Breaking the cycle of gender violence
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Updates from the Field:
Updates from the Field (or Progress Reports) on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.com by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
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Index of Updates from the Field
Special Appeal
By Stella Amojong - Director, June 17, 2008 06:35 PM
Dear friends,
GEMINI has always tried to keep you informed of how your donations are being spent. Every step of the way! The aim is to make you own part of the process and feel actively involved in empowering poor communities.
We thank all of you for your continued support.
After the post-election violence in Kenya, a lot of women/girls were, unfortunately, sexually abused. Most continue to languish in camps, with little medical and psychological support.
With your donations, we responded to the crisis. Now that its over, we need to reach out to all the survivors of sexual violence with confidential, free HIV testing.
We are carrying out a Special Appeal that seeks to mobilize funds to set up a specialized VCT center that will provide women/girls with these services.
But we need you help.
We are kindly requesting you to read the attached newsletter that provides some background information on this very important project.
And we are also requesting you to act and make a donation to any of GEMINI projects to enable us accomplish our goal.
Thanks so much and please, remember, any donation will be highly appreciate.
Attachments:
Summary of activities
By Stella - Director, May 13, 2008 05:24 PM
We are always glad when we receive feedback from you.
Someone has just pointed to us that we did not provide the figures to go with the update.
Please find attached a summarized version of GEMINI activities for Jan, Feb and March.
Sorry for the oversight!!!
And thanks for your comments!!
Attachments:
A Thought for Mother's Day
By STELLA - DIRECTOR, May 08, 2008 07:34 PM
As I write, thousands of intrnally displaced persons are (un)willingly trooping back to their former homes after spending four months in the camps.
As I watched a military truck prepare to take some of the families home, I overheard one woman say: "We spent New Year in the cold; we celebrated Women's Day in the Camps...now are we going to celebrate Mother's Day in our graves?"
Her sentiments echo those of hundreds of women, most still believing that life cannot be the same again.
Yet thousands more are optimistic, rejuvenated and raring to start their lives again.
"I'm now set to start planting...I just hope I'm not late for the season," says Muthoni as she hurdles her three children.
With your help, GEMINI was able to touch the lives of hundreds of desperate women/girls during the post-election crisis in Kenya.
We have prepared a brief report just for you. Without you, we would not have restored the smile in the faces of women/girls in IDP camps.
And as they prepare to restart living once again, we hope that you will still extend your support to us...and in extension, to the hundreds of poor women who need to recapture their lives.
God bless you all and we still need more of your support.
Supporting sexually abused women/girls
By Joe - Communication, March 19, 2008 05:34 PM
As the post-election violence spread throughout the country, GEMINI's grassroots volunteers were activated to assess the situation on the ground.
We received reports of women and girls being sexually abused by enraged men. Hundreds of survivors stumbled to health centers for emergency medication.
Using our networks, we were able to reach over 245 abused women with Emergency Contraceptives, STD Prophylaxis, pregnancy tests, Urinalysis and HIV testing.
We also recruited more counselors to provide emotional and trauma counseling. With tears flowing and nursing battered spirits, most of the survivors said they had forgiven their assailants.
We will continue to provide Continous Medical Assessment and examination as well as provide psychosocial support and spiritual healing.
Without the GlobalGiving donation that came in handy, we shudder to think what could have happened to all the hapless survivors.
Thank You so much!! We still have a long way to go and your esteemed support is always welcome!!
Kudos for GEMINI!
By Stella - Director, October 15, 2007 03:55 PM
A new report on Women Rights highly recommends GEMINI's approach to reducing family violence.
"Deadly Silence", a report written by Center for Human Rights & Democracy (CHRD) applauds our all-inclusive strategies, stating that "respect for women rights are central to any form of development."
CHRD's Director, Ken Wanjala, told local media that the fight for women rights would only be won if men were included as partners and not aggressors.
He extensively cited GEMINI's multi-pronged approach, saying empowering women was a vital step in bridging the inequality gap.
