SVAW: Proposed Campaigning Projects Underlag till styrelsemöte 1-2 januari 2004

Stop Violence Against Women Campaign 2004-2006 Proposed Campaigning Projects


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AI Members Only AI Index: ACT 77/015/2003
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Amnesty International
International Secretariat
Peter Benenson House
1 Easton Street
London WC1X 0DW
United Kingdom
To: All Sections and structures

- Directors

- Members of the board/ coordinating committee

- Campaign Coordinators

- IWHRN Coordinators/ Contact Persons

- IGO Coordinators

- Lawyers network coordinators

- MSP coordinators

- Refugee coordinators

- ILGBT Network coordinators

-Medical coordinators

- Other staff and volunteers involved in the planning of the VAW campaign

From: CP VAW Team

Date: 21 November 2003

This document provides a description of the proposed campaigning projects. It is designed to provide sections and structures with information about the proposed campaigning projects for the Stop Violence against Women campaign and to seek their comments on which projects they wish to be included in the activities for the campaign. This document should be read in conjunction with Stop Violence against Women Campaign 2004-2006 Updated Strategy and Action Plan , AI Index: ACT77/014/2003.

Sections and their activists and staff who will be involved in the planning and implementation of the VAW campaign in their countries are encouraged to read this document and to send their comments on the proposed campaigning projects to [email protected] by 5 January 2004.

Distribution

Please ensure that this circular is distributed and discussed with individuals, networks and groups who will be involved in the planning and implementation of the campaign.

Introduction to campaigning projects 3

Project 1 Defending the defenders - Protecting women human rights defenders and men and women who protect women’s rights. 5


Project 2 Challenging impunity in conflicts and post conflicts 7


Project 3. Protecting women on the move – Equitable access to monitoring and complaints mechanisms for refugee, displaced and migrant women. 10


Project 4. Making women’s rights a reality – Bridging the gap between rhetoric and reality 12

Project 5. Challenging the global "GAG rule" 16

Project 6. Challenging violence against women domestic workers 17

Project 7. Changing ourselves to change the world 19



Introduction to campaigning projects

On 8 March 2004, International Women’s Day, Amnesty International (AI) will launch a global campaign to expose and challenge violence against women (VAW) and girls and to work towards the eradication of one of the most widespread of human rights violations. This campaign will be called the Stop Violence against Women campaign.

This is a two-year campaign, but we hope that with the approval of the International Executive Committee (IEC) a long-term global campaign for women’s rights towards the eradication of VAW (VAW) will be confirmed in January 2004. The SVAW campaign will then be nested within this global campaign, with a two-year concentrated effort in the arenas of armed conflict and domestic violence, which are the two pillars of the campaign.

This is a unique campaign in a number of ways. The SVAW campaign is a transition campaign in which we are moving from our "old" style campaigning towards new ways of working style introduced through Decision 10 of the 2001 Dakar ICM. Through this campaign we will tackle new areas of work under AI’s mission. This is a campaign directed at achieving social change over the long term and will therefore tackle the cultural norms, values and gender-based power arrangements that generate VAW as much as it will – in the shorter term – promote needed legislative reform and diligence in the state’s observance of its responsibilities under international and national law. This campaign also challenges us to be prepared to change ourselves to change others. We will scrutinize our own institutional practices to ensure that AI’s conduct is consistent with the principles and behaviours that, through this campaign, we will advocate to others.

At the centre of these new ways of working are campaigning projects that form the action component of the campaign. These are projects made up of a body of work on one or more countries covering common issues to campaign effectively in order to achieve the objectives of the SVAW campaign. The choice of countries included in each project will be informed by regional, sub regional and country strategies, and external opportunities and take into account regional balance across the campaigning projects. Research for these campaigning projects will include both IS research and Section Work on Own country (WOOC) projects.

Each campaigning project will:
· Directly relate to one or both of the principal foci of the campaign: violence against women (VAW) in the family and in conflict and post conflict situations , or the internal strategy.
· Be expected to continue for 12 months to two years.
· Combine actions at the international, regional and country level.
· Include specific country based research by the IS and/or Sections.
· Have a mid term evaluation and a final evaluation.

Our overall approach – Rape and other forms of sexual violence

While each project will have its particular focus, we are proposing there be a common or shared emphasis running across every project and that this emphasis be on be on rape and other forms of sexual violence. As you know, VAW takes many different forms including murder, sexual harassment, trafficking, forced prostitution and female genital mutilation. Of these various forms however, it is rape and other forms of sexual violence that are the most common serious human rights abuses perpetrated against women and cutting across both VAW in the family and VAW in conflict and post conflict situations. The rape of women and girls is so widespread, so pervasive and its eradication so fundamental to the elimination fo VAW that we believe it to should be the key focus to the campaign and be addressed in every campaigning project.

