Claire Mallison
Hearing directly from the brave people that struggle day in and day out against human rights abuses, whether they have been silenced for their dissent, discriminated against, ignored by authorities, or left without recourse to justice, has to be the most inspiring part of my job. And the voices I have heard in 2010 are no exception.
A couple of weeks ago, Amnesty International staff and a collection of supporters huddled around a speaker phone just before midnight in the hope of hearing the voice of Burma’s best known political prisoner Aung San Suu Kyi, just days after her release. It wasn’t to be that night – we just couldn’t get a line into Burma – but, determined, we tried again the following evening.
Packing up, disappointed, it all changed. At a moment’s notice, a few lucky stragglers were able to listen in on a Skype call between our colleague in Malaysia and one of the most inspiring human rights defenders in the world. Aung San Suu Kyi took questions from youth activists living in countries around the Asia Pacific. She asked those on the line to continue to fight for the release of the more than 2,200 political prisoners held in deplorable conditions in Burma under vaguely defined laws used to criminalise peaceful dissent.
She spoke about the need to increase awareness of the challenges faced by the people of Burma and the role ASEAN can play in pressing for change. After spending 15 of the last 21 years in detention, Aung San Suu Kyi was struck by a renewed sense of enthusiasm she sensed in the youth on the Burmese streets. And this enthusiasm will no doubt be needed in spades. Because while Aung San Suu Kyi’s release is certainly welcome, it only marks the end of an unfair sentence that was illegally extended, and is by no means a concession on the part of the authorities.
Tapora Isorua and Sarah Garap are two more courageous women whose voices were launched onto the international stage this year as they held their government to account for the staggering rates of violence against women in Papua New Guinea (PNG). The UN Committee for the Elimination of Discrimination against Women met in New York to review PNG’s efforts to address a situation in which many women experience domestic and sexual violence and many women and girls are tortured or killed due to allegations of sorcery.
Tapora and Sarah told the Committee that there is still no law specifically addressing domestic violence in PNG and asked that Government to provide funding for women’s shelters and emergency services. It was the first time this government had formally been held to account by the UN for the country’s extremely high rates of violence against women and girls.
The weight of responsibility did not pass Sarah unnoticed. She told us that, “There was a moment where I felt I wasn’t really ready. I had to take in those deep breaths because it was, like, wow, I’m in the peoples’ parliament reporting on discrimination against women.”
All Tapora had to do was to think of the women in the market before she spoke. “No one has ever done this for our country before,” she said. Encouraging words from the PNG Government and a commitment to introducing laws addressing domestic violence and the funding of safe houses for women ensued.
We still have a long way to go to turn these words into action. But we wouldn’t be here at all were it not for the sustained courage of so many.
When it comes to women’s rights, Indonesia is another place where there is more that can be done. Government restrictions and discriminatory traditions are threatening the lives of many Indonesian woman and girls by putting reproductive health services beyond their reach. While in Indonesia just last month, Amnesty International met with individuals, organisations and numerous officials to try and navigate a way forward. I also met some of the 2.6 million domestic workers in Indonesia that are not protected by current legislation safeguarding workers' rights.
The recognition that these women and girls must be afforded the same level of protection as other workers in Indonesia is long overdue. I particularly remember a conversation I had with two young domestic workers named Ecco and Ros. At 13 and 15 years old respectively, both women lived thousands of kilometres away from their families. I was humbled by the strong interest they took in me, in my life, and what I was doing. They were so curious about which countries I'd been to.
That reminder of the inequality faced by thousands of young girls - strong women - that just haven’t had the same choices that I've had, spurs me on more than anything. The empty chair at the recent Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo, was a timely reminder of the power of the individual voice in exposing injustice. And it is these voices that I will take into 2011,Amnesty’ International’s 50th year.
After all, it was the voice of a solitary man - outraged at the imprisonment of two Portuguese students’ who raised their wine glasses in a toast to freedom - that gave birth to this international organisation. In 1961, British lawyer Peter Benenson published an appeal for amnesty in The Observer newspaper that was subsequently reprinted in outlets across the world. He called on people everywhere to add their voices to a mass letter-writing campaign to pressure governments to set such prisoners free. And it is this global cacophony of voices that has carried through to today.
As Tapora said in New York, “[I]t’s comforting to know that you have the international community behind you … so it makes you feel like you’re not alone in your struggles”.
