensibilización social sobre dicha problemática y facilitar herramientas de formación sobre
la perspectiva de género a los profesionales de la comunicación.
Día : Lunes 18 de agosto
Hora : 6 p.m.
Lugar: Hotel José Antonio. Av. 28 de
julio 398, Miraflores.
INGRESO LIBRE
previa
inscripción al 265 6525 – 471 6473 nx 139
comunicacion-politica@calandria.o rg.pe
Programa
6:00 pm “Cuidar a quien cuida. Víctimas de la violencia de género” I Ofelia Gómez Valverde Psicoanalista.
Centro de Acogida de Malos Tratos. Valencia-España
6:20 pm “Respuesta ciudadana a la violencia contra mujeres” I Pablo Salinas Músico
Plataforma de artistas y profesionales contra la violencia de género.
Madrid-España
6:40 pm “De la agenda de género al compromiso político” I Alicia Gil Gómez Catedrática
Fundación Isonomía de la Universitat Jaume I de Castelló. Valencia. España
7:00 pm “Proceso de empoderamiento de las mujeres periodistas en el Área
Mediterránea” I Dolores López Alarcón
Representante de la Radiotelevisión Valenciana. RTVV
7:20 pm “La violencia de Género en el Perú” I Silvia Loli
Directora de Amnistía Internacional. Perú
7:40 pm “Ubicación de la violencia de género en los medios de comunicación
peruanos” I Rosa María Alfaro
A.C.S. Calandria- Veeduría Ciudadana de la Comunicación. Perú
8:00 pm Diálogo con participantes
Con el apoyo de:
Roxana Jurado Tello
Responsable de Comunicaciones A.C.S. Calandria
Cahuide 752, Jesús María - Lima 11
9 97496616 - 471 6473 nx 124
www.calandria.org.pe
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| 13 Aug 2008 - 10:00 | lucy
doctoralucy@yahoo.es
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INVITACION A FORO
Por medio de la presente tenemos el agrado de dirigirnos a usted, a fin de invitarlo a participar en el Foro: "Derechos Humanos vulnerados de los Niños, Niñas y Adolescentes", organizado por la Defensoría del Pueblo, en el marco de la Campaña contra la violencia sexual de niños, niñas y adolescentes MIRA BIEN. DENÚNCIALO de la Defensoría del Pueblo y el Día Internacional del Niño.
Foro:
"Derechos Humanos vulnerados de los Niños, Niñas y Adolescentes"
Fecha: Miércoles 20 de agosto de 2008
Hora: 5.00 PM - 8.00 PM
Lugar: Auditorio del Centro Cultural San Cristóbal de Huamanga, sito en Jr. 28 de Julio Nº 178, segundo piso.
Inscripciones: Defensoría del Pueblo Av. Mariscal Cáceres 1420 y/o Telf. 31-1256.
Se entregarán certificados y materiales, vacantes limitadas
INGRESO LIBRE
Jorge Fernández Mavila
Representante de la Oficina Defensorial de Ayacucho
Agradece su asistencia
Lucy Margarita Mucha Chate
Comisionada por los Derechos de la Mujer, Niñez y Adolescencia
Defensoría del Pueblo - ODAyacucho
Av. Mariscal Cáceres 1420 - Telf (66) 311256
Cel Mov. 01-90768876
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| 13 Aug 2008 - 08:50 | the Guardian, UK
URL: www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/aug/12/ukcrim . . .
|
England
Rape victims told alcohol consumption may cost them compensation
Rachel Williams The Guardian, Tuesday August 12 2008 Article
Rape victims seeking compensation are having their payouts reduced if they had been drinking before they were attacked.
Campaigners called on the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) to end the application to rape victims of a clause that says awards in all types of cases can be cut if consumption of alcohol "contributed to the circumstances that gave rise to the injury".
In the past year 14 rape victims - 1% of rape-related applications - were told they would get less money because of alcohol consumption, the CICA confirmed.
