[governance] GenderIT.org thematic bulletin
Anriette Esterhuysen
anriette at apc.org
Wed Aug 4 04:30:39 EDT 2010
**PLEASE DISSEMINATE WIDELY**
(apologies for cross-posting)
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*GENDER CENTRED: A GenderIT.org thematic bulletin*
APC WNSP – GenderIT.org, 3 August 2010
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*Privacy and violence against women*
I. THOUGHTS AROUND…Claiming communication rights
II. NEW ARTICLES
III. FEATURED RESOURCES
IV. JARGON
V. WHO'S WHO
VI. FEMINIST TALKS
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A new edition examines how violence against women (VAW) affects our
privacy rights in the digital age. VAW survivors often experience
intrusions into their privacy from their partners, spouses or the State.
Moreover, privacy does not always work to women' s advantage.
Family-centred approaches to privacy impose modesty and domestic
isolation on women and make it hard to enforce domestic violence as a
crime. So how have ICTs shifted where we see the line between what is
private, and what is public? How much privacy are women comfortable to
give up in order to protect themselves from abusive behaviour online?
Are national laws ready to deal with the situation when women are not
able to leave a violent relationship because their partner has intimate
photographs or video clips of them? These are some of the questions
GenderIT.org's writers examine in this edition.
With this edition we also bring you a new look GenderIT.org. The new
format was motivated by our efforts to engage more with GenderIT.org
readers and to provide more space for networking and collaboration. We
hope you like it! Please send your comments to: genderit at apcwomen.org
Flavia, Katerina and Sonia from the GenderIT.org team
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I. THOUGHTS AROUND…Claiming communication rights
by Cai Yiping, the Executive Director of Isis International (Isis)
“Don't upload your photographs or videos on the pages of social
networks, like Facebook or MySpace, nor personal information like emaili
account or telephone numbers.” IT techies advise.
“I have changed my gender from female to male on skype to avoid some
annoying and harassing calls and chats sometimes even popping up in the
middle of night or while I am working online.” a young woman shared.
“Do women need to hide their gender identities online to protect
themselves and feel secure in order to use the new ICTs to express their
opinions?” a woman activist asked
These are among many questions and concerns raised by participants who
attended the APC WNSP workshop on issue of Electronic Violence against
Women i(EVAW) last April in Manila Philippines, one of the initiatives
of the APC WNSP's MDG3i project Take Back the Tech! to eliminate
violence against women taking place in 12 countries. The intersection
between violence against women and privacyi rights is at the core of
this discussion...
Read the full editorial at:
www.genderit.org/editorial/thoughts-around-claiming-communication-rights
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II. NEW ARTICLES
*Democratic Republic of the Congo: Two sides of the same ICT coin -
breaking the silence /breaking the laws*
GenderIT.org writer Mavic Cabrera-Balleza speaks with Sylvie Niombo and
Francoise Mukuku, ICT activists from Congo-Brazzaville and the
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) respectively. They discuss various
facets of the information and communication technologies and the context
to which they apply in the DRC . The interviewees elaborate on how ICTs
can be used to reduce incidence of violence against women and how it is
also widely used in ways that aggravate the violence and violate privacy
laws. They also explain why access to ICTs is critical to the DRC and
how it can be used to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.
www.genderit.org/articles/democratic-republic-congo-two-sides-same-ict-coin-breaking-silence-breaking-laws
*Pakistan: Jehan Ara talks on censorship, and intrusion into women's
space*
(audio interview)
GenderIT.org editor Sonia Randhawa interviews Jehan Ara, the president
of the Pakistan Association of Software Houses for IT & ITES (P at SHA) and
a partner in the “MDG3: Take Back The Tech! to end violence against
women” project, about privacy, ICTs and violence against women, touching
on censorship, and intrusion into women's space by both the State and
non-state actors - such as husbands, boyfriends, fathers and family.
www.genderit.org/podcast/pakistan-jehan-ara-talks-censorship-and-intrusion-womens-space-audio
*South Africa: Privacy and domestic violence online and off*
While women's rights activists have been at the forefront of making the
private crimes that occur at home - domestic violence, marital rape -
public, new technologies are making the private public in ways that
disenfranchise, alienate and violate women. Esther Nasikye and
Sally-Jean Shackleton explore how ICTs, privacy and domestic violence in
South Africa are showing up problems in both policy and practice.
www.genderit.org/articles/south-africa-privacy-and-domestic-violence-online-and
*Argentina: Strategic use of ICT as a response to violence against
women*
Although violence against women through information and communication
technologies is not yet a matter of public discussion in Argentina, the
problem affects the lives of women and girls. A workshop held in Buenos
Aires by APC WNSP to guide women in the strategic use of ICTs to combat
violence resulted in some interesting initiatives. Concern regarding the
irregular use made of cell phones, the growing circulation of
pornographic images and the impact of social networks on women’s privacy
are some of the points highlighted in the debates at the workshop. In
connection with the workshop, Florencia Goldsman and Flavia Fascendini
investigate the status of public policies aimed at promoting the use of
ICTs to fight violence towards women, and delve further into some of the
aspects of privacy and security.
