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A Voice For the Voiceless

The Advocacy Project helps marginalized communities to tell their story, claim their rights and produce social change. We recruit graduate students to volunteer as Peace Fellows with partners.

The Impact of Service "Speaking with locals and living in a country is the best way to learn about the real lives of citizens, not just the stories in the mainstream media. I will be more critical of what I read as a result of this experience. I also feel even more grateful for my education, and I feel a stronger responsibility to assist others who do not have resources or access to opportunities in their communities." Maria Skouras (New York University) volunteered in 2011 as a Peace Fellow for eHomemakers in Malaysia. For more 2011 feedback click here.

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Partner Campaigns > Combating Sexual ... > Campaign

Campaign

The crisis of sexual violence in South Kivu is an assault on society because women hold society together, as mothers and bread-winners. SOSFED has launched an integrated program which helps survivors to recover from their ordeal and reduce their vulnerability to rape in a way that promotes good development. The program is implementing six core activities in 2011.





TREATMENT

SOSFED center managers are trained to provide psychosocial support. But the best treatment may come from being with other women.

Watch AP's tribute to these brave women in the video, "I Fear Nothing" (left).










RISK REDUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT


SOSFED is developing several activities which will help women to avoid travelling alone to isolated areas where they might be attacked. The project rents fields where women can cultivate together, and is developing stoves which run on agricultural waste rather than charcoal.

Watch a video on Communal Cultivation for Food and Security (left).









Watch a video on Water and Risk Reduction (left).














LEARNING SKILLS THROUGH EMBROIDERY


In 2010, 120 women made embroidered panels for the Ahadi Quilt. In the process, they learned valuable skills. The project purchased two sewing machines for the centers, which past and present beneficiaries will use to earn an income from making clothes and other family products.

See the video Making the Ahadi Quilts  (left).








PROMOTING THE MESSAGE OF RISK REDUCTION


SOSFED has made several billboards, which carry a strong message and are prominently displayed in the community. A local DeeJay has also recorded a hiphop song about avoiding sexual attack, which is played regularly on local radio.











BUILDING A LOCAL CONSTITUENCY

SOSFED is working with other local civil society organizations in Uvira and Fizi territories, which bring different but complementary skills to the fight against sexual violence.













INTERNATIONAL OUTREACH THROUGH QUILTING

The Advocacy Project is using the Ahadi Quilt to publicize sexual violence internationally, and win support for the message of risk reduction.


See the quilt exhibitions in Geneva (left), Berlin (middle) and Washington (right).

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