Grail Link to the United Nations
Network update
Grail and UFER activities
“Women working together to bring
about a world of peace, justice,
equity and renewal of the earth”
P.O. Box 540082,
Bronx, N.Y. 10454
Newsletter #10 November 2014
[email protected]
Commission on the Status of Women-59
CSW-59 will undertake a review of progress made in the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for
Action which was adopted at the 4th World Conference on Women in 1995. The review (Beijing+20) will also address
current challenges that affect the implementation of the Platform for Action, as well as opportunities for achieving gender
equality and the empowerment of women in the post-2015 development agenda.
The Grail wants to sponsor a side event, a panel of girls and young women from the Grail/Grail projects, who will share
their experiences, challenges, hopes for the future as they reflect on the Beijing Platform for Action 20 year history. The
proposed title is: Taking decisions to transform our own lives . Brief description: looking at the Beijing Platform after 20
years of implementation, girls and young women of several countries, with different social, cultural, economic and
political contexts, will be using the CSW-59 space to make their voices heard. They will propose a decision-making
process that will define what they want in their own lives, and for girls in their countries, in the next era.
Grail members are always welcome to attend but we are especially reaching out to girls—meaning girls 18 years old and
younger. Are there girls in any of your projects who would benefit personally and for the group by attending CSW-59,
and, who could contribute? Contact Fuva Muiambo for more information: [email protected]
PRACTICAL NEWS ON CSW-59
Joy Garland attended the CSW-NGO planning meeting and got the following: On-line pre-registration will be open 11
November 2014 through 27 January 2015. AS each organization is limited to 20 registrants, we should start registering
now.. Contact Mary Kay if you plan to attend [email protected]. On the UN Women Website there is clear information
about events that happen before the CSW session and then during the CSW session. The UN Women’s March will take
place in Dag Hammarskjold Plaza 12 noon-2PM on Friday, March 13th. Joy Garland has joined that committee. The
Executive Committee will provide a banner, drums and dancers. A wonderful suggestion was made: provide plain water
(not bottled) to the marchers before they start! We are becoming more conscious of our precious Mother Earth! Everyone
should wear a sash with a motto on it like Peace, Equality, Justice or Beijing 2020. The goal is to have 200 people
marching and shouting chants.
Pressure is mounting for
gender equality —
In her statement at the Economic
Commission for Europe’s
Beijing+20 Regional Review
Meeting in Geneva on 6
November, UN Women Executive
Director Phumzile Mlambo-
Ngcuka urged world leaders to
take a “frank look at progress” for
women’s rights, especially in
economic empowerment, and
peace and security, amid the
number of global crises affecting
women today.
http://www.unwomen.org/
(a side note: Anne Hope
was her teacher in South
Africa! Small world!!!)
2014 Theme: From Peace in the Home to Peace in the World: Remember: wear ORANGE 25th of each month
Let’s Challenge Militarism and End Gender-Based Violence!
Also, a campaign to involve our men: http://www.heforshe.org/
CSW means preparing and giving presentations, learning, long hours, etc. but it also means……..it’s winter so you might
get to ‘see’ snow, and we always have fun: Abida Jamal (Moçambique) and Diana Eusebio (The Bronx)
CSW-57 Grail side event:Girls Speak..Challenges and Responses. Angelica(El Salvador), Julia Lee(WGG Advocate
from the Bronx), UssulaUqueio (Moçambique), Anita Benn(WGG Advocate from the Bronx/Grail contact at AMSU),
Thais da Silva Dias(Brasil), Kathryn Palmer(USA)
CSW-58 Grail/UFER side event: Sacred Activism. Simonetta Romana (Cornwall) introducing the panel: Joana Fialho
(Portugal), Trina Paulus (USA), Abida Jamal (Moçambique), Hyasinta Mgonja(Tanzania)—GLUNN intern,
Maureen Tate(USA) Moderator
1) Georgina Becerril(Mexico), Nsiimenta Angelica(Uganda), Ushuaia Camarena(Mexico)sharing with the group—
CSW53 2) Ah Ram Lee(So. Korea) CSW55 3) Marina Mendonca, Susanna Estevinho, Sara Teles(all Portugal) at a UN
session, CSW-54. 4) Alice Ferro(Italy) giving a talk at CSW-55. 5) Ana Heleno (Portugal) CSW- 56—GLUNN’s first
intern
Ns iimenta Angelica (Uganda) CSW- 53
These photos are to give you an idea that we welcome girls and young women and Grail members from all corners of the
Grail World to come to CSW. If you are interested, let us know very soon. If you don’t have the application, ask your
Communications person who recently received the application for girls and for Grail members. After we get the
applications, we look at them and choose who will be coming this year. Then we send out a form asking for detailed
information. The sooner we get that information, the sooner we can write invitation letters for those coming from afar.
