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WIDOWS FOR PEACE THROUGH DEMOCRACY (WPD)
Roundtable at 53rd UN CSW 2009
Thursday, March 5th, llth Floor Church House, 6 -7.30 pm
WPD/UKWNC ROUNDTABLE ON WIDOWS AS CARERS IN CONTEXT OF HIV/AIDS, CONFLICT, VIOLENCE AND POVERTY
The priority theme of the 53rd Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women is: The equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men, including caregiving in the context of HIV/AIDS
WPD regards the selection of this topic as a unique opportunity to increase awareness of the significant and heavy responsibilities that widows carry, both as young widowed mothers and as older and elderly widowed grandmothers, in caring for orphaned children and grandchildren and other dependents (the old, the sick, and the frail) in communities where so many men have died.
Insufficient attention has been paid to the needs and the roles of widows in the context of the AIDS pandemic and caring generally. In many developing countries widowhood itself is a "social and economic death". Many widows survive in extreme poverty, unable to enjoy their fundamental human rights (as enshrined, in CEDAW and described in the Beijing Platform for Action)
Millions of widows, solely responsible for caring, feeding, housing many dependents, face innumerable obstacles and challenges since they are denied rights, for example, to inherit from their husbands, own land and property, access essential services that would provide them income and the capacity to fulfill their caring obligations. On widowhood they risk being "chased off "from their homes; deprived of their property; face marginalization and stigma as well as abandonment as IDPs and in refugee camps Coping strategies – often life-threatening - include withdrawing children from school, dependence on exploited child labour, giving away or selling the girl child to forced early marriage (often to HIV infected widowers), and prostitution. Often illiterate, widows are least likely to be able to access training for employment, or income-generating activities. Lack of land means lack of collateral to secure credit or a loan. The poverty of widows impacts upon the whole of society since it is they who have the responsibility for raising the future generation, and caring for the sick.
It is imperative that the HIV/AIDS Caring Issues are seen from the perspective of widowhood, also of conflict and peace building, scenarios, and within the prism of implementation of UNSCR 1325 and 1820. Governments and the international community need to ensure that peace accords accommodate the needs of widows for support in their caring roles; that new constitutions and laws expressly address the needs, roles and rights of widows to fully participate in society and in development and reconstruction, are protected from violence, and are relieved of their poverty, fear, and abandonment. Strategies to achieve the Millennium Development Goals must also address the poverty and marginalisation of widows, and acknowledge widows' crucial roles as carers and providers for the families who have been fragmented by armed conflict and ethnic cleansing.
The CSW WIDOWS AS CARERS MEETING plans to hear testimonies on this topic from representatives of widows' organizations from countries such as Nepal, Nigeria, Malawi, DRC, Iraq and Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Kenya and Uganda and disseminate its report to all relevant organizations. widows' associations, in order that widows' voices being finally heard so as to influence decision-making and policy development.
The UK Women's National Committee supports this meeting and is accrediting WPD, as a UK based iNGO, to the CSW. WPD invites contributions to this important meeting. Contact: Margaret Owen. Director WPD director.wpd@googlemail.com. (44) 0207 603 9733. Cell: 07770 945 916. PLEASE MEET US ON THE 5TH MARCH AT CHURCH HOUSE, 11TH FLOOR
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