Most, if not all, forms of domestic violence are accompanied by rape and sexual violence by male partners. Other forms of sexual violence and physical violence and verbal intimidation often accompany rape and the woman may be subjected to very humiliating and degrading acts. Even if the rape is carried out with minimum force, the possible consequences to the woman (pregnancy, AIDS, herpes, other venereal disease, and post-traumatic physical and psychological effects) are extreme, harsh, and very long lasting. While rape is a crime in international humanitarian law it is not specifically named as a crime in human rights treaty law although CEDAW has interpreted gender based violence including rape as a form of discrimination. In some countries rape by married partners is not criminalized. Armed conflicts generate massive amounts of sexual violence(1). Parties to conflicts often rape women with impunity, sometimes using rape as a weapon of war. The use of rape in this way appears to be on the increase.

Yet rape and other forms of sexual violence remain hidden as a result of the level of impunity and silence that surround acts of sexual violence. Women are often stigmatized after rape, because they are not perceived to be "innocent victims" and in many countries women are unable or unwilling to seek help because of a lack of support by the state and community. There are few national prevalence studies on rape and other forms of sexual violence and even fewer international studies, yet many commentators believe the numbers of rapes are increasing. Rape and other forms of sexual violence do not only impact on the woman attacked. It has a direct effect on the family, society and even the economy. It impacts on the woman’s health often resulting in days lost from work, loss of earnings and medical costs. Whole villages and communities are devastated as a result of mass rapes in conflict where rape has been knowingly used as a military strategy.

This focus on rape, which will provide cohesion across the different campaigning projects, means that in each project we will challenge tolerance of rape in peace and in war and will demand the prosecution of its perpetrators and defend survivors’ rights to treatment and redress to survivors. and act as the key link running through each one.

In the following pages we outline each of the proposed campaigning projects for your consideration.


Project 1. Defending the defenders - Protecting women human rights defenders and men and women who protect women’s rights.
1.1 Context
Women human rights defenders (WHRDs) are actively campaigning across the world for the promotion protection and defense of human rights – including women’s rights. They campaign against all forms of VAW, they are at the centre of efforts to seek justice for relatives who have been tortured, killed or "disappeared" by government forces, and they challenge political, economic and social discrimination such as lack of access to education and basic health facilities. WHRDS are targeted directly because of their work. They are the victims of killings, disappearances, arbitrary detentions, threats and harassment. Of course, both men and women HRDs suffer attacks; however women HRDs face additional risks specific to their gender.

The hostility, harassment and repression women HRDs face often takes gender-specific forms, which range from verbal abuse directed exclusively at women to rape and other forms of sexual violence, which can result in pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS. In some countries they are perceived as defying religious, cultural or social norms about the role of women. WHRDS who advocate women’s rights face particular threat. Governments and other social movements do not prioritize the rights they are fighting for and this impacts on their credibility and legitimacy, this increases their isolation and they often face stigmatisation and discrimination. WHRDs who are active on the issue of sexuality, particularly sexual orientation and reproductive rights are especially vulnerable to marginalization, prejudice and violence.

Gender discrimination has a disproportionate effect on the protection and promotion of women’s rights, as almost all defenders of women’s rights are women. Sadly, other HRDs frequently do not support or recognize the work of WHRDs.

1.2 Strategy and action
In this project we will campaign for the recognition of the distinct and unique contribution WHRDs make in the struggle to improve human rights and urge governments to protect WHRDs and those engaged in defending women’s human rights and to encourage and support WHRDs to come to the fore and to take visible leadership roles. We will highlight the particular risks of rape and other forms of violence WHRDs face, and challenge states to protect and promote women’s right to campaign for human rights. We will make women’s rights issues visible and urge mainstream human rights NGOs to support women and place women’s rights at the centre of the human rights agenda.

1.3 Objectives
· At the international, regional, national and community levels, political, civil and religious leaders and civil society organizations:
o Publicly recognize the important and different contribution WHRDs make to promote human rights.
o Support WHRDs right to the full exercise of the right to defend the universality of human rights and to challenge governments who fail to respect and uphold these rights.

Project 2. Challenging impunity in conflicts and post conflicts
2.1 Context
Conflicts and post conflicts greatly increase the incidence and prevalence of VAW. Parties to conflicts often rape women with impunity, sometimes using rape as a weapon of war. The use of rape in this way appears to be on the increase. The increasing militarization of states and local communities in conflict and post conflict situations causes massive amounts of VAW. Armed groups are amongst the worst perpetrators of VAW.

