The Greatest Silence Official Site: Outreach


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	Outreach "Violence against women in conflict is one of history's great silences." (Ellen Johnson Sirleaf; President of Liberia) (left) Panzai women watching The Greatest Silence HOW TO HELP: ACTIONS YOU CAN TAKE WRITE to your CONGRESSMAN, and ask him/her to support: 1. S. 3058 IS: Conflict Coltran and Cassiterite Act of 2008. (Sen. Brownback & Durbin); http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin. CLICK on "Bills and Resolutions", then on "Search Bill Summary Status" and then enter the bill number (S. 3058 IS). 2. H. RES. 1227: Condemning Sexual Violence in the D.R.C. and Calling on the International Community to take immediate action to respond to the violence. (Rep. Maloney & Miller); http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin. CLICK on "Bills and Resolutions", then on "Search Bill Summary Status" and then enter the bill number (S. 3058 IS). SIGN the petition to pass The International Violence Against Women Act (IVAWA-S. 2279, HR 5927): http://www.womensedge.org/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=133 CHALLENGE the media with letters to the editor, and the International Criminal Court to prosecute more aggressively the perpetrators: http://www.icc-cpi.int/home.html Policy Maker Screenings as of August 2008: Great Lakes Peace Conferene January 2008; Goma, North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo. For 200+ provincial & military authorities, local and international NGO's participating in Great Lakes peace conference. Doctors Without Borders February 2008; Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Screened at the Amsterdam office for Benelux Staff. House of Commons March 10, 2008; London, England. For parliamentarians, policy makers, academics, and staffers; sponsored by the All Party Parliamentary Group on the Great Lakes. United States Senate, Judiciary and Foreign Relations Committees March 30, 2008; Washington, DC. Screening sponsered by the office of Senator Sam Brownback for Senate staffers and members of Congress. United States Senate, Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law April 1, 2008; Washington DC. Invited by Senator Richard Durbin, Chairman, to testify at their hearing on sexual violence in the conflict in the DRC. Hearing will open with a screening of a clip from the film. Belgian Parliament April, 16, 2008; Belgium. Screening sponsored by Juliette Boulet of the Green Party for members of Parliament and staff. European Union Commission April 17, 2008; Brussels, Belgium. Institute for War and Peace Reporting May 2008; The Hauge, The Netherlands. For staff at their office in The Hague. Conference on Womn Targeted or Affected by Armed Conflict: What Role for Military Peacekeepers May 27-29, 2008; Wilton Park, Sussex, United Kingdom. Several screenings for the 70 partcipants, 27 of whom came from military establishments (former Force Commanders, army personnel, staff of Defense Ministries). Others included four MPs, four Permanent PRepresentatives, seven DPKO staff, and a number of other UN personnel, peace activits and academics. UNESCO Spring 2008; Paris, France. Organized by UNESCO Czech Delegation. United Nations June 13, 2008; New York City. Screening sponsored by the US Mission to the UN for staff, ambassadors, related INGO's. Lawyers Without Borders June 2008; Brussels, Belgium. Screening organized by Chantal Van Custem for headquarters staff, including lawyers about to be deployed to the DRC. International Conference on the Great Lakes Region June 16-27, 2008; Goma, DRC; Kigali, Rwanda; Bujumbura, Burundi. Organized by UNIFEM, three screenings to a total of 450 members of government in the Great Lakes civil society, National Police, UN staff, and development partners. United Nationas Security Council Resolution 1820 June 19, 2008. Resolution recognizes rape in conflict as a weapon of war, a crime against humanity and a international security issue, it was introduced by US Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad after having seen the film. Resolution passed unanimously. International Criminal Court July 4, 2008; The Hague, The Netherlands. Screening organized by the IRC and Stiching Vluchteling for ICC staff, including Andre Laperriere, Executive Director of the Trust Fund for Victims. TO COME: Council on Foreign Relations (TBD) 2008; NYC. DRC National Television Broadcast Fall 2008; funded by the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office. FARDC (Congolese Armed Forces), PNC (Congolese National Police), Monuc (UN Peacekeeping Mission) August 2008; NYC. Organizations helping women in the Democratic Republic of Congo: Panzi Hospital, Bukavu: http://www.panzihospitalbukavu.org/ Women for Women International: http://www.womenforwomen.org/congo.htm V-Day: global movement that supports anti-violence organizations throughout the world: http://www.vday.org/congo International Rescue Committee: http://www.theirc.org/helpcongo Amnesty International: http://www.amnesty.org/en/region/africa/central-africa/dr-congo Other websites for more information about gender based violence, the DRC, and other resources about women survivors of war. Organizations Featured or Credited in the Film: United Nations Mission in the Congo (MONUC) http://www.monuc.org/ Urgent Action Fund for Women's Human Rights http://www.urgentactionfund.org/ - Women for Women International - Panzi Hospital, Bukavu - V-Day: global movement that supports anti-violence organizations throughout the world - International Rescue Committee - Amnesty International Information about The Democratic Republic of Congo: Friends of the Congo http://www.friendsofthecongo.org/ Congo Watch http://www.congowatch.blogspot.com/ Congo Global Action Coalition http://www.congoglobalaction.org/ Enough Project http://www.enoughproject.org/region/easterncongo/overview.php Provocate: http://www.provocate.org/more-info/about-congo/about-women-and-conflict-in-congo-and-africa Handup Congo http://www.handupcongo.org Regional News: BBC World News http://www.news.bbc.co,uk/ All Africa- African news and current events source http://www.allafrica.com/ Africe Faith and Justice Network http://www.afjn.org/ Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN) http://www.irinnews.org/ PambaZuka News http://www.pambazukanews.org/ Conflict:Information and articles on violence against women in conflict areas: UN Action Against Sexual Violence in Conflict http://www.un-ngls.org/site/article.php3?id_article=255 rdc-humanitaire.net (in French) http://www.rdc-humanitaire.net/ Rape in war http://www.hrw.org/women/docs/rapeinwar.htm http://www.reliefweb.int/ Amnesty International Relief Web contains a section on maps, updates on countries and humanitarian situations, and policy briefings. The United Nations Development Fund for Women resources about the impact of conflict on women and girls. http://www.unifem.org Economic Empowerment: Background information and research on women's economic empowerment developments. http://www.unfpa.org/gender/empowerment1.htm Gender: International and Regional Conventions http://www.unfpa.org/ Comprehensive Gender Resources United Nations International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW) http://www.un-instraw.org/ Microfinance: The Microfinance Gateway comprehensive resource for microfinance issues, including research and publications, specialized resource centers, news and events. http://www.microfinancegateway.org/ The Development Gateway A hub of international development resources. A good starting point for research on industry trends, experts and opportunities. http://www.developmentgateway.org/ Related Organizations: World Organization Against Torture http://www.omct.org/ United Nations Development Fund for Women United Nations Children's Fund http://www.unicef.org/ Breaking the links between natural resources, conflicts and corruption Rights and Accountability in Development (RAID) http://www.raid-uk.org/ International Crisis Group http://www.crisisgroup.org/ Human Rights Watch http://www.hrw.org/ Grassroots Organizations: Run for Congo Women http://www.runforcongowomen.org/ Women's Edge Coalition http://www.womensedge,org/ The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Peace Women Project http://www.peacewomen.org/ Healthcare: Heal Africa http://www.healafrica.org/ Souls in Stride http://www.soulsinstride.com/
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