By Audrey Lopez Valdivia “Asylum was never meant to alleviate all problems — even all serious problems — that people face every day all over the world.” This is what U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions…
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Young Women
We chatted on Facebook the day before Maria Mustika died. We talked about the #DefendHer campaign of JASS (Just Associates), Global Fund for Women and MADRE. Maria volunteered to translate the #DefendHer messages into Indonesian…
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Four years ago, a young girl – Januba – from an impoverished family in a village in Tamilnadu, a province in the heart of southern India, finished middle school thanks to the determination and sacrifice…
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Sister ko mabva matakura masofa acho mukati rega ndifambe ndakasenga (Sister, your body looks like you carried the couch with you into town). Hure (prostitute) Eish mukoma vari kunakirwa kumba uku (Eish, your husband/boyfriend should…
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We stand here right nowWe stand tall and proudWe stand on common ground Because we are not aloneBecause we are oneBecause we are home So don’t lay your head downNowBecause we must fight NowWe must…
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Marita sits on a stool at her stall in an open market just outside Harare. She is counting brightly-coloured sweets and placing them carefully into a bag. Her neighbour on the right sells packets of…
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I barely slept on the days following the elections. We in Forum Aktivis Perempuan Muda – Indonesia (FAMM-Indonesia) took part in various work related to the legislative elections of 9 April 2014 mainly to call…
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Where to start? … Over a week ago, I attended a dialogue—The Importance of Youth Leadership in Africa: A Discussion with Young African Leaders, hosted by Congresswoman Karen Bass. Catchy title, but I wish I…
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The first time I got my hand on computer, I wasn’t scared at all. Maybe it’s because as a 16-year-old, I was anxious to try something new. My parents encouraged me into “techie” stuff because…
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Why do men rape women? This is a simple question with a complex answer. My friends, relatives and colleagues – both men and women – often ask this question. Last year, Cambodians were put on…
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The Strange Dynamics of Mixed Gender Spaces I am sitting in a room packed with excited leaders for a leadership forum organised by the Gugulethu Youth Development Forum. It’s blisteringly hot and it makes it…
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“We can make it happen. People need to break the culture of silence. Women’s experiences on undergoing abortion are real and we only need to communicate these to the world. Art performances and film screenings…
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There’s an act of defiance in going onstage… We are standing in the garden of Katswe Sistahood’s office in Harare. It is 29°C, the sun beats on our foreheads until we’re shiny with sweat and…
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I will never forget the day I decided to cut my hair. I remember taking my walk of courage to the beauty salon seven years ago. I walked in and the lady who usually braided…
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The young women of Cambodia have come a long way. Almost four years after its groundbreaking formation, the JASS-inspired Cambodian Young Women’s Empowerment Network (CYWEN) is living up to its name – empowering young women…
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“You know how they say it takes a village to raise a child. Well it takes many people to build a movement.” At least that’s what we re-discovered over the three days JASS Southern Africa…
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In June 2008, JASS widened its movement-building institute in Southeast Asia, in line with its multiregional capacity-building initiative. This initiative, led by Indonesian activists Nani Zulminarni and Dina Lumbantobing, aimed at strengthening women’s leaderships and…
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Patriarchy. Power. Sex. These are the concepts that young women in Zambia are grappling with at the Young Women’s Leadership Camp. Patriarchy – through institutions like the family, tradition and culture, education and the media – controls women’s sexuality as…
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How does a woman have sex with another woman? Can a transgender person change both their internal and external sexual organs? Why would a gay person marry someone of the opposite sex and have children…
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I’m in Cambodia this week getting to know the women of the Cambodian Young Women’s Empowerment Network (CYWEN) and their work around equipping young women with the confidence, information and skills needed to increase their…
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Every woman is a chameleon. She changes her color to suit the situation; she adjusts and adapts to face the pressing challenges. She wears a different face but the essence of who she is…
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Movement building in Rumphi, Tiwonge Gondwe’s village (Tiwonge has been part of JASS movement building in Southern Africa from 2007) As Sindi and I drove to Tiwonge’s town in Rumphi, northern Malawi, the light was…
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A dozen young women have converged on the Protea Hotel Cairo Road in Lusaka, as JASS (Just Associates) Southern Africa continues with the process of movement-building in Zambia. This part of the process is Leadership…
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The opening addresses of the Asia Pacific NGO Forum Beijing +15 emphasized the background of the conference and set the tone for the rest of the forum. The speakers recalled the previous AP NGO forum…
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It has been an intense couple of days since we arrived in Honduras on Sunday. When I catch the words “I’m tired” coming out of my mouth I stop myself because standing next to my…
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As I look forward to the opening of the AWID forum , I am quite excited about the work that the young feminist have planned for the conference.It pleases me to know that space has…
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