The proliferation of small arms has resulted in increased violence in society which leads in turn to increased levels of gender based violence. Research on the links between gender-based violence and violence in society indicates that violence is not a by-product of militarization but one of its central features. While more men die from the use of small arms, women are far more at risk from their intimate partners than from strangers.

Women are particularly vulnerable to violence during post conflict situations. They are rarely included in peace negotiations and face abuse not only from those engaged in the conflict, but also from UN or other governments forces engaged in keeping the peace. Violence within the family increases during post conflict situations with impunity. It is rarely address by peacekeeping forces who govern their treatment of civilians in post conflict countries on penal codes that have often collapsed or do not address VAW in the family. In this situation women have little or no recourse to justice. Frequently little emphasis is paid to rape and other forms of VAW when peacekeeping mandates are developed and some regional peacekeeping arrangements, such as in the Solomon Islands; do not include a specific VAW mandate. In some countries the arrival of international peacekeeping forces and law enforcement officers results in the trafficking of women and girls into post-conflict countries from neighbouring countries. This results in serious and widespread abuses of the human rights of women.

2.2 Strategy and action
In this project we will examine aspects of the global arms trade and its relationship to fuelling rape and other forms of VAW and build on the successful network that has been established to launch the Control Arms campaign. We will challenge the failings in international law to adequately protect women and girls from violence in conflict and post conflict situations, and demand the strengthening of the international justice systems ability to address women’s right to justice and accountability for rape and other forms of violence committed against them. We will urge governments to ratify the Rome Statute of the ICC and the full and speedy implement of Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security as well as the recommendations contained in the study by the Secretary-General on Women, Peace and Security. We will demand that peace-keeping missions respect and protect the rights of women and girls, including military, law enforcement and civilian personnel and that they are aware of their responsibilities under international standards not to violate the rights of women and girls believed to have been trafficked.

The equal access and full participation of women in power structures and their full involvement in the resolution of conflicts is critical for the maintenance of peace and security . We will support the inclusion of women at every level in rebuilding societies post conflict. In times of intense conflict, with a number of warring parties, holding perpetrators to account is more challenging. However we will continue to highlight rape and other forms of sexual violence when they happen and engage with the ICC on this issue via amicus briefs or submissions to the prosecutor or registrar.

2.3 Objectives:
· International, regional and national level political, civil and religious leaders speak out against impunity for rape and other forms of VAW by government forces, and armed groups in conflict and post conflict situations.

· Governments:
o ratify and implement into national laws the Rome Statute of the ICC,
o support an international Arms Trade Treaty to stop the proliferation of weapons used to commit VAW
o support Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security and the recommendations contained in the study by the Secretary-General on Women, Peace and Security.

2.5 Outcomes
Ö Clear support by 100 international bodies, governments and others for the recognition of rape as a war crime and the need for a gender dimension to all peacekeeping missions.
Ö Law reform in at least target two countries resulting in compatibility with the Rome Statute of the ICC.
Ö Naming of armed groups responsible for human rights abuses in at least one conflict.
Ö The implementation of protection measures for women and girls by peacekeeping forces in at least two countries.
Ö In at least two countries, the rights of the survivors of trafficking are protected and they are provided with the means to actively claim their rights to redress and reparation for the abuses they have experienced.

