From the Desk of Mary Scott UN Winnipeg Chair

Wishing you Joy and Peace  for the holidays and throughout the year!

And may we continue our work, locally and globally to bring hope and peace for women.

It's been quite a year - we are now officially launched as a Chapter of the Canadian National Committee for UN Women. We have held many interesting meetings - hearing from the Manitoba women who presented at Women's Worlds, and most recently co hosting with Global College the event From Peace in the Home to Peace in the World: Challenge Militarism and End Violence Against Women as part of the 16 Days of Activism to eliminate gender violence. Our local women continue to inspire us.

We hear great things about what women are doing - the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to three remarkable women, Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, peace activist Leymah Gbowee, and human rights activist Tawakkul Karman who were lauded for their non-violent struggle for the safety of women and women's rights to fully participate in peace-building work. Wangari Maathai (who died 15 days before the Nobel Peace Prize announcement was made) was the first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, in 2004. “By providing education, access to water and equity the Green Belt Movement empowered people, most of them poor, most of them women and directly improved their lives as individuals and families. As the Sunday Times of London stated, Wangari Maathai demonstrated that one doesn’t need to be in a position of power to start to do something for one’s environment." Do come out on January 31st, 7:00 at the University Women's Club, 54 West Gate to hear more about women and the environment with Alanna Gray and Louise May.

The recent PBS series, produced by Abigail Disney Women, War and Peace highted the affects of war, but also the courageous women who are working to make a difference. News from Egypt and the ongoing Arab Spring show women want and need to be part of the transition. We will have our Local to Global 2012 on this theme, with details coming soon.

We are partnering with Global College, the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs and the Natural Resources Institute (University of Manitoba) on a series of talks that recognizes Indigenous people’s knowledge and to honor our relationship with Indigenous peoples in Manitoba. Dr. Richard Atleo, Director for the Centre for Indigenous Environmental Resources is the first speaker on An Indigenous Approach to the Global Crises on January 9th, at 12:30 to 1:30. It will be at the Sinnott Building, 70 Dysart Road. This is free and open to the public, but please rsvp to gender.environment@gmail.com.

Peace...pass it on.  We invite you all to leave your message of Peace on the Winnipeg Chapter's Facebook page -

From all the Coordinating Group, and the Planning Committee for the 2012 Local to Global event, we wish you good health, and happiness this holiday season, and through out the coming year, and we hope to see you out at some of our Chapter events this coming year.

Peace,

Mary

From the Desk of Mary Scott UN Women

Dear members and supporters of the Winnipeg Chapter for UN Women - Canada,

Just a brief update to let you know our event last week, with Global College,  From Peace in the Home to Peace in the World: Challenge Militarism and End Violence Against Women, was well supported by you and the community. We did video tape most of the presentations - Marylou McPhedran, Principal Global College, with students Maddie Pearlman, and Chelsea Caldwell, with Song of Africa founder, Darcy Ataman so for those that missed it, you can see them here:
http://tinyurl.com/7k2lga4

We also sold all the chocolate bars! So that gives us a good start for our campaign to raise funds for UN Women, with funds targeted for women affected by war. Thank you everyone for your help. Special thanks to Constance Popp, who generously donated all the bars - by the way, she has some pretty special chocolate right now in her store at 1853 Portage Ave. Go and check it out - they are celebrating their 4th year!

Our next meeting will be January 31st, 7:00, at the University Women's Club, 54 West Gate, so mark the date! Details to follow -

Tomorrow is December the 6th, and many will be at the morning sunrise memorial service to commemorate Canada's Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. I can still remember the day, 22 years ago, and the utter shock of thinking such a thing could happen - 14 young women were murdered because of their gender, right here in Canada. We all must continue to ensure women feel safe in their homes, schools, workplaces, and community - here in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, and indeed everywhere. Working together, we can make a difference.