The Working Group on Girls (WGG) is a coalition of over 80 national and international non-governmental organizations
with representation at the United Nations dedicated to promoting the human rights of girls in all areas and stages of life,
advancing their status and inclusion, and recognizing and developing their full potential and capabilities as partners in
action. (The Grail and UFER are part of this coalition.) WGG has just recruited 7 high school girls to join the 4 from last
year who are Girl Advocates. These girls join us to make sure girls’ voices and experiences are heard, listened to and
taken seriously at the United Nations! This is an important year for girls to be present at the CSW. Do you know
any girls: relatives, neighbors, students who could spend even one day at CSW? Let us be part of making sure
girls’ voices and experiences are heard. WGG website is girlsrights.org. Visit it regularly.
INTERNATIONAL DAY OF THE GIRL 2014,
United Nations, October 10th
About 600 people, mostly girls, assembled to hear girls
talk about the lives and rights of girls. Sr. Alice Marie
Giordano wrote the following—and took the two photos:
WOW! The Girl's Speak Out was spectacular. The group
of girls enacting the scenes carried themselves with such
grace, dignity and PRESENCE that we all felt the pain
of their stories, the violence done to THEM, and at the
same time, each one's incredible COURAGE. What a
witness to reality, and to the STRENGTH OF GIRLS.
Our Girl Advocates were wonderful, so clear, so
articulate, so warm, charming, embracing the whole
On Saturday, October 11th, the
official Day of the Girl,
the Grail in Cornwall sponsored
an event at the library in Cornwall.
Showing the award winning
film GIRL RISING which tells
the stories of 9 extraordinary
girls from 9 countries, written
by 9 celebrated writers and
narrated by 9 renowned
actresses. GIRLRISING
showcases the strength of the human
spirit and the power of education to
change the world. Cindy Cheyne and
Natasha Mercado were the Grail
members working with the Day.
Portugal: The Girl Effect Portugal
organized a small dynamic
presentation in order to mark this
day and also to divulge it to the
ones who didn't know about its
existence. This presentation took
place in the Golegã Grail Center
where the International Formation
Program was occurring during the
entire month. All women (from
different countries - Paraguay,
Brazil, Canada, USA, Australia,
Holland, Germany, Angola,
gathering. WOW! The girls of Mount St. Ursula and I
thank you so much!
Mozambique, South Africa, Kenya
and Portugal) presented themselves
and talked about how it was like to
be a girl in their time and country.
After that, some questions, such as
the importance of this day or the
difference between International
Women's Day and International Day
of the Girl, were discussed in small
groups and then shared with
everyone.Maria João Beja
Pictured below: Carolina Pinto
CSW participant in 2014, and
Maria João Ribeiro and
Veronica Monteiro, (CSW-2012)
Lucy Jones liked the process used:
participants located their country
on a world map and then stated a
word that expressed how they
experienced being a girl of 14
years age. This lead to a deeper
discussion about what it means to
have an international day to
recognize the issues that face girls.
Lucy said: We were a receptive
audience and were successfully
introduced to the new International
Day of the Girl and will take it
back to all our countries.
At the Bronx Grail, the day was
observed a bit differently Eight
girls joined Belkis Martinez and
Tina Kalala as for the first time in
their lives, they ‘canned’ peaches!
Sharing what they wanted to
discuss this year, the conversation
that ensued certainly fit the day—
gender inequality, defying
stereotypes, career goals, sexism,
forms of violence against girls: girl
on girl, emotional, verbal, boy-girl,
etc. conversation flowed as the
peaches were peeled and the
canning process took place.