2.6 Country focus
· Americas: VAW against women in the conflict in Colombia. In the context of the long-running internal conflict thousands of people are victim to extrajudicial executions, arbitrary and deliberate killings, "disappearances" and other serious forms of human rights violation or abuse committed by both sides in the conflict. Women are frequently victim, in many cases they are targeted not because they are women, but because of the roles they assume in their communities as activists and leaders campaigning for human rights or socio-economic alternatives or because they are members of communities in conflict zones targeted by either side in the conflict. The focus for AI will be on sexual violence in the context of the conflict, linked to rules of conduct being imposed on women leading to serious abuses, the impact on their freedom of expression and discrimination. Objectives include giving visibility to abuses being suffered by women as well as the actions they are undertaking to address VAW. Offering concrete ways for the international community to influence the Colombian authorities and illegal armed groups to implement AI’s recommendations. Creating links, joint mobilization between human rights and women NGOs in Colombia and providing International support and solidarity for those individuals and groups fighting against VAW within the country. September 2004
· Africa: Raising awareness about the plight of women who were raped during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda and continue to die as a result of sexually transmitted diseases, with little help from the Government of Rwanda or external actors, on the 10th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide and campaigning for to ensure their access to medical treatment for HIV/AIDS. Objectives include lobbying to ensure that survivors of sexual violence have equal access to drugs and that antiretroviral drugs are not being preferentially directed to e.g. the armed forces. Lobbying for increased support (legal, medical, financial) for survivors of sexual violence in conflict and post-conflict situations; raising awareness about the link between access to drugs and the availability of healthcare to marginalized, stigmatised women. March – May 2004. Documenting rape and other forms of sexual violence in conflicts, including the Democratic Republic of Congo to identify the role and responsibilities of armed groups in sexual violence in conflict in eastern DRC and to promote practical measures that would benefit the survivors. Including lobbying for a more comprehensive, coordinated and strategic approach by the DRC government, UN agencies and donor governments to caring for the many thousands of survivors of sexual violence. Liberia and Burundi : investigation and documentation of cases of sexual violence and access to redress for women survivors in the context of armed conflict.
· Europe: trafficking of women and girls into post-conflict Kosovo (Serbia and Montenegro). The arrival of international peacekeeping forces and law enforcement officers in July 1999 has resulted in serious and widespread abuses of the human rights of women and girls who are trafficked into Kosovo, and within Kosovo. The authorities in Kosovo are about to construct a National Plan of Action, this is an ideal opportunity for AI to influence this process and to ensure the protection of the human rights of trafficked women and girls in the context of post-conflict Kosovo, and in particular ensure that human rights concerns are incorporated into the development of Kosovo’s National Plan of Action. This action will enable AI to seek to ensure that measures aimed at preventing the potential for Kosovo to develop into a source country for trafficked woman and girls are implemented. Objectives include to ensure that the peace-keeping missions in Kosovo, respect and protect the rights of women and girls and are aware of their responsibilities under international standards not to violate the rights of women and girls believed to have been trafficked. March – March 2005
· Middle East and North Africa: VAW in Iraq until March 2003 Iraqi women had heavily suffered the impact of two wars (Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s and the 1991 Gulf war), of UN sanctions for 12 years and serious human rights violations by the previous Iraqi regime. In the aftermath of the March 2003 US-led war women and young girls became target for kidnapping, rape and murder by criminal gangs due to the total lawlessness in most parts of the country. Domestic violence and abuses by relatives have also increased. Objectives include publicising VAW and women’s rights inside, outside Iraq to put pressure on the main actors to end VAW in Iraq in law and in practice and support and involve local NGOs. May - July 2004. In Algeria - Research and action into VAW by armed groups in the context of armed conflict in namely killings/abductions/rape, killings/torture of women by the state in the context of the conflict, and impact of disappearances on women (discriminatory measures, house destructions). The project will also include awareness raising, capacity building and will attempt to build bridges between women’s NGOs (divided along political lines) and partnerships with AI.

Project 3. Protecting women on the move – Equitable access to monitoring and complaints mechanisms for refugee, displaced and migrant women.
3.1 Context
Women on the move are particularly vulnerable to violence. They face a dual vulnerability, as women and as refugee, displaced or migrant women. They may be victims of abuses committed by both state and non-state actors in armed conflicts and of abuses committed by state officials, humanitarian organizations, NGOs and others when they flee. They flee from one violent situation, only to confront another.

Violence within the family also tends to increase in sexual and domestic violence against women as tensions within the family are exacerbated by the sudden loss of an economic or social context. A range of vulnerabilities are created by displacement, yet women often have little protection and even less recourse to justice. It is essential that all women on the move – in all parts of the world, whether in urban areas, rural settlements or refugee camps – are able to access effective remedies. One important way to deal with this would be to establish an effective independent monitoring and complaints mechanism, particularly in situations where there is no effective legal system, where the patterns of abuse cross national borders, or no country acknowledges responsibility for them.

3.2 Strategy and action
We will call for the protection of all women on the move, whether refuges, displaced or migrant women and for them to have meaningful access to monitoring and complaints mechanisms.

This is an initiative that is also related to other protection measures for women on the move, such as ensuring separate registration of women on the move, enjoyment of fundamental rights such as ESC rights, and effective access to durable solutions, including resettlement for women survivors of abuse or women at risk of abuse.

3.2 Objectives
· At the international, regional, national and community level political, civil and religious leaders speak out against impunity for rape and other forms of VAW of refugees, IDPs and migrant women.

· International, regional and national support for the establishment of an effective independent monitoring and complaints mechanism, through which to:
o Advance effective implementation of international human rights and humanitarian standards of protection for women and girls who flee violence whether Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), refugees or asylum seekers.
o Hold international agencies accountable for the protection of women and girls under their responsibility and for the investigation and follow up of all cases of VAW reported to them.

