Multiple Zonta clubs in France coordinated a special day to work together. The Zonta Club of Mâcon is just one of the many clubs in District 27 Area 02 that illuminated monuments or town halls in orange light to raise awareness against violence against women and to spread the Zonta Says NO message in their communities.
Whether migrant women are fleeing their countries of birth to escape conflict, exploitation, the after effects of natural disasters or humanitarian crises, or migrating by choice in search of greater economic opportunities, women migrants face a multitude of risks.
Nepal has long been a country of origin for labor migration and trafficking in persons, particularly women and children, for the purposes of sexual, labor and other forms of exploitation. Trafficking often takes place as part of undocumented migration and is a serious violation of human rights.
In the aftermath of the April and May 2015 earthquakes, Nepal faces a heightened risk of human trafficking and unsafe migration. Zonta International has committed US$1,000,000 to UN Women to create sustainable foundations for addressing the nexus between human trafficking and foreign labor migration of women and girls in Nepal.
Learn more at http://foundation.zonta.org/Nepal.
Zonta Club members on Kauai show off their banner saying no to violence against women. From left are Edie Ignacio Neumiller, Marge Akana, Laura Cristobal Andersland, MaBel Fujiuchi, Dimples Kano, Josie Cortez, Neva Olson, Sue Kanoho and Laura Peters. Back row from left, Carla Kaser, Jeanette Bonilla, Jo Grande and Marg Navarro. | The Garden Island
At the Zonta Club of Kauai’s General Membership meeting, the members supported the ZONTA SAYS NO to Violence Against Women by unveiling their new Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women banner. (The below article was published in The Garden Island Newspaper, Kauai Hawaii.)
Zonta Club of Kauai joins national campaign against domestic violence
WAILUA — Zonta Club of Kauai is saying no — no to violence against women. We want to stop domestic violence if we can,” said Edie Ignacio Neumiller, club member.
During its meeting Thursday at the Hilton Garden Inn Kauai, the club unveiled its banner that clearly stated its stance and joined a national campaign.
Throughout the 16 Days of Activism, Nov. 25 to this Saturday, the “Zonta Says No to Violence Against Women” campaign encourages all Zonta clubs and districts to participate by sharing their new and ongoing actions to end violence against women and girls.
Zonta Club of Kauai invites the community to join the international effort.
“There’s been awareness,” Neumiller said. “We want to move toward action, resources and helping other women.”
The Kauai club is looking to partner with other groups to share its mission. Through Saturday, members plan to promote awareness of domestic violence. “Violence against women and girls is one of the most pervasive human rights violations and a global epidemic,” according to a press release. “It knows no national or cultural barriers and affects millions of women and girls in peacetime and conflict.”
Twice a year the Zonta Club of Geelong displays four large signs at different locations around the city. The four signs are more than 1-meter square and are designed to be used on municipal notice boards which are strategically placed on the verge of high volume roads around the municipality.
The signs are put up for a month in March and April and then again in November and December to coincide with the 16 Days of Activism as well as a local Month of Action to end men’s violence against women. Each time the signs are erected, the locations are changed so that over a period of time they appear in all areas of the municipality.
Members of the Zonta Club of Bunbury participated in their local community’s White Ribbon Day March and Memorial Service. They presented 19 silhouettes that represented the number of deaths from domestic violence in Western Australia from 1/1/16 until now.
The Zonta Club of Basel invited to a public lecture and panel discussion about the Istanbul Convention and its ratification process in Switzerland. The event took place at the University of Basel on 30 November during the 16 Days of Activism for the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign.
A legal expert from Women Lawyers Switzerland, and a consultant from TERRE DES FEMMES Switzerland, a counseling organization, provided legal and practical insight. Club President Petra Kitschmann presented Zonta to the audience.
Some of the key learnings
o There are many laws and too many authorities involved when filing a suit as a victim of violence; the process becomes complicated, lengthy and expensive. This prevents people from taking legal action and allows perpetrators continuing to do evil.
o The status of migrant woman has to become independent of her marital situation in order that she is not forced to leave the country in case of a divorce from a violent man.
o Financial resources for counseling, women’s shelters, etc. are under constant threat and hence it is very difficult to work on real improvements.
Therefore, it is important that we as Zontians take all the opportunities to raise all voices for improvements and ensure that Zonta becomes visible as a stakeholder in women’s rights on all levels (local, regional, national).
The Zonta Club of Rockhampton Inc assembled this display at a local shopping center. Not only does this display promote the 16 Days of Activism, members have also manned the display enlightening the general public about the work of Zonta International generally and The Zonta Club of Rockhampton Inc in particular.
The Zonta Club of Maryborough, District 22 has increased public awareness and improved their community footprint through a display of orange paper flowers in their town’s Market Day. Each flower represents a woman or child that has sought the services of the Club’s local women’s shelter.
The orange ladies (Zollies) were placed in high traffic businesses for the 16 Days of Activism. Each business has had their photograph shared through social media showing their “pledge” against violence towards women and girls. The Club supported the local police in a White Ribbon event as well as hosting a barbecue at a local hardware warehouse. At these events, the Club promoted the 16 Days of Activism campaign and gained much needed support, building on the “active bystander” role of all in the community.
Photo credit: KK
During the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign, the Zonta Club of Feldbach, Austria, is educating its community about its “Zonta Harbour” program. On the first day of the campaign, the club passed out information and collected donations at its city’s yearly Christmas market.
Between 2014 – 2016, the club has collected and invested approximately 25.000 Euro in the program, which has provided safe hotel accommodations and a 60-square-meter flat to about 300 overnight stays to women and children.
In Zonta Harbour’s first year, the club paid for hotel accommodations for 254 overnight stays. In December 2015, the municipality of Feldbach offered the club a flat for the next 10 years, paying rent and running costs. The club furnished the space and is paying for heating and electricity.
The women are allowed to live in the space for a maximum of three months, while receiving advice from experts at Innova, a help and counseling center that partners with the Zonta Club of Feldbach.
The club hosted seven women for a total of 268 overnight stays last year, in addition to hotel accommodations for two women.
This year, the space has been in constant use, and the club is continuing to pay for hotel stays.
The Zonta Club of Caboolture, Australia, set up a display, which runs until 10 December—the end of the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign, in their local library for the 16 Days of Activism campaign.
The exhibit aims to raise community awareness on violence against women and children. It features 16 orange cardboard ladies with information about violence against women, as well as artwork by a local indigenous artist. The messages explain what different types of violence look like and where victims can go for assistance.
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