One woman, who believes she was raped after having her drink spiked, told the Guardian it "felt like a slap in the face" when she read that the standard award of £11,000 would be reduced by 25% in her case, to £8,250.
"The evidence that we have shows that your excessive consumption of alcohol was a contributing factor in the incident," she was informed by the CICA.
The woman, who was raped four years ago when she was 25, was awarded the full sum after her solicitor argued that the practice amounted to indirect sexual discrimination.
No one was arrested for the attack. The Metropolitan police apologised to her after an internal inquiry found a string of failings in the investigation.
Helen, a beauty therapist who has not worked since the incident, said: "When I read the CICA letter I just had no words; I could not take it in. It felt like I was being punished for having the audacity to step up and say 'I don't think this should have happened to me.' It was like going back to the 70s, saying 'she was asking for it'. How else could you read the letter but as saying it's my fault I was raped?"
Helen told the CICA she had been drinking but did not say how much alcohol she consumed. The police submission said it was "possible" her behaviour had contributed to the incident, because she had drunk a "large amount" of alcohol. Helen's solicitor, Debaleena Dasgupta, said women should challenge docked payouts. "It's appalling, the number of women that are probably getting this letter and aren't fighting because they don't know that they can," she said.
A spokesman said: "CICA makes decisions on conduct issues in good faith, based on the facts available to them in each individual case, and any applicants unhappy with the decision in their claim can ask for a review by a more senior member of staff."
In a second statement, issued later, the CICA said a mistake had been made in Helen's case and its policy was not to reduce awards to rape victims on the basis of alcohol consumption.
The justice minister Bridget Prentice said: "Although I cannot comment on the individual decisions of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority I can be clear that it is not our policy to reduce the level of award to a victim of rape due to alcohol consumption.
"This stance supports our view that a victim of rape is not in any way culpable due to alcohol consumption.
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| 13 Aug 2008 - 08:29 | Siyanda
URL: www.siyanda.org/search/results_adv.cfm?K . . .
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Women's Right to Food
Resources
http://www.siyanda.org search/results_adv.cfm?Keywords=food_sec urity08&Subject=0&Donor=0&Langu=E&StartRow=1
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| 12 Aug 2008 - 09:09 | Jeanne Smoot
Michelle_Pulliam@aporter.com
URL: www.tahirih.org/
|
Your Input is Vital!!!!!!
August 7, 2008
Notice to Advocates:
Call for Comments! DHS Issues Draft Pamphlet on Legal Rights & Resources for Immigrant Fiancé(e)s and Spouses of US Citizens
We are writing to inform you that on Tuesday, July 22, 2008, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released for public comment a draft pamphlet on "Legal Rights and Resources for Immigrant Victims of Domestic Violence." Under the International Marriage Broker Regulation Act (IMBRA),1 which was enacted as part of the reauthorized Violence Against Women Act, DHS was required to develop a pamphlet to help immigrating fiancé(e)s and spouses of US citizens understand the immigration process and their rights should they or their children become victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, or other crimes. IMBRA also required that DHS "consult with nongovernmental organizations with expertise on the legal rights of immigrant victims of battery, extreme cruelty, sexual assault, and other crimes" in developing this pamphlet. 2
DHS is using this comments process to solicit input from all interested parties. We know from monitoring their blogs that international marriage brokers (IMBs) and their clients are mobilizing to submit their own comments on the pamphlet. It is extremely important that organizations such as yours-with frontlines experience serving immigrant survivors of violence-weigh in to ensure that an effective pamphlet emerges from this comments process. We need all such advocates to contribute their valuable perspectives, whether or not they have experience specifically serving survivors who used the services of an IMB.
The due date for comments to be received by DHS is September 19, 2008. The statutory requirements for the content and distribution of the pamphlet are outlined in the attached Federal Register notice; the draft pamphlet itself is printed at the end of the notice. The notice and pamphlet are also available by going to the following link and typing "IMBRA" in the search box: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/ <http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/> . Please also refer to DHS' press release (below).
