Other news

The Arab Resource Collective (ARC) celebrated the graduation of a number of mothers who completed the second phase of the Mother and Child Health education programme. The program which extended over 25 weeks and received support from AGFUND, seeks to improve family relations and prepare children to enter schools through providing comprehensive information about education, health and child physical and emotional development.  The event was held with the participation of representatives from the project partners namely: Ministry of Social Affairs, Women Programs Association in Burj Al-Barajneh refugee camp, Maarouf Saad Social & Cultural Foundation, graduates and their families and key local figures.
The graduating women noted that they have gained valuable experience and knowledge that will assist them in better understanding their children and in refraining from using violence and they were introduce to preventive methods, health nutrition and communication skills as well as opening up to others who are from different religions and confessions.  They added that the programme also helped them develop their own personalities and capacities to deal with their children and consequently with their husbands and thus will improve family relations
Source: Al-Mustaqbal 11 September 2013

As Safir published a report on the situation of ecotourism along the Assi river highlighting the negative impact that the security situation has had on ecotourism in Hermel.  The report notes that the practices of Rafting and Kayak Canoe which were introduced to the Assi river as a turning point for boosting eco tourism, have been particularly affected.  The Assi river was considered as the best river in Lebanon for practicing these international sport and for teaching it by the best experts in the field.  The first club was created in 1995 under the control of Lebanese champion Mohammad Ali Al-Omairi thus paving the way for the creation of several other clubs which now number seven in total and which receive no less than 10000 tourists of various nationalities every year.
This season, which started last June, was the worst ever for the clubs and for restaurant owners which witnessed a 90% drop in their visitors because of the occasional shelling.  One of the club owners, Rabih Saab, noted in his interview with As Safir, that the current security situation has caused a sharp financial deficit that will be difficult to overcome.  In better days, the club received 50 tourist, who practiced rafting for 2 days for 15$/hour, which sums up to around 1000$ per week as pure profit.  To date, the club hardly receives and on average 5 or 6 visitors during the week-ends.  Saab called on the Ministry of Youth and Sports to set up an international training club to teach rafting and kayak Canoe by the Assi river and highlighted that this important source of local income requires serious attention and care by the government.
Source: Al-Safir 10 September 2013

The Partnership Center for Development & Democracy organized earlier this week a meeting in Zahleh about women and public participation.  This meeting was the third of a series of eight meetings that are being held in different parts of the country and within the framework of the “eye on my municipality” project that the organization is implementing with MEPI funding.
The meeting started with a visual display of several opinions collected from different parts of the country concerning women’s election in municipal councils or in parliament.  Thereafter the discussions among women and men participants centered on those challenges that face women’s participation in political life.  The meeting ended with a presentation of future actions planned by the centre which reiterated its call for a women’s quota to be adopted at various decision making levels, the lifting all reservations on CEDAW and so as to achieve equality and equal opportunities.
Source: Al-Mustaqbal 10 September 2013
 

Al Akhbar newspaper published a report about an Ethiopian migrant domestic worker who was admitted to one of the hospitals in Bint Jbeil after being brought in by her employer as she was suffering from multiple fractures in her feet.  The worker, referred to as “Nana” by her employer, was admitted to the hospital emergency unit and transferred to the operation room where her feet were placed in casts after being operated.  She remained in Bint Jbeil hospital for three days and was previously admitted to a hospital in Tyr. She then informed the police that she had been beaten by her employer who also pushed her from his balcony on the first floor.  Her statement was then recoded by the police.  When talking to the newspaper, Nana made sure not to give out the name of her employer but she gave the details of the aggression which almost killed her and also talked about the harsh working conditions and exploitation to which she is subjected in addition to the repeated physical and moral abuses.  Nana noted that on the day of the incident, she was visited by a friend and that made her employer very angry as he beat her and even tried to strangle her.  Nana also added that her employer’s wife works at the hospital where she was admitted and has tried to conceal her story from the police.  She also took USD 400 from her wage to pay her medical bills.
A security source informed Al Akhbar newspaper that although Nana gave a statement about being beaten and pushed off the balcony, her employer told the police station in Tibnin that she had “willingly” fallen off the balcony and that is after the police station in 3abbassyeh notified the district attorney of the incident.  The report in Al Akhbar noted that Nana was discharged from the hospital last Friday and returned to her employer against her will.  The report noted that the employer has not yet been held legally accountable for any of the charges.
Source: Al-Akhbar 09 September 2013

