Femicide

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believe09 said:
Ditto-this is why I started the thread because I cannot for the life of me understand why we are not all standing shoulder to shoulder on this one..Eve Ensler is one of the authors of one of the articles...these women are being robbed of their very WOMANESS-the ability to bear children, to nurture, to heal and teach and grow....it is MADDENING. And no one in any position of authority is saying STOP NOW. The markets may be unstable, but the US is far from losing it's status as a major player in the world...COME ON. SAY NO. This is a 911 call...we need underdeveloped nations in our pocket-the old world has become skeptical of us, so we need to start our influence peddling elsewhere-these countries that are perpetrating these crimes are IMPLODING...let's help set them on the right path. jmo
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I had the pleasure of seeing Eve Ensler and one of the women who help maintain The City of Hope in the Congo speak in NYC about 7-8 months ago about rape being used as a weapon of war against women. Eve obviously talked alot about the situation, she talked about the history of the region and how it has gotten to the state it is now. She showed lots of pictures of the villages, the aftermath, the women and children laying on dirt floors in their own urine and blood with no where to go and no one to help them.

The most powerful was the woman Christine who was with was Congolese. Her village was raided, her husband, her mother, father, best friends, nieces, nephews, grandmother, grandfather were all mutilated in front of her. She watched as her own mother, grandmother, 3 yr old niece and other women of the village were beaten and gang-raped and then murdered. She survived and she decided to try and become a voice for so many women who don't. She has been travelling all around the world with Eve Ensler giving talks and trying to raise awareness. Having this woman stand in front of you and speak of the things she has seen with her own eyes, the torture she had to endure with her own body and the powerful sadness she suffered really made it real, tangible. This woman I could reach out and touch from half a world away went through these atrocities we hear about and that was powerful.

I have tons of respect for Eve Ensler and all of the things she has done for women who have no voice and no power. She is a woman who truly made a difference. I have a big button on my purse I got at the lecture that says "Stop Raping Our Greatest Resource" That would us, women.
 
Always_Watching said:
I don't remember exactly where I read this, but I think it might have been in a college sexuality class that dealt with "traditions" in various cultures. We had to do a paper and that was one of the things I found.

Now this isn't killing or maiming, but there's a tribe that believes female menses will kill the men so they make the women stay downhill in a menses hut for the duration of their cycle.
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I think a lot of that is prevalent in more primitive, isolated cultures who aren't necessarily cruel to their woman and in some primitive cultures it is the women who are in charge. The Yanamamo in S. America is a very primitive culture and yes women are not viewed as equal - they are sold, traded for a good pig, etc but it isn't really done out of dis-respect. Women are still valued and their are strict moral codes in place. If a man beats or kills a woman he will face harsh punishment.

The believes that women must be separated from men during their periods or other myths like that are so deeply rooted in their culture and religion and is of course a result of ignorance. Primitive tribes don't have access to TV, newspapers, out-side society. They have what has been passed down to them for generations and generations.

That is the difference between them and the situation in the Congo. These Congolese men live in society, they are more educated, not as ignorant and they purposefully degrading and using women as a tool, as a weapon to spread fear and gain control.
 
It fascinates me to compare and contrast cultures that revere woman and cultures that have grown to discard them.

Now, in Sub Saharan Africa, it is not that they find women disposable, imho. It is that they find them useful to shred the culture that they are trying to overcome-a great weapon because they are uniquely vulnerable and they cause their communities to be vulnerable.
 
I live in San Diego on the border with Mexico. Several months ago one of our newspapers ran an article on deporting illegals back over the border. Unfortunately I can't find the exact article, but I did locate something similar.

http://www.latinalista.net/palabrafinal/2008/06/disturbing_news_was_reported_out.html

According to what I remember, when non-citizens are deported from San Diego they are detained in a series of rooms at the border crossing. It isn't unusual for them to be sent back into Mexico at any hour, including the middle of the night. Young women, even unescorted children are packed up and placed on the other side of the fence to fend for themselves. This may not be a direct case of femicide, but it does allow these women and children to be victimized.
 
Yes CaliKid I have heard about this happening to. It is very irresponsible. Yes, they entered the country illegally - most of them to find work - but does that men they should be treated like cargo to be hauled out into the desert and dumped? What a place for a predator to lurk? He knows where these people, unescorted women and child are dropped off. It is like shooting fish in a barrell
 
i started reading pearl s buck many many years ago. i think i was in 4th grade when i read my first buck book. sadly the things she saw and wrote about are still going on.
anyone thats never read her books they are wonderful and open ur eyes to daily life of women in the far and middle east.
 
I have read a lot of Pearl S. Buck's books. The insight she has given us is invaluable.

This is not nearly as hardcore but have any of you read A Thousand Splendid Sons by Khaled Hosseini - the guy who wrote The Kite Runner? It gives you a look into the lives of Afghani women from last generation to this generation, how they are viewed by men in their society, the sacrifices they have had to make, etc. Besides all of that it is just a really, really good book.
 
***Warning-Graphic discussions of rape***

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/africa/05/18/ensler.congo/index.html

Snip

"In 12 years, there have been 6 million dead men and women in Congo and 1.4 million people displaced. Hundreds and thousands of women and girls have been raped and tortured. Babies as young as 6 months, women as old as 80, their insides torn apart. What I witnessed in Congo has shattered and changed me forever. I will never be the same. None of us should ever be the same.

I was in Bosnia during the war in 1994 when it was discovered there were rape camps where white women were being raped. Within two years there was adequate intervention. Yet, in Congo, femicide has continued for 12 years. Why? Is it that coltan, the mineral that keeps our cell phones and computers in play, is more important than Congolese girls?"

