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April 2002 - Snapshots of Home and Elsewhere - Africa
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Peace before all elseMany national coordinating bodies in Africa adopted national platforms to adapt the world demands to conditions in different countries. Apart from the two demands concerning sexual orientation, which, for cultural reasons, were eliminated for the most part, members of the various national coordinating bodies stated that they encountered "no major difficulties, because the two themes-violence and women's poverty-are common to all women's day to day experience" (Mali). "All the other demands relate to the daily reality in our country" (Benin). Efforts at mobilization were vastly successful, particularly in light of the obstacles of distance, communications and financial limitations that are the reality of most countries. Women held workshops, conferences, meetings and marches, and produced promotional and popular education materials. African women were very involved in creating verses for the World March theme song! Building peaceThe main concern of African women is putting an end to conflict and bringing about peace. This is a central concern in a continent that has seen a constant succession of wars over the past 40 years. Women's associations from Burundi, Congo Kinshasa (South and North Kivu) and Rwanda united as the African Great Lakes sub-region to "demand the cessation of war, condemn the perpetrators of genocide and track them down wherever they are," and demand that women participate actively in searching for solutions to conflict. Women from Angola, Chad, Congo Brazzaville and Sierra Leone expressed similar demands. |
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Last modified 2006-03-23 03:09 PM This item is available in Français, English, Español |
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