medica mondiale Annual Report 2019

Dear Reader,

What should we do when everything is suddenly different? The global outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic has shown us how quickly realities can change. Schools, hospitals and whole countries have to adapt their structures and plans – with drastic consequences for each and every one of us.

Crises can magnify society’s problems as marginalised groups are affected more but considered less when devising solutions. In all crises we see that patriarchal structures strengthen – with fatal consequences for women and social cohesion. And the women who particularly suffer are those who need particular protection.

In this respect, the year 2019 was unfortunately no exception. I was shaken, among others, by the situation of the Yazidi women. The genocide committed against the Yazidi minority by the so-called Islamic State also involved the kidnapping, forced marriage and rape of thousands of Yazidi women. According to Iraqi law, the children who these women gave birth to while in captivity – who were almost always born of rape – do not count as Yazidi but assume the Muslim identity of their biological fathers. The Yazidi authorities were also unable to persuade themselves to accept the children as part of the Yazidi community. This forced the mothers to either say goodbye to their community or give up their children.

In order to continue defending women’s rights during times of crisis we have to take action together before it is too late. Our partners are currently demonstrating how important it is to establish strong networks of women’s rights organisations which can still function under pressure. During the past year there were impressive developments in this regard. In the region of the Great Lakes in Africa, three of our partner organisations began to work together across borders. In Afghanistan and Iraq, and in south-eastern Europe too, our support helped our partners to initiate regular networking meetings on specialist topics and political strategies.

It is these networks of women’s rights activists who give me courage and hope. We need to support and fund these alliances so that in the face of crises, we are powerful and determined.

Dr Monika Hauser