Project 4. Making women’s rights a reality – bridging the gap between rhetoric and reality
4.1 Context

Governments across the world have allowed acts of VAW to be committed with impunity. Rape of women and girls is widespread and pervasive. Most, if not all, forms of domestic violence are accompanied by rape and sexual violence by male partners. In many countries women are unable or unwilling to seek help because of a lack of support by the state and community. While rape is a crime in international humanitarian law it is not specifically named as a crime in criminal rights law. In some countries rape by married partners is not criminalized. Some states have yet to ratify CEDAW; many of those states that have ratified have done so with reservations, which have prevented its translation into national laws, and therefore it has made little difference to women’s lives. In many countries violence in the family, including rape continues unabated despite the signing and ratification of key international human rights instruments, despite National Action Plans and programs to eradicate VAW. Governments have failed to protect women and provide an environment that is free from violence; they have not lived up to the international human rights commitments they have signed up to.

Women are still discriminated against in law and in practice. Across the world civil, criminal, customary or religious laws cause harm to women and girls. Some laws are discriminating in law, others in implementation. Justice systems have also failed to address VAW. On a daily basis women have been denied the freedom to choose how to live their lives free from violence and the fear of violence. Security and other government officials treat women who report violence in the family differently depending on their race, class and nationality or socio economic or migrant status. In some countries women survivors of VAW are denied access to specialized treatment or appropriate medical treatment.

4.2 Strategy and action

In this project we demand all governments that have not yet done so honour their international commitments and ratify and implement into national law all relevant human rights treaties that protect women women’s rights. We will challenge what governments say in public at the international and regional level and what they do in practice at the national level. We will hold states accountability to protect, respect and fulfil women’s rights and provide an environment that is free from violence. We will demand states accept responsibility for ensuring that women are free from violence even when someone very close to them commits it. We will target specific countries in each region to effect change in national legislation, and in particular the abolition of key laws that permit rape and other forms of VAW with impunity and the enactment and implementation of key laws that will prevent VAW to effect real change in the legal protection of women. We will encourage and support positive steps taken by States, intergovernmental bodies and NGOs to mainstream gender and women’s human rights in international and national human rights law and support initiatives to develop new standards to eradicate VAW.

At the heart of this project is the message that women should be free to make major decisions about their own lives freely and responsibly, without the fear, treat or actuality of violence.

4.3 Objectives
· At the international, regional and national level political, civil and religious leaders and civil society organizations uphold the universality of human rights and global, regional and national religious, political and other organizations that attack the universality of human rights are challenged publicly.

· All governments that have not yet done so honour their international commitments and ratify and implement into national law all relevant human rights treaties that protect women women’s rights, including the CEDAW and its Optional Protocol, without reservations, and abolish discriminatory laws.
· The United Nations (UN) and regional organizations agree to assist states to develop action plans to end VAW, and set up mechanisms to monitor their implementation.

· Governments targeted during the campaign will:
o Ratify and implement CEDAW and its Optional Protocol.
o Adopt the definition of rape in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) into criminal law.
o Make legislative changes to criminalize and prosecute rape and other forms of VAW, whether perpetrated by the state or by private persons.(2)
o Provide free access for survivors of rape and other forms of VAW to health workers specialized in sexual assault and appropriate medical treatment, including access to drugs for HIV/AIDs for VAW regardless of the survivors class, race, identity, nationality or socio economic status.
o Ensure that their police forces are trained in appropriate responses to female survivors of violence, including: the considering of complaints as serious crime; investigating them and following up promptly using investigative techniques that do not further degrade women survivors; providing specialist care and ensuring that a female officer is present at all times.
o Abolish discriminatory laws, including those that restrict women’s access to reproductive health care and family planning.