The organization “No to Violence” issued a statement condemning the harassment subjected to its militants carrying out the “Have you witnessed harassment” campaign and which the association launched last month during the Fitr holidays.  The organization noted that it will seek to sue all those who misused the name of the organization or the campaign whether in Lebanon or in the region as well as those who engaged in any form of slander whether directly or indirectly.  The organization which is registered with the Ministry of Interior, on the 19th of September 2012 with the registration number 1667, reiterated that it is totally independent, not affiliated to any political party in Lebanon, does not bear any foreign agenda, is equidistant from all the parties in Lebanon and enjoys friendships with a number of Lebanese and Arab civil society organizations.  The organization also added that its staff is composed of volunteers and does receive any suspicious funding as it seeks to safeguard its members and its principles.
Furthermore, No to violence emphasized in its statement that the core of its work is to combat violence against women in all its forms and manifestations and that it is a non-profit entity.  Finally, the statement concluded that the organization is engaged in a number of activities: to combat violence against women and all forms of violations of human as well as women rights and, and as such, it rejects all forms of intimidation and violence to which some members of its board and volunteers were subjected.
Source: Al-Mustaqbal 7 September 2013

The National Commission for Lebanese Women (NCLW) issued a statement yesterday following the meeting of its executive bureau in which it laments the degradation of the security situation in Lebanon and condemns the explosions in the Southern Suburbs and in Tripoli.  The NCLW expressed its condolences to the families of the victims and noted its concerns of the continued degradation of the economic situation especially with the start up of the scholastic year.  NCLW also called for a united position in support of state authority, public institutions and the law enforcement bodies, hoping for the resumption of national dialogue, the formation of a new Cabinet and the enactment of a new electoral law.  NCLW concluded its statement by reiterating that only national dialogue can bring institutions back to life and improve the state of the economy, revitalize commercial markets and tourism.
Source: Al-Mustaqbal 6 September 2013

Kafa Violence and Exploitation issued a statement yesterday welcoming the court order by the Public Appeal Attorny and Judge, Arlette Tabet, which ruled in favor of a woman plaintiff and ordered her husband to allow her and her daughters to return home whilst committing to secure an alternative housing for his family.  The judge also ordered the husband’s friend who had bought the house to vacate it immediately.  The statement provides additional details about this incident and noted that whilst the woman was visiting her family along with her daughters, her husband informed that it is best for her not to return home.  The woman came back home with her daughters to find that the locks were changed and the house was delivered to the husband’s friend without her knowledge.  Given the situation, the woman spent her night between the police station in Bikfaya and the house of relatives.  According to Kafa, this ruling sets a precedent especially since the law petition for protecting women from domestic violence has yet to be approved by the assembly.  A reminder that the law includes a stipulation requiring husbands to secure alternative housings to their family and ensuring that they remain in their home whilst this alternative is secured.
Source: Al-Mustaqbal, Al-Nahar, Al-safir 6 September 2013

The Gender Committee of the General Directorate of Education (set up according to decree 810/m/2013) held its first meeting yesterday.  The meeting was presided by the Ministry’s Director General, Fady Yarak, and attended by the head of the gender network at the National Commission for Lebanese Women, former Minister Wafa Dika, and the moderator of the gender focal points committee Azza al Horr Mroue in addition to Yolla Abi Salloum, Hasan Haddad, and hind Rizk.
The tasks of the gender committee include the following: mainstreaming gender in the Ministry’s overall policies, organizing training workshops and seminars about gender within the Ministry and targeting staff, students, administrative and educational bodies and parents’ committees.  The work of the committee draws on the international human rights convention, the child rights convention, CEDAW and the principle of free and compulsory education.
Source: AL-Mustaqbal, Al-Nahar 5 September 2013

The Daily Star published a report about a research paper issued last Tuesday by Oxfam GB in collaboration with ABAAD association, focusing on the negative coping strategies that many displaced women from Syria are employing to live in Lebanon.
The research was conducted during March and April earlier this year and involved both Syrian and Palestinian women displaced from Syria, to examine changing gender roles in displaced communities. The research paper entitled “Shifting Sands” was based on qualitative data collected through 11 focus group discussions involving more than 150 people as well as individual interviews with key informants.
The report indicated that 90 percent of the interviewed women regularly skipped meals and cut down on their own food intake to prioritize children and men’s access to food, while the level of domestic violence confronting women confront was on the increase.
Women also faced various form of fear outside the home – of being kidnapped, sexually attacked, theft, etc… According to the report, a large number of parents told researchers that financial and security reasons forced them into giving their daughters to marriage. However, and while some interviewees reported instances of girls as young as 15 being married to much older men, many also noted that it was not unusual in Syria to be married at the age of 18 years.
Source: The Daily Star 4 September 2013

Representatives of women, social, educational and trade groups organised a gathering at the UNESCO palace, last Tuesday, during which they called for closing ranks and forming a civil and democratic pressure groups whose priority is to demand for a speedy formation of a new cabinet, protest any military action against Syria and against any transgression of Lebanon’s air and water space for that purpose.  The gathering also called for democratic actions to be carried out in all regions of Lebanon in order to challenge civil unrest and to put a halt to the current slide towards civil war and in support of civil peace and unity.  Furthermore, the grouping announced that it is working towards the convening of a national conference which will involve all political forces and public representatives in order to set the basis for a free, civil, independent and democratic Lebanon.
Source: Al-Nahar, Al-Mustaqbal 4 September 2013