"GEMINI has proved that men can become strong pillars in advocating for women rights," he said during the launch of the report.
Over the past two months, GEMINI has been instrumental in bringing together local leaders, men and potential women leaders in dialogue. In November, we are planning for 4 more workshops where more women will be equipped with leadership skills.
A recent review of participants indicate that an increasing number of men, 34% up from 27% are willing to take an active role in ending domestic violence.
The Report will be used as a benchmark in evaluating increased democratic space in Kenya during this year's General Elections.
Leadership Skills for Women candidates
By Stella - Program Coordinator, September 17, 2007 06:03 PM
This is an election year in Kenya. Unlike before, an unprecedented number of women candidates have expressed interest in vying for both civic and parliamentary leadership positions.
In the past two months, several female candidates have been attacked and seriously injured by supporters of their male competitors.
GEMINI has responded to this gender-based violence by facilitating leadership meetings of candidates and encouraging dialogue.
"Women fear plunging into elective politics for this reason. Men use violence to subjugate us but this healing process will help us overcome these stereotypes," says Jecinta, a civic aspirant.
The project will equip women leaders with basic skills in Public Speaking, Campaign Management, Resource Mobilization and Strategic Planning.
"I'm glad GEMINI does not support any political party's agenda and this empowerment process will greatly assist us gain leadership skills," adds Akello, another beneficiary.
GEMINI hopes that violence against women in this elective period will not erode the gains made in enlisting men as supporters of women rights.
Exit interview results
By Joe - Communication Officer, August 15, 2007 10:05 PM
GEMINI has been holding several workshops on gender-based violence.
A report by an independent organization has just reached us and we share some of the participants' comments with you.
Please read on!!
Attachments:
Men are responding!!!
By Stella - Director, August 09, 2007 05:12 PM
At first we thought that men were the stumbling blocks in the fight against domestic violence.
We were wrong!! Activities for the months of June and July indicate a lot of positive response from men. They willingly attended workshops and are now facilitating attitudinal change seminars!
Thanks for all of you who believe in our organization! Please keep supporting us
Attachments:
First Breakthrough!
By Joe - Communication, May 30, 2007 05:39 PM
Gender-based Violence is enclosed in deeply rooted silence...with abused women being made to believe that it cannot be discussed in the open.
Well, GEMINI has started to break this veil of silence. For 2 months now, we have sensitized the commuity on violence and subsequently formed community forums to facilitate dialogue and discussion on the issue.
Like many African organizations, GEMINI has to contend with deeply-rooted cultural sentiments on domestic violence. Family violence is often believed to be a personal issue, not to be discussed in an open forum.
Yet we were able to involve the community in a very successful “Let’s Talk About it!” campaign. The major aim was to demystify violence through community mobilization, open discussions and mass media.
After a one-week awareness campaign, a Community Resource Team was formed, whose mandate includes mobilizing the support of stakeholders in ending violence. Members include law enforcers, religious leaders, community gatekeepers and families.
Activities for the month of April/May included popular education workshop (attended by over 65 people), formation of neighborhood forums and a community event that used edutainment, poetry and cultural songs to bring out messages on violence.
We are currently engaging local leaders in coming up with accepted format of including men as allies in ending violence. We hope to come up with workable alternatives to the justice system that seeks to punish perpetrators.
We hope to keep you updatedÂ…and thanks for supporting our project!
Expansion of Projects
By Joe - Communication Officer, March 28, 2007 05:43 PM
Since its formation some years back, ATM has lived life to its fullest. Well, literary!!
With your support, we have been able to meet all our objectives, reach over 15,000 people/year and stay focussed in our activities.
Last year, we started a strategic expansion plan which saw us change our name to Grassroots Empowerment Initiative (GEMINI), open new offices, expand our projects among other things.
We want to thank YOU for your continued support:hoping for another exciting journey this year. Thanks so much!!
Attachments:
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