Other news

The gathering of women organizations in Mount Lebanon issued yesterday a statement in support of the economic institutions’ decision to close on Wednesday September 4th in order to lobby for the formation of a new Cabinet.  The statement followed a meeting which was held at the Public House of B3alshmeh and emphasized that women are keen on safeguarding the nation and its stability, its people and institutions as well as the Constitution.  Thus, women call for the formation of a Cabinet as soon as possible.  It is to be noted that the economic bodies are pursuing their consultations in preparation for the strike planned for tomorrow Wednesday September 4th as per the information shared by former Minister Adnan Kassar.  Kassar also reiterated the importance of abiding by the strike by all economic, banking, tourism and commercial institutions and in order to highlight the gravity of the situation in all sectors in Lebanon.
Source: Al-Diyar 3 September 2013

The NCLW organised, in collaboration with the UNDP, a workshop on the mitigation of the impact of disasters according to the Hyogo Convention. The workshop extended over two days (August 28th and 29th) and was held at the NCLW training premises in Baabda with the participation of representatives of women organisations and municipalities from Mount Lebanon.
This is the second workshop in a series of events on mitigating the risks of disasters and within the framework of engendering the Hyogo action plan and aiming at raising awareness and readiness amongst women to face risks resulting from natural disasters.  Dr. Fadia Kiwan presented during the first module of day one, the concepts of disaster risk management (DRM) and disaster risk mitigation (DRR) from a gender perspectives.  SAwsan bou Fakhereddine followed while introducing the hyogo conventions.    During the second day, Marilynn Brax reviewed the various natural disasters facing Lebanon and was followed by Charbel Aidamouni who described the various emergency activities carried out by the Lebanese Red Cross in case of emergency, The workshop was concluded by a series of recommendations by the participants on how to implement the XXX convention and the steps to be followed to mitigate the impact of disasters.
Source: Al-Mustaqbal, Al-Nahar 30 August 2013

The Nahar newspaper published a report about the Women Heart Health Center which is affiliated to the “Yadunah” organization for social and health care that was founded by First Lady Wafa Suleyman in collaboration with the AUB Medical Centre and the Faculty of Medicine of the Saint Joseph University.  The centre which was inaugurated in Baabda last June seeks to improve women’s cardiovascular health and lessen the burden of the disease through prevention, awareness raising and primary care notwithstanding women’s social conditions.
The newspaper report cites various studies which have proven that cardiovascular diseases account for a total of 56% mortality amongst women and 45% of total death.  The report also notes that 64% of women who died suddenly had not exhibited any prior sign of the disease.  Also according to the report, 1 in 3 women carries some form of cardiovascular disease whereas 26% of women over 45 who have had previous heart attacks are likely to die within one year compared to 19% amongst men.
Within the same vein, Nahar interviewed a member of center’s board of trustees, and the cardiovascular specialist, Professor Antoine Sarkis, who noted that cardiovascular diseases amongst women are 7 times more likely to cause death than breast cancer.  He also added that men are likely to have a heart attack at 45 years of age compared to 55 for women.  This difference of 10 years is likely to shrink with age.  Sarkis also described the main services offered by the centre, namely preventive tests for women over 45 years, health diets to control of blood pressure, blood sugar levels, and cholesterol levels in addition to helping women quit smoking.  The centre also organises cultural and awareness raising activities in addition to early diagnosis and treatment including: Coronary Calcium Scores, Chest X-ray, Heart CT Scan, Carotid Artery Ultrasound Screening, Doppler echocardiography to examine the heart’s blood vessels, and Electrocardiography to interpret the electrical activity of the heart
Source: Al-Nahar 28 August 2013

The EU and SIDA funded EU-funded project entitled “Strengthening human rights policies and practices in prisons for women in Lebanon” was recently launched after the approval of the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities and the General Directorate of Internal Security.  The project is implemented by Diakonia in collaboration with Dar al Amal, Caritas Lebanon – Migrants’ Centre and the Rassemblement Democratique des Femmes Libanaises.
Within the framework of this project, a training workshop was launched for 4 women wardens working in the following women prisons of Lebanon: Baabda, Tripoli, Zahleh and Barbar Al-Khazen, and with the participation of social work specialists.  The 4 wardens are expected to receive training kits to help them training thereafter other wardens with the objective of strengthening human rights in these prisons as well as intervene in conflict resolution.
The project includes a number of objectives namely developing training curricula, building the capacities of women working in prisons, offering legal and social awareness sessions for women prisoners, undertaking studies about the situation of prisoners in Lebanon, developing a draft law as well as supporting advocacy campaigns for improving the situations in the Lebanese prisons so as they meet international human rights standards.
Also, and within the framework of this project, a website was initiated in order to shed the light on activities, advocacy initiatives and other efforts aiming towards improving the condition of women prisons in Lebanon and  provide information to all those concerned with this matter. http://www.lebanonprisons.org
Source: Al-Safir 23 August 2013

Smart Centre for media and advocacy celebrated the fifth anniversary of its launch during a dinner organised earlier this week in Beirut and attended by the Centre’s founding members, staff, trainers, friends and supporters.
The director of the Centre, Randa Yassir, noted in her speech that the Centre was created in order to build bridges between civil society and the media in both Lebanon and the Middle East.  As such, Smart Centre is working on strengthening development and democracy as well as peace building through encouraging media professionals to develop their coverage of social and humanitarian stories and issues.  Yassir also emphasized the achievements of the Centre during the past two years namely targeting 2000 beneficiaries through its activities, developing manuals targeting campaigns directors, training media students, organizing media campaigns and adverts on gender equality, in addition to launching two studies the first on electoral behavior of women candidates and the second on the role of the media in highlighting women pioneers.
Source: Al-Mustaqbal 22 August 2013

The National Commission for Lebanese Women (NCLW) organised, in collaboration with the Ministry of Social Affairs (MOSA), a training workshop targeting organisations working on women’s issues and focusing on how to use Social Media to gain public support for advocacy on women equality.  The event was organised at the NCLW training premises in Baabda and extended over August 13 and 14 with the participation of some 40 NGO representatives.  Participants were introduced to social media tools such as Twitter and Facebook and how to use these to raise support around issues related to the rights of women.
The training workshop was implemented within the framework of the project aiming to strengthen women’s participation in local governance and funded by the Italian Embassy, and as per the Memorandum of Understanding concluded between NCLW and MOSA, and as part of the national campaign to support women in decision and peace making which was launched by first lady Wafa Suleiman on International Women’s Day in 2012.
Source: Al-Mustaqbal, Al-Nahar 22 August 2013
 

Pursuant to the news posted on Women Economic Empowerment Portal last week regarding the prison sentence against a mother charged of “not allowing her daughter to see her father”, the Al Akhbar newspaper noted today that Judge Nazek Al-Khatib issued a new verdict revoking that of her colleague and, as such, prohibiting the imprisonment of the mother in question.  This ruling comes after wide-spread and strong public reactions in the North and in Tripoli amongst judges, lawyers, women and civil organisations, who contested the first ruling on the basis that imprisonment is only applicable in case the custody of a minor is denied and not in cases of visitation.
Source: Al-Akhbar 7 August 2013