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WORLD MARCH OF WOMEN
NEWSLETTER
Volume 13 – Number 4 – November 2011


Editorial
On the 25th November, women from around the world will go to the streets once again to struggle for the right to be free from all forms of violence, especially the one they face simply because they are women. Over the past 51 years, since the Mirabal sisters were murdered in the Dominican Republic under the command of the dictator Trujillo, many policies have been established by law to fight violence against women. Unfortunately, these laws have not eliminated violence.
We have learned that the State and its policies, while necessary, are not enough to eliminate violence against women. And the experiences of black, native and immigrant women have taught us that it is often the State itself that perpetrates violence.
Once more, we shall be in the streets to denounce violence against women and to affirm our collective resistance. We shall advance the creative strategies proposed by communities of women to strengthen their resolve and ability for self-determination and control of their own lives and the lives of the people. Increasingly, we build on  solidarity with other social movements that understand that gender-based violence is a tool to control women and maintain  patriarchal and capitalist systems.
On the 25th November, while many of us will be in the streets of Quezon City, Philippines, others will be raising their voices in their own regions. But, collectively,  we shall embrace the strength drawn from this organized movement and fight to ensure that no girl or woman ever again experiences violence.


INTERNATIONAL

It is right now! International Meeting will debate current situation and WMW future
Our 8th International Meeting is about to start! It will take place from the 20th - 25th of November in Quezon City, Philippines. As of early November, delegates from more than 30 countries from the Africa, the Americas, Asia-Oceania, the Arab World/Middle East and Europe, had registered.
During our 8th International Meeting the regional and international evaluations of the 3rd WMW International Action (and of our activities from 2008 – 2011), will be presented. Participants will exchange ideas around the challenges, perspectives and strategies of our movement for the 2011 – 2015 period, and develop regional action plans, among other items on the agenda.
The meeting ends on the 25th November, the International day of struggle against violence against women, with a mass demonstration and a public forum focusing on the WMW area actions.
In preparation for debate on the current situation in the world, the International Committee (IC) prepared a text which targets the current economic, financial and environment crises and the capitalist model for social reproduction which are causing an increase in inequalities. The text reasserts that society replicates patterns of violence against women as a tool for maintaining continuous control of their bodies and their lives. Other social movements and organizations are invited to read the text, which is available online in English, French, Spanish and Portuguese at http://www.marchemondiale.org/structure/8rencontre/context/en/. The IC also had a strategic debate on the democratization of communication and the role of the mainstream media in spreading ideas, values and an ideology that legitimizes a particular role for women in the world. Click to read more about this debate (in English, Spanish and French) in: http://www.marchemondiale.org/structure/8rencontre/communication/en.
Follow the WMW website to read news on the 8th International Meeting: www.marchemondiale.org

Note
The office of the WMW International Secretariat, based in Sao Paulo, will be closed from 14th to 30th November. The IS team - Alessandra Ceregatti, Celia Alldridge and Miriam Nobre – will be in the Philippines for the International Committee meetings held before and after the international meeting. Activities at the office will resume again on the 1st December.




AMERICAS

A funding campaign has ensured the participation of Brazil in the International Meeting

In less than 30 days, the WMW National Coordination in Brazil mobilized  activists around the country and successfully  raised 8,846 reales (approx. US $5,000) to cover part of the costs of participation for two delegates to the international meeting in the Philippines. This was possible due to the association with the website Catarse (www.catarse.net), a virtual platform to fund creative projects. As of 21st October, 132 people have made contributions through the site. Others have made direct contributions to the WMW.
All possible tools of communication were used to disseminate information about the campaign, from sending emails, to word of mouth, to newer technologies that make it easy to reach countless people, such as Facebook and Twitter, where the campaign has been shared over 1000 times.
The Brazilian NCB has acknowledged the support of every WMW activist and, in particular, the support of those in solidarity as militants of the solidarity economy, the music group Teatro Magico and the group of "Feminist Bloggers" (Blogueiras Feministas).  

Video on the WMW2010 action in Brazil
During the International Meeting, we will present a short film produced by the WMW in Brazil about the action they carried out in 2010. The video is already online with subtitles in: English; French; Spanish at http://www.mmm2010.info/our-action/audiovisuals-about-the-2010-3rd-international-action

