"YOUR BODY BELONGS TO YOU" - PHYSICAL INTEGRITY AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH FOR WOMEN FROM THE RURAL AREA

Short description of project:

In May - August 2006 A.L.E.G. developed an information campaign on sexual violence and reproductive health for women from 12 rural communities from the county of Sibiu (Atel, Axente Sever, Bazna, Blajel, Biertan, Brateiu, Dârlos, Hoghilag, Loamnes, Laslea, Nocrich, Mosna) and 3 small town (Dumbraveni, Saliste and Miercurea Sibiului) which have a segment of Roma population. The methods used by the campaign were public information sessions, meetings with the local authorities, policemen and physicians who work in those areas, counselling, issue and dissemination of printed educational materials.

Our project came as a response to the local need of information identifying during a previous project implemented by the Sibiu Red Cros, A.R.A.P.A.M.E.S.U. and the Sibiu Public Health Department - the Info Social Project.

The inovative aspect of the "Your body belongs to you" campaign redided in the complex approach of women's rights while also promoting women's right to physical integrity and reproductive health.

The project targeted women from rural communities - most of them with limited acces to information on reproductive health and their right to be protected against sexual abuse, as well as women living in patriarchal communities where they often suffer sexual aggressions; we also focused on those responsible to intervene, as their prejudices may affect the way in which the victim's rights are being protected. The project facilitated the collaboration between local authorities, public services and NGOs and this is the most efficient way to ensure sustainability for community actions which promote women's rights.

Our partners in this project were: The Sibiu County Council, The Sibiu County Police Inspectorate, the Sibiu Local Council, the Sibiu Public Health Department.

The project was financed by: the Dutch Embassy through the MATRA - KAP program and the Mama Cash foundation.

At the first edition of the Volunteers' Gala organised by the Sibiu Red Cross

the prize for The most successful project went to our project

“Your Body Belongs to You”.

The project relevance for human rights development

The project "Your Body Belongs to You" was directly linked to human rights development in remote communities; in other words, it tried to help people from rural areas get useful information and adopt positive attitudes towards women's rights to reproductive health and physical integrity.

The project contributed to the reduction of health hazards such as STD, maternal mortality, unwanted or high-risk pregnancies and also to the fight against myths on sexual violence, stimatization of rape victims and violation of human rights through the so-called "corrective marriage" (raped girls are forced by their family to marry the man that raped them to avoid public humiliation), a practice reported in The Reproductive Rights of Romanian Women, a Shaddow Report", published in 2000 by Center for Reproductive Law and Policy, NY, and submitted to the CEDAW.

By signing the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Directed Against Women (CEDAW) the Romanian state is bound to take measures to fight and prevent violence against women in all its forms. Such educational campaigns come to support the fulfilment of these obligations. CEDAW draws attention on the improvement of the situation of women in rural areas.

Results achieved:

In each community, the A.L.E.G. campaign team approached policemen, social assistants and family physicians. Their open-mindedness and professionalism in relation to this issue varied from one community to the next. “some remarcably positive aspects were Atel, Blajel, Dumbraveni, Loamnes and Biertan. We also appreciated the extremely high interest shown by the Police towards the A.L.E.G. inniitiative in all communities” (Eniko Gall, campaign coordinator).

During the campaign we distributed informational materials, i.e.: 1000 brochures 'Your Body Belongs to You" on sexual aggression, 120 campaign posters, 1300 flyers on women's health, reproductive health and domestic violence; over 20 posters on contraception. Beside the informative materials drawn-up by A.L.E.G., the Public Health Department and the County Police Inspectorate brought their own materials.

A.L.E.G. also carried out a study on the attitudes of women from the rural areas towards sexual aggression. We interviewed 240 women between 14 and 50 years old. Sexual aggression is seen by most respondents as a "very bad" deed (for instance 89% think that is is "very bad" when a child is sexually abused by a member of the family") but the tolerance becomes more moderate with the context: only 71% feel that it is very bad for a girl pupil to be touched by her school teacher. And even more disturbing: only 46% think that it is very bad for a husband to force his wife to have intercourse when she does not want to (although this is classified as a crime of spousal rape, unfortunately it is almost never reported). In what concerns expectations related to the intervention of authorities, 80% of the women believe that it is very bad if a denounced sexual aggressor remains unpunished.

In each community, the A.L.E.G. team of counsellors carried out the following activities:

- A public session on prevention of sexual violence and promotion of women's health

- Free individual counselling, on request

- Dissemination of educational materials on: the prevention of sexual violence, victims support, women's rights and reproductive health

- Discussions with the policeman, the social assistant and the physicial from that community aimed at improving their intervention in cases of sexual violence

- a survey concerning the perception on sexual violence

- provision of support for the creation of  a local women's rights group

The campaign team

Coordinator: Eniko Gall

Cristina Marcu

Cristiana Strava

Irina Ivan

Fabian Badoi

Liviu Gaja

Volunteers

Basaraba Cristina

Muntean Simona

Pascu Cristina

Horhat Rucsandra

Radu Alina

Popa Victor

Prodea Iulian

Vasile Izabela

Nanut Felicia

Olariu Andreea

Press conference and workshop: “Sexual aggression. Effects. Intervention”.

The project ended on 30 November 2006 with a press conference and a workshop with the topic "Sexual Aggression. Effects. Intervention." The purpose of the press conference was to raise the awareness on sexual violence in the rural areas of Sibiu. At the conference we showed the results of the project and of the survey made during the campaign on attitudes towards sexual violence in the 15 rural communities of the county of Sibiu. Still at the end of the campaign, A.L.E.G. organised a workshop with the topic "Sexual Aggression. - Causes. Effects. Intervention." which was addressed to specialist who intervene in one way or another in cases of sexual aggression: policemen, social assistance, psychologists, physicians. The workshop was coordinated by Sorina Bumbulut, psycho-therapist, from the Artemis Women's Association Against Violence from Cluj Napoca.