Just received the following media release:

UN Women Urges Full Participation of Afghan Women in the Road Ahead from Bonn

Commends sustained efforts of Afghan women and their engagement at the international conferenceUnited Nations, New York On 5 December 2011, Afghan women joined the more than 1,000 delegates from 100 countries attending the Bonn Conference on Afghanistan to discuss the transfer of responsibility for security to the Afghan government in the coming years. Ten years since the first Bonn Conference, the voice and position of Afghan women’s civil society remain among the most progressive and prominent in the national debates on Afghanistan’s development and the protection of human rights in the country.

As the Bonn Conference draws to an end, UN Women applauds the determined efforts of Afghan women activists who have worked relentlessly to ensure that gender equality issues remain on the agenda of Afghanistan’s Peace and Transition process.

In the lead-up to Bonn, the efforts of national gender equality advocates in government and civil society, such as the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission and the Afghan Women’s Network (AWN), have resulted in a broad-based consensus among Afghan women on their role and their expectations within the Transition and Peace processes. More visible results were a marked increase in the number of women in the official delegation to Bonn as well as a strong representation of women within civil society delegations. These efforts were supported by the United Nations in Afghanistan, with the strong support of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and UN Women as the lead entity on gender equality.

Over the past ten years, Afghan women and the Government of Afghanistan have made remarkable advances, with the adoption of a 25-percent quota in the national constitution resulting in 25 percent women in the current Parliament, and the adoption of laws and policies to combat gender-based violence and to advance gender equality. Yet the challenges that Afghan women face are considerable. A recent study by the Afghan Ministry of Women’s Affairs and women’s groups reports that approximately 57 percent of girls in Afghanistan are married before the age of 16. The estimated literacy rate for women stands at 15.8 percent. Currently women remain marginalized in peace and transition efforts for example women constitute only 12.8 percent of thee High Peace Council.

Emerging from today’s Conference in Bonn, Afghan women hope to see stronger and more robust measures by national and local governments towards gender equality and a renewed commitment to implement the national action plan for women. Women from across the country are demanding a more inclusive peace process that gives women an active role in monitoring of reintegration efforts, and that security of women which coontinues to be a daily threat in public and private spaces beccomes a top priority for national and international actors in Afghanistan. Civil society organizations and networks are calling for more than just a seat at the table with reintegration efforts often targeting the worst perpetrators against women’s rights, they want to actively monitor peace and integration processes and provide feedback on what is working on the ground.

Over these past five months, with UN Women’s support, the Afghan Women’s Network (AWN) has brought women throughout the country together in preparation for Bonn, to put their priorities and concerns on the table. During the conference, gender equality advocates laid out a comprehensive set of recommendations, ranging from demanding a more transparent and rigorous recruitment process for the Afghan National Security Forces and local police involving women’s groups and women community leaders, to requesting government to prioritize the protection of women leaders, to ensuring the allocation of 25 30 percent of the Afghan Peace and Reintegration Programme budget for initiatives impacting women’s and girls’ access to quality education and health services, access to agricultural programmes, vocational training and other economic empowerment initiatives.

Afghan women called for an international community that is willing to make long-term commitments beyond 2014 to advance the situation of Afghan women and girls, by expanding and protecting their access to education, their economic security, their right to live free of violence, and to determine their roles and their future. As one of the Afghan women said: “Men and women are two wings of the same bird. If one wing is broken, the bird cannot take off and fly.”

Peace,
Mary

Mary ScottWinnipeg Chapter for National Committee for UN Women - Canada
UN Women is the UN organization dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women
winnipeg@unwomencanada.org
http://winnipegchapter.unwomencanada.org

Violence against women is not solely a woman’s issue. It diminishes each and every one of us. We need to come together to end it. By coming together, by standing up against violence against women, we will come closer to peace, justice and equality.   - Michelle Bachelet, Executive Director, UN Women

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Violence Against Women Still on the Rise!.... WHAT?!

Violence Against Women on the Rise

UNITED NATIONS, Oct 13 (IPS) - Despite progress in the realization of women's rights across the world, discrimination and violence against women, particularly sexual violence, is on the rise, said Xiaoqaio Zou, vice-Chair of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).