4.6 Country focus
· Africa: Access to care, treatment and redress, particularly in the context of the HIV/AIDS pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa and the risk and impact of HIV transmission from sexual assault. Cross regional focus on legislation permitting female genital mutilation. National level training and capacity building workshops on FGM, analytical reporting on sexual and reproductive rights and due diligence in plural legal systems, substantive action on women's sexual and reproductive rights, reporting on ESC rights violations of women survivors and due diligence standards on redress Sudan: FGM Nigeria / Sudan : research and case action on key cases of sexual violence and discrimination in law and practice against women including abortion, under Nigerian penal systems, including sharia penal legislation. Nigeria : input into legislative process on domestic violence bill and lobbying on ratification of standards.
· Americas: English Speaking Caribbean Report and action addressing the reality of violence/discrimination against women in the Caribbean (specifically Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, Bahamas ). It will document the diverse forms of VAW, including sexual violence and violence in the family. It will incorporate an analysis of the identity-based nature of abuses. The report will demonstrate the role of women’s NGOs and activists campaigning against VAW in the Caribbean and the action will aim to support them at regional and international level. Objectives include generating awareness within the region on the issue and debate and discussion on the role to be played by all sectors in eradicating violence/discrimination, including pressure for change by governments and to demonstrate support for other organisations campaigning on the issue in the Caribbean. March until end 2004. Mexico research and action to build on the recent report and action on the abduction and murder of women in Ciudad Juarez and Chihuahua . WOOC project by AI USA on the impact of domestic violence legislation .
· Asia Pacific: Cross regional actions to empower women’s human rights activists to challenge discriminatory legislation and disseminating information in the region, particularly in India, China and the Philippines . WOOC projects by AI Philippines on discriminatory legislation, and by AI Australia
· Europe & Central Asia: Report and action on family violence in Turkey focusing on rape, calling for it to be recognised widely in law as a crime and prosecuted and holding states accountable for the protection of women against violence in the family. Objectives include highlighting the Turkish governments failure to protect women from rape and fulfil its obligations to respect, protect and fulfil the rights of women in the family context and provide international support to the women’s movement in Turkey who have been campaigning on this issue for a long time. March - August 2004. WOOC projects by AI Spain , AI UK , and AI Belgium .
· Middle East and North Africa: Research on discriminatory laws that impede women’s rights and access to justice and allow for gender-based violence in the Gulf ( Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates ) and Jordan and campaigning for reform of the laws and against VAW in these countries. Lobby and campaigning to put pressure on governments that have ratified CEDAW to bring their laws into line with the Convention. Human rights awareness to raise public awareness about discriminatory laws which facilitate VAW, to call for an end to discrimination against women in the region and to contribute to awareness raising efforts carried out by NGOs in the region. Involving men and human rights NGOs in the campaign, as well as religious leaders, artists and social and development movements.
Project 5. Challenging the global "GAG rule"
5.1Context

On January 22 2001 the United States (US) president, George Bush, restored the "Mexico City gag rule" policy implemented in 1984 prohibiting recipients of international family planning assistance from providing abortion services, counselling, or referrals with their own private funds. This has effectively silenced foreign non-governmental health and advocacy organizations by barring government funding to groups that practice, advocate or just mention abortion, even if this is a small part of their overall message and work. These restrictions are not imposed on US-based domestic organizations because of constitutional protections -- this measure selectively attacks international/foreign organizations receiving US funding including those providing services to the poor. It has resulted in devastating cuts to U.S. family planning assistance, reducing the number of couples in developing countries provided with family planning from 19.8 million to 12.9 million. Funding can be cut to a whole range of services if the smallest mention of abortion is made in the literature of service providers -- which impacts on HIV work for example as well as other areas of reproductive health.

Family planning services are a very cost effective way of improving women's health and this has therefore had a direct affect on women’s health as. The United Nations Children’s Fund estimated that almost 600,000 women die in pregnancy and child birth every year, for every woman that dies a further "30 more suffer injuries, infections and disabilities which are usually untreated and unspoken of and which are often humiliating and painful, debilitating and lifelong." Restrictions on access to accurate family planning information on disease prevention and transmission, condom use, and contraception disproportionately impacts on women, particularly young women, sex workers and lesbians. Improving the quality of family planning services is essential to improve women’s health in developing countries.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards enshrine universally acknowledged rights to freedom of information, expression, and education, to enjoy the highest attainable standard of health and to be free from discrimination. The "gag rule" had resulted in a denial of these rights and as such is an infringement of international law.

5.2 Strategy and action

In this project we will show how the denial of these rights impact on women’s health, affecting women disproportionately and intimately in their daily lives by restricting their access to reproductive health care and family planning. We will hold the US government accountable for human rights violations inherent in the "gag rule" and call for the abolition of this discriminatory law. We will build coalitions with domestic and international groups campaigning against the "gag rule" and on other public health and discrimination issues.

5.3 Objectives
· Encourage international and US based political, civic, community leaders and religious bodies, to speak out against the "gag rule and urge the US government to respect women’s right to access to reproductive health care and family planning.
· Campaign effectively for the abolition of discriminatory laws, including those that restrict women’s access to reproductive health care and family planning.


5.4 Activities
To do this we will:
· Show how the "gag rule" directly impacts on women’s access to reproductive health care and family planning and therefore on women’s health.
· Hold the US government directly accountable for human rights violations inherent in the application of this law.
· Build coalitions with domestic and international NGOs concerned with public health and discrimination.
· Develop AI’s position on gender and human rights.