The Tahirih Justice Center and Legal Momentum's Immigrant Women Program collaborated on the drafting of IMBRA, and together with the assistance of the law firm of Arnold and Porter, we are reviewing the draft pamphlet and preparing joint comments.
Your input is vital to this process. Please reply to Michelle_Pulliam@aporter.com ASAP (no later than August 25th) with your thoughts about how the draft pamphlet could be improved. In the coming weeks, we will compile and integrate the responses we receive into our joint comments and share more detailed guidance for filing your own comments.
The release of the draft pamphlet is an important step toward realizing IMBRA's full protective promise, and an important moment to reflect on the journey thus far. Legal Momentum's Immigrant Women Program and the Tahirih Justice Center want to give special thanks to Kristin Wells, former staff member for Rep. John Conyers, and to Cindy Blackstone, former staff member for Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, for the long hours they worked drafting IMBRA. We would also like to thank Laura Dawkins at DHS for her work to get this draft brochure published for comment. Finally, we are grateful to Senators Biden, Brownback, Cantwell, Kennedy, and Specter and to Representatives Larsen and Wolf who helped make IMBRA possible. This is a wonderful example of the type of success true bi-partisan collaboration can achieve. The provisions of IMBRA and the information in this brochure will provide lifesaving assistance to immigrant spouses and fiancé(e)s entering the United States and marrying US citizens.
Sincerely,
Leslye Orloff
Associate Vice President and Director,
Immigrant Women Program
Legal Momentum
Layli Miller-Muro
Executive Director
Tahirih Justice Center
Soraya Fata
Staff Attorney
Immigrant Women Program,
Legal Momentum
Jeanne Smoot
Director of Public Policy
Tahirih Justice Center
For more information:
Over the last decade, the international marriage broker (IMB) industry has exploded in response to the demand by some American men for "traditional" wives. At the same time, advocates for immigrant survivors of violence have grown increasingly concerned about the high potential for abuse in IMB-initiated marriages. Responding to these concerns, Congress passed IMBRA so as to enable foreign fiancé(e)s and spouses of US citizens to make more informed choices to protect themselves and their children from abuse. The draft pamphlet that has just been released for comment is a vital part of the overall IMB industry regulations and immigration system safeguards that IMBRA created. For more information on IMBRA, please visit http://www.tahirih.org/ <http://www.tahirih.org/> and scroll to "Summary" and "Frequently Asked Questions" documents available on the website of the Tahirih Justice Center.
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| 11 Aug 2008 - 14:16 | Sandra Barilari
sandrabarilari@ecapsocial.com.ar
URL: www.sandrabarilari.blogspot.com
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* Aprovecho para decirles que las felicito por el sitio y los esfuerzos en la defensa de los derechos de las mujeres.
* Les mando al pie el espacio de formación técnica que estoy promoviendo aquí en Argentina, Buenos Aires, y me pongo a disposición de lo que pudieran necesitar.
* Un abrazo
* Sandra Barilari
* cel. 15/5499-4703
* www.sandrabarilari.blogspot.com
* www.ecapsocial.com.ar
*
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| 11 Aug 2008 - 13:51 | admin
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Broken Justice in Indian Country
Op Ed New York Times
By N. BRUCE DUTHU
Published: August 10, 2008
White River Junction, Vt.
ONE in three American Indian women will be raped in their lifetimes, statistics gathered by the United States Department of Justice show. But the odds of the crimes against them ever being prosecuted are low, largely because of the complex jurisdictional rules that operate on Indian lands. Approximately 275 Indian tribes have their own court systems, but federal law forbids them to prosecute non-Indians. Cases involving non-Indian offenders must be referred to federal or state prosecutors, who often lack the time and resources to pursue them.