Addressing the General Assembly, she stressed that CEDAW is particularly alarmed by the increase in violence against women. All over the world, women continue to be raped and abused, while two million girls between the ages of 5 and 15 are introduced into the commercial sex market each year.
Impunity and justification for violence against women are widespread. The last stems from distorted views about gender equality, notably the roles and responsibilities of men and women in relationships. Many forms of sanctioned violence against women are associated with the community's or the family's demand for sexual chastity and virginity, CEDAW reports, with "honour killings" taking the lives of thousands of young women every year.

The CEDAW Committee was established in 1992 to monitor the implementation of U.N. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979). The Convention is considered the most comprehensive treaty on women's rights issues but with 186 member parties, it does not even include all 192 U.N. members.

Mary Scott
President
http://www.ncwc.cancwc@magma.ca

VISION: A vibrant, pro-active, credible Council of Women reflecting the diversity of society, encouraging informed political decision making and public attitudes for the well being of society, through research, education, consultation and cooperation

Mary Scott, Winnipeg's Community Activist wins Governor General's Award commemorating Person's Day 30th Anniversary.

Government of Canada Honours Governor General’s awards recipients Ottawa – The Honourable Helena Guergis, Minister of State (Status of Women), is pleased to announce today the recipients of the Governor General’s Awards in Commemoration of the Persons Case. Celebrating their 30th anniversary, the Awards recognize outstanding individuals who have helped to advance the goal of equality for women. The awards ceremony will take place at Rideau Hall on October 1, 2009. “Our Government is pleased to recognize the achievements of these distinguished women, who have so enriched our national life with their contributions,” said the Honourable Helena Guergis, Minister of State (Status of Women). “The legacy of the Famous Five endures through the work of these women. By dedicating their lives to bringing about true and lasting change, they have benefited women, their families and their communities across Canada, and strengthened Canadian society, as a whole.”

The following six individuals are the 2009 recipients of the Governor General's Awards in Commemoration of the Persons Case: Jeannette Corbiere Lavell, of Wikwemikong, Ontario, a well-known role model and advocate, was instrumental in founding the Ontario Native Women's Association, the Native Women's Association of Canada and Indigenous Women of the Americas. She fought a landmark court challenge to regain her Aboriginal status. Jeannette sits on many boards, including the National Aboriginal Health Organization. Daphne E. Dumont, of Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, who was the first woman admitted to study law at any of the Oxford men’s colleges, has led a distinguished career, devoting herself to organizations that promote equality for women. She is a founding member of the Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF). She has volunteered with community groups, providing legal aid, advice on family law and access to justice. Bev LeFrancois, of Oakville, Ontario, is a school teacher and mother of four who has been a passionate advocate for women’s rights. She has advocated for women’s rights in such areas as the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms equality clause, the “Rape Shield” law and matrimonial property laws and has helped establish community, women’s and rape crisis centres and shelters for battered women. Karen Messing, of Montréal, Quebec, is an academic, researcher, author and scientist. For over 30 years, she has worked to promote policies and practices that support working women. She chairs the Gender and Work Technical Committee of the International Ergonomics Association. She has increased opportunities for women, helping to ensure women’s workplace needs are considered so they can access all jobs without endangering their health. Mary Scott, of Winnipeg, Manitoba, has a long history of advancing equality for women, with a particular focus on Aboriginal women. Mary has applied her skills in internet technology to teaching, relaying communications to networks and creating web pages for many women’s organizations. Mary was also instrumental in the success of an oral history project and the Babs Friesen Councils of Women Archival Project.Youth Award recipient Pauline Fogarty of Thunder Bay, Ontario, became involved in social activism at an early age. She designed a girls’ collective, served with the Regional Multicultural Youth Centre and has worked on a wide array of issues, including mental health, gender, anti-smoking and First Nations advocacy.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the Persons Case. In 1929, five Canadian women – Emily Murphy, Henrietta Muir Edwards, Louise McKinney, Irene Parlby and Nellie McClung, who became known as the Famous Five – fought and won the right for women to be recognized as persons, and thus eligible to sit in the Senate. In 1979, the Government of Canada established the Governor General’s Awards in Commemoration of the Persons Case to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Persons Case decision and to salute contributions to the advancement of women.