Feminism and socialism is debated by the WMW in Southern Americas

On the 25th and 26th of October, women from various organizations that are part of the WMW in Paraguay, along with sisters from Argentina, Chile and Brazil, took part in the seminar "Women as Political Subjects of Transformation" which was held in Asuncion, Paraguay. During the event, participants were able to share opinions on the following topics: feminism and socialism, security models in the region and the historical struggle of women.
A major issue of concern that emerged in the seminar was the expansion of a security model that is militarizing living spaces. An example of that is the declaration of a state of emergency in the north of Paraguay. This and other similar measures are being used to criminalize and limit protest in the Southern Americas. Click to read more about it in the final declaration of the meeting (in Spanish): http://www.marchemondiale.org/structure/cn-groupes/ameriques/paraguay/2011/declaracion-oct2011/es
On the 24th and at various times throughout  the seminar, participants practiced "batucada" (drums) and on the 25th, participants collectively painted a mural.
At the end of the seminar, representatives from each country met to determine collectively the steps that should be taken towards achieving their common work. They identified some issues for common actions in the region such as:
-Transnational mining companies and agribusiness issues. The WMW is engaged in protests against the company Barrick in the affected communities in Argentina, and other similar conflicts. WMW organizations in Argentina and Paraguay are also engaged in the tribunal against transnational companies, which is examining the cases of companies such as Monsanto, Cargill, Telefonica, Microsoft and mining companies. The challenge is to think beyond their impact on women and to consider how the strategies employed by these companies benefit from the use of patriarchal structures in our society.
- Trafficking of women and girls for sexual exploitation and slave labor. The number of peasant and indigenous girls who are disappearing is increasing, a trend that is related to security schemes employed by former dictatorships in the region and continue today.
- Legalization of abortion. It is anticipated that Argentina and Uruguay will pass laws to legalize abortion. This may lead to a new opportunity to discuss the increasing criminalization of women in Brazil.
- Militarization and criminalization of protest. Participants will follow-up on the issues discussed at the seminar, such as declaring a state of emergency and the increase in military spending in conjunction with the decision of the Americas to monitor the situation in Colombia, Haiti and Honduras.
Concerning dates of mobilization:
WMW is involved in organizing the People's Summit, to be held parallel the UN Conference Rio +20. The results of the WMW meetings in Brazil will be systematized and the information shared with other countries as a first step in determing how we at the WMW  can be involved in this process. The summit is scheduled to take place at the end of June 2012, and various groups are mobilizing to develop a broad-based “call for actions” to be carried out simultaneously to the summit.


EUROPE

In Greece the women are fighting back

In Greece, for the last 18 months, strikes have been organised by trade-unions and social movements against the successive and overwhelming neoliberal measures. Huge crowds have been participating, as well as many workers' sectors , mainly from the state and public sector.
Sissy Vovou, from the Greek WMW  Greece, has informed us that “the country is facing its most vicious anti-working class and anti-social government since the war. They are trying to rob workers of their institutionalised rights: work protection legislation, wages, environmental protection, democratic rights, common goods, pension funds, employment”.
The first victim of this crisis was the social security sector, which is essential for women. Its budget has been radically reduced, and many women working in this sector are losing their jobs. Unemployment in general is also rising rapidly, and it is currently at about 17% (official rate), with women’s unemployment at 20% of women’s labour force, and men's unemployment at 14%. An increasing number of people are facing poverty today, with women the majority in this category.
“The presence of women in general struggles is very strong and this is why we consider women as being “a dynamic resistance factor in the framework of the crisis” (title given to a  meeting in Athens central square in October)”.
The Greek WMW will once again be in the streets on the 25th November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, to shout their slogans and encourage solidarity actions. As part of these actions, they will highlight that "while violence against women is rising, the supporting infrastructure is being drastically reduced”.  Click to read the complete report sent by Sissy Vovou http://www.marchemondiale.org/structure/cn-groupes/europe/grece/svoct2011/en.


WMW present in October journey of mobilization


The WMW was present at the October mobilizations that took place in Greece and other countries in Europe. In Portugal, they joined over 100,000 demonstrators from Lisbon and six other cities to march against austerity measures and for democracy in a country where the International Monetary Fund, the European Central Bank and the European Union, strongly influence the rule of the government. Their measures attack rights, risk increase in job termination, and increase the unemployment rate and job instability; these factors deepen and perpetuate the poverty of women. Almerinda Bento, from the WMW Portugal, noted that "women's fundamental rights are being threatened as the distribution of contraceptive pill and vaccines to prevent cervical cancer are limited”.
In Catalonia, protests denounced the antidemocratic arrests of people involved in the June 15 demonstrations in Ciutadella. To read other information about the October events  visit the links below:
http://15october.net
https://sites.google.com/site/anticapitalistjourney


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This Newsletter is edited by the World March of Women International Secretariat (IS) and distributed by email.
Contact details: rua Ministro Costa e Silva, 36 • Pinheiros, São Paulo, SP • Brazil • Postal code: 05417-080 • Tel: +55 11 3032-3243 •
Fax: +55 11 3032-3239 • Email: info@marchemondiale.org •Site: http://www.worldmarchofwomen.org
Collaborations in this edition: Alessandra Ceregatti, Miriam Nobre, Nalu Faria, Sissy Vouvou
Translation and revision: Alessandra Ceregatti, Celia Alldridge, Chloé Derasse, Clara Carbunar, Diana di Battista, Jorie Dugan, Monica Salom Photos: WMW International Secretariat archives
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