I realize that I raise this issue over and over again on these boards-included in the above article is discussion regarding crimes against women here in the US as well.

What will it take to use our wealth and significant political sway to impact this horror???? When was the last time you wrote your Congress-person about this???
 
Thanks Believe! I was following this as she testified. I had the opportunity to go see Eve Ensler and Dr. Mugwege in February speak in NYC about the rape epidemic in The Congo. It was pretty moving to listen to Dr. Mugwege, the man who runs Panzi hospital and performs countless surgeries on women suffering from Fistula and other internal injuries.

Unfortunately, there is nothing for the 1st world to gain from helping these women and this situation. If there were valuable resources or land at stake you better believe we would be involved in a heartbeat. If anything the first world would lose some of its hold on resources in the region if we stood against the genocide - Coltan being the biggest. It is rare for a country to help another for no reason other than humanity.

SOme links about Coltan. In addition to funding the war it is also responsible for the annhilation of the Mt. Gorillas:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1468772.stm

http://www.cellular-news.com/coltan/

http://www.globalissues.org/article/442/guns-money-and-cell-phones
 
I have been reading websleuths for awhile but this is my first post. Several months ago I watched a HBO documentary titled "The Greatest Silence: Rape in the Congo". I can't even think of the words to describe how I felt watching it much less thinking about it now brings tears to my eyes. It is a documentary worth watching because even when you want to hide your eyes the camera never blinks...

One of the most disturbing things to me was the fact that the UN Peacekeepers cannot or will not do anything to stop the rapes. :furious:
 
crystalgenie said:
I have been reading websleuths for awhile but this is my first post. Several months ago I watched a HBO documentary titled "The Greatest Silence: Rape in the Congo". I can't even think of the words to describe how I felt watching it much less thinking about it now brings tears to my eyes. It is a documentary worth watching because even when you want to hide your eyes the camera never blinks...

One of the most disturbing things to me was the fact that the UN Peacekeepers cannot or will not do anything to stop the rapes. :furious:
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Thank you for coming out of lurkdom for such a well expressed post on such an issue.

We are not better human beings for letting this continue-whatever your belief structure,there is likely a golden rule. We cannot expect that apathy is going to wash our hands of this. Because beyond the immediate victims are the generations that will be born of the rapes or born to the perpetrators.

What will we gain from ending the misery?-it is likely immeasurable. Imagine the incredible joy of these people to be delivered from this.
 
gaia227 said:
Thanks Believe! I was following this as she testified. I had the opportunity to go see Eve Ensler and Dr. Mugwege in February speak in NYC about the rape epidemic in The Congo. It was pretty moving to listen to Dr. Mugwege, the man who runs Panzi hospital and performs countless surgeries on women suffering from Fistula and other internal injuries.

Unfortunately, there is nothing for the 1st world to gain from helping these women and this situation. If there were valuable resources or land at stake you better believe we would be involved in a heartbeat. If anything the first world would lose some of its hold on resources in the region if we stood against the genocide - Coltan being the biggest. It is rare for a country to help another for no reason other than humanity.

SOme links about Coltan. In addition to funding the war it is also responsible for the annhilation of the Mt. Gorillas:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1468772.stm

http://www.cellular-news.com/coltan/

http://www.globalissues.org/article/442/guns-money-and-cell-phones
Click to expand...


anyone know some humanitarian scientists or engineers who might consider figuring out an alternative to Coltan? How about the Gates foundation??? Might be years away in the making, but just imagine....
 
believe09 said:
Thank you for coming out of lurkdom for such a well expressed post on such an issue.

We are not better human beings for letting this continue-whatever your belief structure,there is likely a golden rule. We cannot expect that apathy is going to wash our hands of this. Because beyond the immediate victims are the generations that will be born of the rapes or born to the perpetrators.

What will we gain from ending the misery?-it is likely immeasurable. Imagine the incredible joy of these people to be delivered from this.
Click to expand...


There was a photography exhibit here in NYC a few months ago that focused on children of rape in the Rwanda. It was pretty moving and of course, very sad.
http://www.createforacause.com/2009/03/opening-of-intended-consequences.html


Regarding Coltan - there are lots of articles about coltan unfortunately most places I look do not offer alternatives to coltan. I didn't know how badly the mining has effecting the Mt. Gorilla population because it was/is being mined in a national park where these animals should have been protected - only 3,000 remain in the wild. The rest have been murdered or died from loss of habitat. Also, companies using coltan are supporting and ensuring the continuation of child slavery AND continued funding for the genocide, femicide and civil war.


Really nice article about coltan - talks about many different aspects. It is not only found in cell phones - it is in a lot of different electronics including Sony Playstation. Coltan is mined mostly using child labor.
http://towardfreedom.com/home/content/view/1352/1

I looked up the Gates Foundation and they have a lot of things going on in Africa they are more focused on disease prevention, infastructure and education. They do not seem to get very involved in issues that could be easily politisized.

The Dian Fossey Foundation is doing work in Congo trying to find alternatives to Coltan because they are trying to save the Mt. Gorillas
http://www.gorillafund.org/conservation_science/congo.php

The Dutch Labor Party is very concerned about the situation and has called for an outright ban on Coltan
http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/263036
 
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090531/ap_on_re_af/us_sudan_darfur_rape

There is a distinct pattern-villages are invaded by green or khaki dressed militiamen on horses or camels. Airstrikes follow. The men of the village are shot and the women and girls gang raped. The females travel to refugee camps in Chad. They leave the camps for water or firewood and they are raped again.

Doctors groups are looking for something very, very simple-patrols that will guard the women who are forced to leave the camps to gather firewood or obtain water. To stop the repeated attacks on them.
 
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