Campaign against gender-violence launched in Africa

November 23 marked the beginning of a 16-day campaign against gender violence, which for 2007 has the theme: “Demanding Implementation, Challenging Obstacles: End Violence Against Women,” IRIN reported Monday.

At the launch of the campaign in Nairobi, Kenya, Fartun Abdi Ahmed, a Nairobi-based community outreach worker, described her personal experience with female genital mutilation, which she underwent while living in Somalia. “One cannot imagine the pain, the fear and the stress I went through; thank God it was a rural area and so we did not get some of the infections that are common nowadays,” such as HIV. She called FGM the most prevalent form of gender-based violence in Somalia, and said the practice leads to complications such as infections and the need for additional surgery during childbirth, which may lead to the death of the baby or mother.

Men and boys “must be engaged at the grassroots level in order to come up with community-based solutions” to gender-based violence, said Eddie Gedalof, the acting representative of the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

Besida Tonwe, the head of U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs’ regional support office in Nairobi, said that: “Sexual violence is widespread in central and eastern Africa; in conflict areas such as eastern [Democratic Republic of] Congo, it has reached almost grotesque proportions.” She added: “Sexual and gender-based violence should be addressed robustly on several fronts simultaneously, not least because the violence does not end when armed conflict ends – it must be addressed also in post-conflict settings.”

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, in a statement made Sunday (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women), said: “Violence against women is always a violation of human rights; it is always a crime; and it is always unacceptable. Let us take this issue with the deadly seriousness that it deserves – not only on this International Day, but every day.”

The campaign ends on December 10, International Human Rights Day, to reinforce the message that violence against women is a human rights abuse.

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UNICEF applauds Egypt for leading the battle against female circumcision

Egypt has been one of the leading nations in the attempt to eliminate female circumcision, prompting UNICEF to praise the efforts of government and religious leaders in the country, Herald Tribune reported on Thursday.

During the summer two Egyptian girls died from an operation known as female genital mutilation, which is practiced by both Muslims and Christians in the country.

“Female genital mutilation usually involves the removal of the clitoris and other parts of female genitalia. Those who practice it say it tames a girl's sexual desire and maintains her honor” the Herald Tribune reports.

UNICEF Executive Director Ann M. Veneman said that since 2002 the National Council on Childhood and Motherhood (NCCM) has been working at “both national and sub-national levels, and has succeeded in building partnerships with the different governmental, non-governmental, donor and U.N. stakeholders to advocate against the practice”.

“NCCM's efforts have led several Egyptian villages to denounce female circumcision, part of the positive trend in the country, said UNICEF.

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