Claire Mallinson is the national director of Amnesty International Australia
http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/42592.html
Hearing directly from the brave people that struggle day in and day out against human rights abuses, whether they have been silenced for their dissent, discriminated against, ignored by authorities, or left without recourse to justice, has to be the most inspiring part of my job. And the voices I have heard in 2010 are no exception.
A couple of weeks ago, Amnesty International staff and a collection of supporters huddled around a speaker phone just before midnight in the hope of hearing the voice of Burma’s best known political prisoner Aung San Suu Kyi, just days after her release. It wasn’t to be that night – we just couldn’t get a line into Burma – but, determined, we tried again the following evening.
Packing up, disappointed, it all changed. At a moment’s notice, a few lucky stragglers were able to listen in on a Skype call between our colleague in Malaysia and one of the most inspiring human rights defenders in the world. Aung San Suu Kyi took questions from youth activists living in countries around the Asia Pacific. She asked those on the line to continue to fight for the release of the more than 2,200 political prisoners held in deplorable conditions in Burma under vaguely defined laws used to criminalise peaceful dissent.
She spoke about the need to increase awareness of the challenges faced by the people of Burma and the role ASEAN can play in pressing for change. After spending 15 of the last 21 years in detention, Aung San Suu Kyi was struck by a renewed sense of enthusiasm she sensed in the youth on the Burmese streets. And this enthusiasm will no doubt be needed in spades. Because while Aung San Suu Kyi’s release is certainly welcome, it only marks the end of an unfair sentence that was illegally extended, and is by no means a concession on the part of the authorities.
Tapora Isorua and Sarah Garap are two more courageous women whose voices were launched onto the international stage this year as they held their government to account for the staggering rates of violence against women in Papua New Guinea (PNG). The UN Committee for the Elimination of Discrimination against Women met in New York to review PNG’s efforts to address a situation in which many women experience domestic and sexual violence and many women and girls are tortured or killed due to allegations of sorcery.
Tapora and Sarah told the Committee that there is still no law specifically addressing domestic violence in PNG and asked that Government to provide funding for women’s shelters and emergency services. It was the first time this government had formally been held to account by the UN for the country’s extremely high rates of violence against women and girls.
The weight of responsibility did not pass Sarah unnoticed. She told us that, “There was a moment where I felt I wasn’t really ready. I had to take in those deep breaths because it was, like, wow, I’m in the peoples’ parliament reporting on discrimination against women.”
All Tapora had to do was to think of the women in the market before she spoke. “No one has ever done this for our country before,” she said. Encouraging words from the PNG Government and a commitment to introducing laws addressing domestic violence and the funding of safe houses for women ensued.
We still have a long way to go to turn these words into action. But we wouldn’t be here at all were it not for the sustained courage of so many.
When it comes to women’s rights, Indonesia is another place where there is more that can be done. Government restrictions and discriminatory traditions are threatening the lives of many Indonesian woman and girls by putting reproductive health services beyond their reach. While in Indonesia just last month, Amnesty International met with individuals, organisations and numerous officials to try and navigate a way forward. I also met some of the 2.6 million domestic workers in Indonesia that are not protected by current legislation safeguarding workers' rights.
The recognition that these women and girls must be afforded the same level of protection as other workers in Indonesia is long overdue. I particularly remember a conversation I had with two young domestic workers named Ecco and Ros. At 13 and 15 years old respectively, both women lived thousands of kilometres away from their families. I was humbled by the strong interest they took in me, in my life, and what I was doing. They were so curious about which countries I'd been to.
That reminder of the inequality faced by thousands of young girls - strong women - that just haven’t had the same choices that I've had, spurs me on more than anything. The empty chair at the recent Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo, was a timely reminder of the power of the individual voice in exposing injustice. And it is these voices that I will take into 2011,Amnesty’ International’s 50th year.
After all, it was the voice of a solitary man - outraged at the imprisonment of two Portuguese students’ who raised their wine glasses in a toast to freedom - that gave birth to this international organisation. In 1961, British lawyer Peter Benenson published an appeal for amnesty in The Observer newspaper that was subsequently reprinted in outlets across the world. He called on people everywhere to add their voices to a mass letter-writing campaign to pressure governments to set such prisoners free. And it is this global cacophony of voices that has carried through to today.
As Tapora said in New York, “[I]t’s comforting to know that you have the international community behind you … so it makes you feel like you’re not alone in your struggles”.
Claire Mallinson is the national director of Amnesty International Australia
http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/42592.html
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