[afro-nets] 10th International Women and Health Meeting (7)

[Onyinye Ndubuisi <dnyildon@yahoo.com>]

10th International Women and Health Meeting (7)
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Day 4: Violence and women health workshop:


Abuse they say is everywhere... ?I was in a church when I was
first raped? recounted Julie Atkinson during this workshop. The
session sat gripped throughout the session her powerful account
of suffering in Australia?s indigenous communities, she also
says that today people are facing cumulative trauma condemning
both domestic and structural violence and subjugation of indige-
nous peoples. It was also noted that abuse is no means re-
stricted to the past. Meena Patel of the Southall Black sisters
presented the problems faced by ethnic minority in the UK, in
particular in the aftermath of the London bombings. Another
speaker analyzed ?the violence of gender­based development?
looking at the social impact of the macro economic policy. It
was a big a shock that in the remote area of Daikondi women were
made to give birth in animal sheds, so dirty is the process con-
sidered, and the audience was left with no doubt that abuse is
something which can be found everywhere and can and must be
fought.


Mental health and Disability Workshop:

This was focus on the mental issues of women in Ghana. Akosa
Adomato Ampofo from Ghana spoke about the lack of literature and
investment available and for psychiatric or psychological
healthcare and how women are resorting to self destructive cop-
ing strategies such as self medication and alcohol dependency as
much as constructive strategies such as seeing social support
and religion and prayer. One of the participants said that men-
tal health remains a neglected area of women healthcare world-
wide, terming it the ?Cinderella? of health issues. One high-
lighted the ?double discrimination? that women with disabilities
face, as women with and as people with disabilities


Young People and Sexual Rights:

During this workshop, Pamela of Youth Coalition chaired this
session with Onyinye Belinda Ndubuisi from Development Partner-
ship International (DPI) Nigeria

Presentation was on the problems of unprotected sex among young
girls. Which she started with, why would young Girls have sex,
young girls she classified as females from 14 downwards, this
was also the question she got from young girl she consulted in
preparation for her presentation. She focused on the need for
greater attention to communications between parents and young
people ?we need our mothers to tell us the truth? was what she
termed as the most annoying issue. She also spoke on the impli-
cations of HIV/AIDS, which she said is something we have to
fight among young people. More so she spotlighted the importance
of information , especially for marginalized communities, like
the caste, noting that also more than half of the population
live in rural areas with little or no access to information and
says nothing is as killing as ignorance.


Indigenous Knowledge and women Workshop:

Freedom of choice and reproductive rights are integral to the
feminist vision of a woman?s health agenda. This needs to in-
clude the woman?s right to choose traditional and indigenous
healing and birthing modalities. During this workshop some of
the traditions were explored: the herbal therapeutics found in-
digenous healing throughout the world. The predominant opinion
voiced was that while freedom of choice and reproductive rights
is integral to the feminist vision of women?s health care, the
agenda rarely includes women?s rights to choose traditional and
indigenous healing systems.

Participants said that these healing practices will be forgotten
if their value is not acknowledged and recorded. Another par-
ticipant said that it is important for all women to take charge
of their own health and not only depend on doctors. We should
not lose our living tradition of over 300 healing species, many
still in use by women in their households, for themselves and
their families.


Women health and Disasters: Workshop

During this workshop it was noted that disasters impact women
far worse than men. One of the participants said both men an
women have suffered but that women?s roles the society have
placed them at a double edged disadvantage. Esther Beulah Deva-
kumaris noted that the impact of tsunami made it abundantly
clear that women had suffered much more than men. It was also
noted that women are burdened with carrying small children, men-
struation and lactation. Young pubertal girls caring for chil-
dren are also at risk. Esther also noted that female headed
households have emerged as the group most vulnerable to the im-
pact of tsunami.

It was also note that ?large numbers of women and children are
living in conditions of extreme vulnerability and lack of access
to health care?. The absence of nutritional or health support
for children had increased the illness and diseases such as TB,
HIV infection and arsenic poisoning are other problems.


Session on UN mechanisms for Right to health by Paul Hunt:

The arrival of Paul Haunt the UN Special Rapporteur on the right
to health at the IWHM.

Paul emphasized that his position at the UN was purely part time
and he really could not solve he world?s problems of human
rights violation!

His work as a UN special rapporteur on the right to health in-
volves doing general reports on the right to health for the UN
general assembly. ?I engage with civil society organizations on
an ad hoc basis?. He also noted that for each country report, he
examines the rights to health situation, spends time with civil
society organizations and visit rural areas. He also noted that
it is difficult for him to follow up recommendations.

Paul trying to respond to the question about whether human
rights was a cross cutting theme in UN agencies like UNDP and
UNICEF, he responded by pointing out the human rights have only
been drawing attention since 1987. ?It was Kofi Anan?s reform
that human right become a cross cutting issue across the world
in organizations, the reality is that the issue has to be inte-
grated into other programmes.? He also noted that civil socie-
ties should also use the UN Human rights system strategically
and not expect too much. And for women?s right campaigns he
would include CEDAW, the office of the health rights Rapporteur
and the Economic and Social Commission.


HIV/Aids: Concerns and strategies to Strengthen Rights WORKSHOP:

Will health care be provided for those who test positive during
HIV/AIDS during a microbicide trial and for how long? This ques-
tion was raised by someone in the audience. The reality of con-
ducting among women at risk of HIV infection raises a complex
ethical dilemmas, responded Megan Gottmoeller of Global Campaign
of Microbicides (GCM) who outlined the culture specific issues
that surround the question of consent in different countries.

As the incidence of HIV among women rises, the lack of female
controlled contraceptives options for protection against virus
has become a concern for researchers and women group world wide.
Microbicides present a solution. Research and trails are ongoing
and this option is still not a reality in women lives

Young people gather to prepare their speech and follow up after
10IWHM, and explore possible ways to make our speech read and do
some fun things.


--
Onyinye Belinda Ndubuisi
Co-Founder and Programme Director
Development Partnership International
http://www.dpi.freeola.com

National Project Coordinator
For TakingITGlobal
Nigeria
Tel: +234-803-4005821, +234-08043222037
mailto:dnyildon@yahoo.com
http://profiles.takingitglobal.org/gift80