The situation is unfair to Indian victims of all crimes — burglary, arson, assault, etc. But the problem is greatest in the realm of sexual violence because rapes and other sexual assaults on American Indian women are overwhelmingly interracial. More than 80 percent of Indian victims identify their attacker as non-Indian. (Sexual violence against white and African-American women, in contrast, is primarily intraracial.) And American Indian women who live on tribal lands are more than twice as likely to be raped or sexually assaulted as other women in the United States, Justice Department statistics show.
Rapes against American Indian women are also exceedingly violent; weapons are used at rates three times that for all other reported rapes.
Congress should step in and clearly establish the authority of Indian tribes to investigate and prosecute all crimes occurring on Indian lands — no matter whether tribal members or nonmembers are involved.
Historically, Indian tribes have exercised full authority over everyone within Indian lands. A number of the early federal treaties expressly noted a tribe’s power to punish non-Indians. Toward the latter part of the 19th-century, however, federal policy shifted away from tribal self-government in favor of an effort to dismantle tribal government systems. Criminal law enforcement, especially in cases involving non-Indians, increasingly came to be viewed as a federal or state matter.
Thirty years ago, the Supreme Court formalized the prohibition against tribes prosecuting non-Indians with its decision in Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe. In this case, a Pacific Northwest tribe was attempting to try two non-Indian residents of the Port Madison Reservation for causing trouble during the annual Chief Seattle Days celebration — one for assaulting an officer and resisting arrest and the other for recklessly endangering another person and harming tribal property. The court held that the tribe, as a “domestic dependent nation,” did not possess the full measure of sovereignty enjoyed by states and the national government, especially when it came to the affairs of non-Indian citizens.
Then in 1990, the court extended its Oliphant ruling to cases involving tribal prosecution of Indian offenders who are not members of that tribe. Congress subsequently passed new legislation to reaffirm the power of tribes to prosecute non-member Indian offenders, but it left the Oliphant ruling intact.
This means that when non-Indian men commit acts of sexual violence against Indian women, federal or state prosecutors must fill the jurisdictional void. But law enforcement in sexual violence cases in Indian country is haphazard at best, recent studies show, and it rarely leads to prosecution and conviction of non-Indian offenders. The Department of Justice’s own records show that in 2006, prosecutors filed only 606 criminal cases in all of Indian country. With more than 560 federally recognized tribes, that works out to a little more than one criminal prosecution for each tribe.
Even if outside prosecutors had the time and resources to handle crimes on Indian land more efficiently, it would make better sense for tribal governments to have jurisdiction over all reservation-based crimes. Given their familiarity with the community, cultural norms and, in many cases, understanding of distinct tribal languages, tribal governments are in the best position to create appropriate law enforcement and health care responses — and to assure crime victims, especially victims of sexual violence, that a reported crime will be taken seriously and handled expeditiously.
Congress should enact legislation to overrule the Oliphant decision and reaffirm the tribes’ full criminal and civil authority over all activities on tribal lands. This law should also lift the sentencing constraints imposed in 1968 that restrict the criminal sentences that tribal courts can impose to one year in jail and a $5,000 fine. In cases of rape, state court sentences typically exceed 8 years, while federal sentences are more than 12 years. Tribes should have the latitude to impose comparable sanctions. (A bill pending in Congress would extend tribal sentencing authority to three years, with more latitude in cases of domestic violence, but its prospects of passage are uncertain.)
Congress recently allocated $750 million for enhancing public safety in Indian country. This money will help tribes hire and train more police, build detention facilities and augment federal investigative and prosecutorial capacity for Indian country crimes. Ideally, the grant process will be efficient enough to make sure that this money reaches the places most in need.
But financial aid will not be enough to stop sexual violence against Indian women. Tribal courts have grown in sophistication over the past 30 years, and they take seriously the work of administering justice. Congress must support their efforts by closing the legal gaps that allow violent criminals to roam Indian country unchecked.
N. Bruce Duthu, a professor of Native American studies at Dartmouth, is the author of “American Indians and the Law.”
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