Noluthando Nzmande (CSW-56
Participant) interviewed girls in
South Africa for the IDG. Here is
one of the stories:
Finding a home in myself. I am
girl from a deep rural area. In these
areas, being a girl is very
important and it comes with a lot
of duties. If I may start by pointing
out that most community members
who are adults forbid long
pants/trousers as part of a girl’s
outfit. Their justification is girls
misbehave and start following
boys, if they wear pants/trousers.
Another thing is that as girls, we
are expected to do house chores
from sunrise to sunset. Without
leaving the house to attend to
anything else, the justification of
elders is that; we are practising for
the future when we have our own
houses. This is the biggest
oppression because your parents or
most community adults expect a
girl to get married or to have a man
in their life. They see it as a norm,
an expectation, you WILL get
married. Many girls live under this
oppression including myself. Ever
since I was a child, my sister and I
have been living with my mother’s
sister. I was expected to do house
chores the whole day and do
everything. Even before I had to
go to school I had to wake up early
and clean the house so that when I
come back in the afternoon I cook,
fetch water and do the washing.
My mother is an alcoholic and I
don’t think it would be a good idea
to go live with her. On top of all
the hardships that we faced when
we were living with my aunt. My
aunt’s husband tried to rape me.
This was a devastating and scary
time for me and my little sister so
we tried to move to a new area.
We are currently living with my
cousin’s girlfriend from my
deceased father’s side. My uncle
(my father’s brother) is the one
who is taking a good care of us
now and paying for our school fees
and everything. Life has been very
tough for a girl so I keep moving
and holding on. I am now doing
my matric and prepared to go to
university to study environmental
studies. I am good with people and
I enjoy playing
This year’s GLUNN interns:
Sonia Monteiro(Portugal) works
with and belongs to the Grail circle
of Lisbon and lives in a young
community of Grail, in Terraço
(Terrace), Lisbon.
Fuva Muiambo(Moçambique)
who attended CSW-57 and works
with the Grail Youth Group. She
helps prepare the parallel event at
CSW.
They arrive in January for a 3
month internship. You will be
hearing from them!
A FEW NOTES FROM a report Joy Garland, UFER representative at the UN, made for the UFER newsletter:
HOPES ARE HIGH FOR THE SUCCESS OF THE OUTCOME DOCUMENT OF THE WORLD
CONFERENCE ON INDIGENOUS PEOPLES
September 23, the day after the People’s Climate March where in New York City some 400,000 people were addressing
the devastating effects of fossil fuels in affecting climate change, rising sea levels and pollution, the United Nations began
its two-day World Conference on Indigenous Peoples. Following are a few comments from the discussions: Pita
Sharples, Minister of Maori Affairs of New Zealand, spoke of the loss of traditional lands and resources by indigenous
people due to colonization and the need for sustainable economic development in line with their cultural values. Joan
Carling, representing the Asia Indigenous Region, noted that she was pleased the Saami representatives from the Russian
Federation had joined the meeting despite obstacles from the Federation. She said that while there was some progress
made in certain countries about honoring indigenous legal rights, there was still dispossession, destruction, and
militarization of lands and resources that indigenous peoples depended on. Gabriel Quijandria of Peru said over 30% of
Peru’s indigenous people have proof showing property rights over their land, but more indigenous people need to acquire
proof though Peru recognized indigenous rights to own land. Co-Chair, Ms. Lasimbang, said indigenous people were 15%
of the world’s poor but only 5 percent of its total population. The Indian law Resource Center representative stated that
violence against indigenous women must be mentioned. In the United States it was said that one in three indigenous
women would be raped in their lifetimes. The Indian law Resource Center representative stated that violence
against indigenous women in the United States and elsewhere must be mentioned. In the United States it was
said that one in three indigenous women would be raped in their lifetimes. The Fourteenth Session of the UN
Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues will be 20 April to 1 May 2015. Contact Mary Kay if you want to attend.
Video to watch on You Tube: The Girl Who Silenced the World for 5 Minutes. She addressed the UN on the environment.