www.genderit.org/articles/argentina-strategic-use-ict-response-violence-against-women
*South Africa: Pornography and the internet - justifiable protection or
entrenching patriarchy?*
A draft Bill proposing a ban on sexual content on the internet and
cellphones submitted to the South African Department of Home Affairs in
May 2010 claims to have the best interests of women and children in
mind. The Bill was submitted to the Department, which oversees the Film
and Publications Board, by a non-profit organisation called Justice
Alliance of South Africa (JASA). What’s the issue, and will censorship
work to address problematic representations of women? These are some of
questions investigated by Sally-Jean Shackleton.
www.genderit.org/articles/south-africa-pornography-and-internet-justifiable-protection-or-entrenching-patriarchy
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III. FEATURED RESOURCES: 16x16
16 slides x 16 seconds draw the story of how violence against women
(VAW) and ICTs link. It builds on a series of papers, providing a
snapshot and baseline on the law and policy in these two areas in 12
countries across Africa, Asia and Latin America. The papers are part of
the APC WNSP project 'MDG3: Take Back the Tech! to end violence against
women' that connects ICTs, VAW and Millennium Development Goal Three
(MDG3) in practice, policy and law in 12 countries. The 16x16 idea
follows the Pecha-Kucha presentation format which is 20 x 20 - we've
adapted it to 16 for the 16 days of activism against gender violence.
*16x16:Malaysia*
www.genderit.org/resources/16x16-malaysia
*16x16:Uganda*
www.genderit.org/resources/16x16-uganda
*16x16:Rights-violence-technologies*
www.genderit.org/resources/16x16-rights-violence-technology-joining-dots
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IV. JARGON
*Privacy*
The right to privacy is the right to be free from unwanted or
unauthorised intrusion, whether physically or through access to records
and information. It is considered one of the hardest human rights to
define, codify and protect legally, although it is guaranteed by various
international instruments including the Universal Declaration on Human
Rights.
Women often experience intrusions into their privacy from both the State
and from partners, parents or siblings, restricting and surveilling
their movements both on and off line. Privacy issues may also have
different contexts and consequences for women. Some speaks in this
context about 'good' and 'bad' privacy. Bad or familial privacy, such as
imposed modesty, chastity, and domestic isolation, can prevent exposure
of spousal and child abuse. Good privacy support individual choice,
autonomy and social participation.
Source:
www.privacyinternational.org/survey/phr2003/overview.htm,
http://epic.org/privacy/gender/default.html
*Violence against women*
VAW, or violence against women, means any act that results in harm and
disproportionately affects women. The root cause of VAW lies in unequal
power relations between men and women in almost all facets of life. Some
examples of VAW include domestic violence, rape and sexual harassment.
The United Nations Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against
Women defines VAW as "any act of gender-based violence that results in,
or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or
suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or
arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private
life".
VAW was recognised as a violation of fundamental human rights in 1993,
less than two decades ago, officially through the Declaration on the
Elimination of Violence Against Women by the United Nations General
Assembly. Women's movements across the world are continuously bringing
to light new dimensions of VAW, such as 'trafficking in images' and
other forms facilitated through the use of new communication and
information technologies. However ICTs are also used for prevention of
VAW and assistance to VAW survivors.
Source:
www.takebackthetech.net/whatstheissue
See also:
*Data protection* : www.genderit.org/glossary/term/984
*Freedom of information* : www.genderit.org/glossary/term/985
To understand unfamiliar ICT or gender terms visit the Jargon section:
www.genderit.org/glossary
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V. WHO'S WHO
In this GenderIT.org edition we are introducing six country partners
participating in the “MDG3: Take Back The Tech! to end violence against
women” project. This is being implemented by the Association for
Progressive Communications Women’s Networking Support Programme and it's
partners in 12 countries from África, Latin América and Asia, supported
by the MDG3 Fund. In the context of this project, these partners have
worked on national ICT policy and advocacy, conducted national strategy
meetings, localized the Take Back the Tech! campaign, organized training
events called Feminist Tech Exchanges, developed issue papers on
violence against women and ICTs, and distributed small grants for
projects that use ICT to address or prevent violence against women.
*Bytes for All*
Bytes for All (B4All) is a networked space for citizens in South Asia.
It experiments, highlights and organizes debate on the relevance of ICT
to development activities. They believe ICTs don't replace the need for
good governance or people's rights to equal opportunities, rather ICT
can complement this process. It has a really active discussion forum,
the Bytes for All Readers Forum
http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/bytesforall_readers) that hosts
numerous debates and, as they have content sharing arrangements with a
number of IT based publications, this content can go offline too.
