FROM:NextGenderation-list
======================================================
I am now working as a Research Manager for People
Opposing Women's
Abuse
(POWA) in Johannesburg, South Africa. POWA is a well
established NGO
and
has the capacity to accomodate interns. The work that
we are doing here
is
national and continental and, is very challenging.
Suffice to say, it
is a
good opportunity.
Below please find some information about POWA. Please
forward this
email
to those who might be interested.
Regards,
Nadira Omarjee
--------------------------------
PEOPLE OPPOSING WOMEN ABUSE - A BRIEF OUTLINE
POWA MISSION
To be a powerful, multi-skilled service provider,
specializing in the
eradication of violence against women to enhance
womens quality of
life.
POWA VISION
To create a safe society that does not tolerant
violence against women,
and where women are powerful, self- reliant, equal and
respected.
BACKGROUND OF THE ORGANISATION
People Opposing Women Abuse was established in 1979 as
a response to
the
high levels of violence against women experienced in
the community.
POWA
has thus, effectively been operational for the past 23
years. The
Organisation is a registered non-profit Section 21
Company
Registration
No. 2001/003984/08. POWA was primarily initiated by
volunteers and
offered
services to women who experienced domestic violence,
sexual harassment,
rape and adult survivors of incest. The Organisation
has a strong
gender
sensitive stance and seeks to empower women through
the process of
counselling, education, advocacy and lobbying.
POWA is based in Berea, in the Johannesburg inner city
area. We serve
the
entire Gauteng, and have branches in Katlehong and
Vosloorus in the
East
Rand, Sebokeng in the Vaal and Soweto. Our clients are
drawn mainly
from
the Magisterial districts of Johannesburg, Pretoria,
Vereeniging,
Soweto,
Wynberg, Randburg, Germiston, Thokoza, Kempton Park
and all the West
Rand
areas. Our helpline takes calls nationally, although
we deal mainly
with
women in the Gauteng Province. POWA was the first
organisation in
Gauteng
to set up a shelter for abused women in 1984. We
currently run two
shelters in the East & West Rands respectively that
accommodate 10
women
and their children at any given time. Although abuse
of women happens
across all sectors of society, our target is primarily
women who come
from
communities with limited or no resources at all, or
those who cannot
afford alternative resources in their areas. These
areas are some of
those that historically have poor infrastructure such
as no street
lighting, unsafe public transport areas etc. This in
turn encourages
the
increase in crime, particularly crimes against women.
These communities
are also characterised by limited employment
opportunities,
overcrowding,
lack of educational facilities, extensive HIV/AIDS
related issues and
alcoholism. All these factors impact very strongly on
violence against
women.
BROAD AIMS OF THE ORGANISATION
The main objectives are:
· To reduce violence against women through the process
of research,
lobbying, advocacy and education for women.
· Through our training and public awareness projects,
we also aim to
reach men, perpetrators and young adults in
particular.
· To empower women through the process of
psychological and legal
support.
· To facilitate the empowerment of women by providing
them and their
children with shelter where there is a need.
· To provide services that include economic
empowerment projects so
as to make our interventions effective and
sustainable.
· To continue lobbying through networks and other
organisations with
similar objectives.
PROBLEM ANALYSIS
If one looks at the continuum of gender-based-violence
in South Africa,
from emotional abuse, through sexual abuse (rape) and
ultimately
intimate
femicide (the killing of ones intimate partner) the
following
statistics
are highlighted. This research was conducted by UNISA
and POWA
respectively, and is acknowledged as realistic by the
South Africa
Police
Services. A woman is raped every 26 seconds, one in
every 4 women is in
an
abusive relationship, and a woman is killed every 6
days by her
intimate
partner in South Africa. This means that in any one
year just over a
million women are raped in South Africa. Sadly
according to the most
recent official statistics only 50 000 (one in twenty)
of these women
report their rape, and only 4 000 convictions (12%)
are secured through
the criminal justice system annually. These are women
in the Gauteng
province alone. This low conviction rate is as a
result of the lack of
understanding and sensitivity to rape survivors by the
justice
personnel.
Poor training and availability of medical personnel
and the police
compound the problem.
An added dynamic to this is the possible contraction
of HIV as a direct
result of rape or ones abusive partner having more
than one sexual
partner outside the intimate relationship. Recent
South African
statistics
show there are at least 1 700 HIV contractions daily.
The most affected
age group is 16-25 years, which is also the age group
that is alleged
to
perpetrate more rapes in any one year. Concurrent to
this pandemic,
there
is also an increase in gang rapes and child rapes, one
of the most
horrific & highly publicised being that of the 9 month
old baby by six
men
in the Northern Cape in November 2001. POWA believes
that the increase
in
gang rapes, the continued belief in the myth that
sleeping with a
virgin
cures HIV/AIDS and other inherent and historical
vulnerabilities make
women more at risk to contract HIV. We therefore need
a service that
will
respond to this scourge in a way that will empower
women and help the
survivors lead a qualitative life. Its within this
context that we
continue our lobbying efforts to pressure government
to provide
affordable
antiretroviral drugs for rape survivors.
POWA VALUES
In responding to the needs of its clients, the Board,
Staff and
Volunteers
of POWA embrace the following values:
· Equal opportunities
· Passion for POWA work
· Mutual support and encouragement
· Recognition of diversity of race & gender skills
· Recognition of the creativity of that individual
· Encouragement of constructive competition
· Recognition of effort
· Commitment to transformation
· Sharing and teamwork
POWA OBJECTIVES & SERVICES
· POWA has a commitment to professionalism,
accessibility,
accountability, confidentiality, and efficiency in
service provision.
· We provide a gender sensitive therapeutic service to
women who
have suffered all forms of abuse, including sexual
harassment and rape.
This includes counselling as well as crisis
intervention.
· We provide shelter to women who have experienced
intimate violence
in their relationships.
· We offer legal advice, court preparation & support
to women who
have been abused or raped.
· We offer meaningful skills training and relevant
self-help
programmes to our clients, as well as support services
to their
children.
· We provide on-going training and capacity building
to our staff,
volunteers and other service providers.
· We offer education awareness programmes to
communities and
organisations, with the specific aim of encouraging
them to take
responsibility for finding solutions to eradicate
violence against
women.
· We facilitate economic empowerment projects for
survivors of abuse
to encourage financial independence and group
networking.
· We offer prevention programmes to facilitate early
recognition of
gender based violence and intervention.
· We investigate the links & relationship between
gender violence &
HIV/AIDS through our multifaceted research projects.
· We advocate and lobby for legislative and policy
changes in the
following sectors: Criminal Justice System, Health,
Welfare, Housing,
Correctional Services, Safety and Security, and
Education.
____
__________________________________________________
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