5.5 Outcomes

Ö At least 100 global leaders and opinion speak out publicly against the "gag rule".
Ö Strategic alliances, partnerships and coalitions built with public health advocacy NGOs.
Ö A solid understanding of the impact of US policy on family planning on women in developing countries.
Ö Public perception and credibility of AI as a key player in advocacy against the "gag rule" and other discriminatory legislation that impacts on women’s health.
Project 6. Challenging violence against Women Domestic Workers
6.1Context

The globalization of migrant labour and the gender-specific human rights abuses besetting women domestic workers form an increasing reality of the contemporary global economy. The nature of the abuse faced by women domestic workers takes both physical and non-physical forms. They experienced rape and other forms of social, psychological and physical violence at different stages of the migration process, from their recruitment, preparation, working abroad and return. Long working hours, deceptive contractual arrangements, contract alterations and substitutions, the exploitative role of some intermediaries and lack of avenues for redress of grievances had been commonly reported. Physical and sexual abuse might range from verbal abuse to severe maltreatment, battering, rape and forced abortion. Economic exploitation exacerbates the vulnerability of women domestic workers to abuse. The vulnerability of women domestic workers is intrinsically tied to their legal status, which is not normally covered, by the labour codes or social security provisions of host countries. A migrant with an undocumented status is especially vulnerable.

The large flows of such workers are indicative of extensive trafficking networks within and between countries. Trafficking places women migrants in precarious employment situations, rendering them completely dependent on their employers and/or recruiters and often results in substandard wages and exploitative terms and conditions of work. While both sending and receiving countries may have enacted laws to deal with the problem, many of them had proved ineffective. One of the ironies of restrictive immigration and emigration policies was their tendency to push women into illegal and unsupervised channels of migration and employment. A major constraint to dealing with the issue has been the lack of adequate information, not only about the prevalence of violence but also about its extent and magnitude. There is massive underreporting, by women workers for fear of reprisals or deportation, the pressure of indebtedness, and the shame and embarrassment. It has been repeatedly stressed in experts’ consultations and IGO documents that it is essential to take a global approach to the issues of violence and the harmonization of policies in the direction of greater protection of the rights of women domestic workers.

6.2 Strategy and action

In this project we will demand concerted action at the international, regional and national level to stop violence against women domestic workers and that governments in both the sending and receiving countries assume shared responsibility for protecting migrant women workers. We will also call for the harmonization of data recorded between countries to enable effective monitoring and prevention of violence against women domestic workers.

6.3 Objectives
· Intergovernmental, regional, national economic and political bodies recognize and enact policies addressing the globalization of migrant labour that will end violence against women migrant workers and regularly investigate the conditions of women migrant workers.

· Governments:
o Train law enforcement officials to aid women domestic workers who are survivors of rape and other forms of violence and encourage the reporting of such violations and the prosecution of the perpetrators.
o Ratify the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, conventions of the International Labour Organization and ensure that there is equal enforcement of laws to protect women migrant workers and, where laws for protecting women migrant workers do not exist, enacted them.
o Are proactive in demanding rights for their citizens who work abroad and provide rights-based information sessions about the receiving countries to their citizens leaving to work abroad
o Ensure that appropriate services for women domestic workers returning to their home countries who are survivors of rape or other forms of violence are available.

· NGOs and other advocacy groups are more involved in the identification and in finding solutions for violence against domestic workers and establish outreach programmes and shelters and provide legal, social and educational assistance to women migrant workers.

6.4 Activities

To do this we will:
· Lobby for the implementation of effective protection measures for women and girls.
· Provide research for action on women on the move.
· Support women challenging their abusers and campaign for redress for women on the move who are survivors of VAW.
· Call for data harmonisation between countries to enable effective monitoring of VAW.

6.5 Outcomes
Ö Clear support for the strengthening of the protection of women domestic workers.
Ö The implementation of effective protection measures for women domestic workers in at least two target countries.
Ö Commitment is obtained from at least two major donor countries to strengthen their support for domestic women workers and to gather data effectively on the nature, types and extent of abuses.
Ö Effective research by AI on the issue of violence against women domestic workers.

6.6 Country focus
This project would focus on migrant domestic women workers in Asia and the Middle East.

Project 7. Changing ourselves to change the world(3)
7.1 Context

It is not just what we campaign on, but how we campaign and who we are that will be judged in this campaign. If we are to campaign effectively against VAW we need to change ourselves. We need to ensure consistency between what we say in public and what we do in private – our internal culture. Without this coherence we will be harshly criticised by our allies and our adversaries alike. We need to incorporate a gender perspective into the organizational culture and ongoing work of AI; this will strengthen not only AI’s SVAW campaign but also its work on women’s human rights and from there the quality and effectiveness of its work at the broadest levels. Successive International Council Meetings have directed the movement’s attention to the more comprehensive incorporation of a gender perspective into AI’s work. We need to do this to ensure we are a credible and authentic voice for the issues that the campaign will promote.