Website: www.bytesforall.net
*P at SHA*
Pakistan Software Houses Association for IT and ITES (P at SHA) was
initiated 15 years ago by a number of software houses in an attempt to
create a functional trade association for the IT industry in Pakistan.
Aiming to protect the rights of over 350 companies that are active
members, P at SHA lobbied the government to initiate policies and create
an environment that would attract more firms to join the industry. P at SHA
is a platform for promoting, protecting and developing the software
industry in Pakistan, and has made consistent efforts to ensure that the
right policy frame works are employed for continued growth and
development.
Website: www.pasha.org.pk
*Si Jeunesse Savait*
Si Jeunesse Savait (SJS, “If Young Women Knew” in french) is a feminist
group formed in 2001 and based in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of
Congo (DRC). It has representation in three provinces of eastern Congo.
SJS builds the leadership skills of young women in sexual and
reproductive rights, information and communication technologies and
entrepreneurship. SJS has 115 members and more than 2000 supporters
around Congo. They are involved in advocacy work for a national ICT
policy plan for DRC and are also active in research and studies to make
sure that gender is at the center of this ICT policy plan. The group
also does crosscutting advocacy with other ministries such as education,
gender and justice to see a clear plan to train women and girls in ICT
and to have a VAW plan that addresses violence in the manner in which it
has intersectionalities with ICT.
Website: www.mwasi.cd
*Taller Permanente de la Mujer association*
The association Taller Permanente de la Mujer is a non governmental
organization dedicated to advocating the rights of women in Argentina.
It began its work in 1988, addressing issues such as health, population,
reproductive rights, domestic violence, work and culture. Throughout
these 20 years it developed courses, seminars and workshops and
published many manuals and materials. In 1995, three of the founding
members of the association decided to pursue a project to highlight the
fight against discrimination of women and thus was born the Women's
Bookstore, one of 62 libraries in the world specializing in books and
writings “by” and “for” women. The Women's Bookstore is currently a
joint meeting place of many organizations, also maintains a
documentation center and a publishing house with the same name.
Website: http://libreriademujeres.com.ar/
*Women'sNet*
Women’sNet is a feminist organisation launched in March 1998 that works
to advance gender equality and justice in South Africa through the use
of information and communication technologies. They provide training and
facilitate content dissemination and creation that supports women,
girls, and women’s and gender organisations and networks to take control
of their own content and ICT use. The Women'sNet model rests on three
pillars, information/content generation linked to networking and
capacity building. Women'sNet undertakes research on ICTs as they relate
to women and gender, and as they intersect with content development.
Women'sNet is particularly interested in examining the impact that ICTs
have on women's lives and their potential to meet development goals (in
particular the Millennium Development Goals).
Website: www.womensnet.org.za
*WOUGNET*
Women of Uganda Network (WOUGNET) is a non-governmental organization
that aims to develop the use of information and communication
technologies among women as tools to share information and address
issues collectively. Initiated in May 2000 in Uganda by several women's
organizations,
WOUGNET's mission is to promote and support the use of ICT by women and
women organizations in Uganda, so that they can take advantage of the
opportunities presented by ICT in order to effectively address national
and local problems of sustainable development. WOUGNET activities are
carried out under three major program areas: Information Sharing and
Networking, Technical Support and Gender and ICT Policy Advocacy. To
learn more about their ICT policy advocacy work, enter here
www.wougnet.org/cms/content/blogsection/13/39/
Website: www.wougnet.org
To find out more about key stakeholders in the field of ICTs, visit the
Who's Who in Policy's directory:
www.genderit.org/whos-who
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VI. FEMINIST TALKS
*Mexico: ACTA - anyone making a fuss in your country?*
Australia, Canada, the European Union, Japan, Mexico, Morocco, New
Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Switzerland and the United States
of America are presently negotiating a trade agreement regarding
counterfeiting and the enforcement of intellectual property rights,
known as the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). Erika Smith,
communications coordinator of APC WNSP, took part in the meeting
organized by the Internet Society (ISOC) Mexico to find out how ACTA can
affect laws or upcoming bills that attempt to address other aspects of
cybercrime, such violence against women facilitated by the internet.
www.genderit.org/feminist-talk/mexico-acta-anyone-making-fuss-your-country
*Gender divide/gap in Pan-European Dialogue on Internet Governance*
Valentina Pellizzer, OneWorld Platform for SouthEast Europe (owpsee)
executive directress, participated in this year's EuroDIG – Pan-European
Dialogue on Internet Governance, and has several objections to the very
visible gender gap in terms of women's participation at the event, and
in the IT sector in general. Her commentary was originally written for
the Diplo Internet Governance Community Blog. We carry the full text of
her commentary.
www.genderit.org/feminist-talk/gender-dividegap-pan-european-dialogue-internet-governance
To read more Feminist Talk's posts and debates visit:
www.genderit.org/feminist-talk
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