| Country: |
Lebanon |
|
Organization: |
Lebanese Women Democratic Gathering |
| Address: |
P.O. Box: 14-5620
Beirut – Lebanon |
| Tel: |
(961-1) 370 189 |
| Fax: |
(961-1) 370 189 |
| E-mail: |
rdfl@inco.com.lb |
| Coverage: |
National NGO, with 145 members working in the following Lebanese regions: Beirut, Southern Suburb of Beirut, Mount Lebanon, Baalbek in the Bekaa valley, and Tripoli in Northern Lebanon. |
| Objectives: |
1. Raising awareness towards the elimination of violence against women;
2. Providing legal, psychological and social counseling to battered women and girls;
3. Promoting women’s status in society and insuring her participation in all spheres of public life;
4. Promoting women’s human rights and working towards the elimination of all forms of gender discrimination ;
5. Working towards the implementation of all clauses of international treaties to amend discriminatory legislation and more particularly concerning personal status, citizenship and social welfare.
|
| Approach: |
Training; awareness raising. |
| Intervention Sectors: |
Education: Literacy training programs.
Health: Family planning; sexual & reproductive health.
Young women’s rights: Equal opportunities; gender based violence.
Capacity Building: Leadership training.
Political Leadership: Good governance; good citizenship. |
| Leadership: |
Percentage of young women’s membership: 15%
Young women’s participation at decision-making levels, as follows:
As board members--> 0%
As committee members--> 5%
As partners in program planning and decision-making--> 5%
As participants and volunteers--> 20% |
| Networking: |
Member of National platform: Lebanese Women’s Council.
Member of Regional platforms:
1. AISHA (The Arab Women’s Forum);
2. Arab Democratic Women ‘s Association;
3. Network of Arab NGOs for Development. |
| Guidelines/ Participation: |
Young women’s participation:
1. As participants in training sessions;
2. As organizers of awareness raising workshops. |
| Project: |
Working towards the Elimination of Violence against Women. |
| Brief: |
1. Welcoming women victims of violence and providing them with free legal aid, in addition to psychological and social counseling;
2. Organizing public awareness sessions and encourage victims of violence to speak up about domestic violence and resort to the counseling centers/shelters for assistance;
3. Conducting training workshops for staff members to enable them for work with victims of violence;
Activating women’s participation in the economic, social and political fields. |
| Duration: |
Since 1997 |
| Location: |
Beirut, Beirut Southern Suburb, Zouk Mosbeh, and Baalbeck in the Bekaa. |
| Target Group: |
Women victims from all age groups; In 2001, RDFL welcomed an average of 127 victims from all ages. |
| Challenges: |
The need for experts and specialized staff. |
| Future Plans: |
1. Organizing awareness raising sessions on gender based violence targeting high school and university students;
2. Sensitizing the Lebanese society on this issue through a media campaign;
Establishing a hotline project to provide legal and social counseling. |
| Project 2: |
Education on Women’s Human Rights. |
| Objectives: |
1. To promote human rights education and ensure the advancement of women’s rights;
2. To protect human rights and women’s human rights;
3. To examine biased laws and rally support for the amendment of discriminatory legislation in accordance with international treaties.
|
| Brief: |
The lack of awareness on women’s rights is a major obstacle that prevents women from attaining equality in all spheres of life. In this light, RDFL launched in 1993 a comprehensive legal literacy program, and has been implementing since 2001 training workshops on women’s human rights.
Through interactive workshops, participants examine national legislation governing women’s rights, in contrast with international human rights instruments.
Issues addressed include: Personal status, citizenship, social welfare and labor laws. |
| Duration: |
1993-on going. |
| Target Group: |
University students, employees, NGOs, and RDFL executives and members. |
| Challenges: |
The need for qualified trainers active in human rights education. |
| Results: |
In 2002, more than 240 trainees (75% of whom are youth) received training in human rights education. In addition, 14 awareness-raising sessions were organized throughout Lebanese high-school for the benefit of 475 young women and men. |
| Future Plans: |
To conduct human rights education workshops with a special focus on discriminatory legislation, on violence against women and on women’s human rights. |