7.2 Strategy and action

A consultation meeting with sections IS staff and management and external experts in July 2003 produced the Gender Action Plan (GAP) (AI Index: POL 38/001/2003), the internal strategy, which contains very concrete steps and measures the movement needs to take to meet the challenges of mainstreaming gender equity in AI’s internal culture. An internal circular and recommendations on the implementation of the GAP have been sent to sections/structures, it is important that this is integrated into every sections overall framework for the campaign. This project is based on the Gender Action Plan.

7.3 Objectives:
International :

· Mainstream the two year global Gender Action Plan (GAP) in the operationalization of the Integrated Strategic Plan at all levels /areas of work of the organisation.
· Introduce the standard of a "gender responsive budget" at the international and national levels to ensure adequate resources for the implementation of the GAP.
· Make concrete AI’s commitment to gender equity by:
o Ensuring a gender balance at all levels of representation, including: ICM delegations from 2005 ICM; AI missions; leadership and decision-making structures and international meetings.
o Identifying and institutionalising best, gender-sensitive employment practices within the organisation.
o Initiating and supporting leadership training for women activists.
o Implementing gender-awareness training across the movement.
o Developing and implementing guiding principles on working with the women’s movements.

IS and Sections and Structures:

· Deliver a marked increase in AI’s reports and actions on women’s human rights and VAW.
· Women’s human rights activists and networks in sections/structures and their vital role in the Stop VAW campaign are fully supported by S/S and the IS.
· "Best practices" on consultation and partnership with the women’s movements are identified, promoted and sustained.

9.3 Activities:
To do this we will:

· Develop tools and methodologies on gender audit and gender analysis for defining "how gender equity translates in AI" are designed and implemented.
· Ensure the training needs of sections/structures and the IS on "gender" are systematically identified and assessed and a training program is implemented.
· Develop guidelines on sexual harassment, gender-and culture-sensitive conduct of AI personnel on mission and representational activities, gender- and culture-sensitive use of language and images in our research, fundraising, communication and campaign materials (including on the internet) are produced and enforced.
· Develop research methodology on non-state actors and intersectionality of gender with other identities and benchmarks to measure progress of AI research and actions on women’s human rights are established.
· Ensure sections and structures’ internal strategies highlight commitment and support to enhancing leadership role of women in all levels and aspects of the organisation.
· Ensure sections and IS develop a common knowledge base on women’s movements and best practice on partnerships and consultations.

9.4 Outcomes
Ö A movement-wide gender audit and analysis is completed by 25 November 2004 and the results are made public.
Ö The results of the gender audit and gender analysis are used to further build and sharpen the Gender Action Plan in year 2 of the 4 year Integrated Strategic Plan.
Ö Training and other capacity-building activities for volunteers /activists and staff inductions and an human rights education program around gender accompanies the implementation of the Gender Action Plan
Ö Gender –sensitive policy is developed in relation to membership recruitment; valuing paid and unpaid work and terms of employment and professional development for staff.
Ö Policies and guidelines on gender are written and implemented in the movement by the 2005 ICM.
Ö Gender-sensitive research methodologies (existing and new ones) promoted widely through a systematic training programs at the IS and S/s.
Ö Clear targets for supporting women in leadership at all levels are set.
Ö Gender budget as a tool is used in development strategies and plans.
Ö Guidelines and tools to support approaches to and partnerships with women’s movements made available.
Ö Role of women’s rights activists as WHRDs is mainstreamed and highlighted in AI’s research and campaigning.

We would very much welcome your comments on these projects, on which you believe would generate the most effective action in your section or structure and on how many of these projects you could incorporate into your campaign plans.

Sections and their activists and staff who are involved in the planning and implementation of the VAW campaign are encouraged to send their comments on the proposed campaigning projects to [email protected] by 5 January 2004.

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(1) While entire communities suffer the consequences of armed conflict and terrorism, women and girls are particularly affected because of their status in society and their gender.

(2) This change will vary widely from country to country, depending on the current status of women and each country’s legislation. It could include abolishing laws that facilitate impunity for the assault, rape or murder of women, permit practices that harm women and girls and prevent women from leaving violent relationships, including marriage. The SVAW campaign team are happy to work with Sections and Structures to identify appropriate change.

(3) To establish gender equality at the core of AI´s mission and organizational culture.

Amnesty International, International Secretariat, 1 Easton Street, WC1X 0DW, London, United Kingdom