For Immediate Release
November 25, 2015
Contact: Valerie Francisco, GABRIELA USA Chairperson, [email protected]
GABRIELA USA Kicks Off 4 Weeks of Actions for IDEVAW (International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women)
#IDEVAW2015 #GABRIELAUSA #Rise4Revolution #OBR2016 #IWWD2016
Women activists have marked November 25 as a day to commemorate the Mirabel sisters, political activists who were brutally murdered because of their active opposition against the repressive state led by Dictator Rafael Trujillo in the Dominican Republic. Since then, women have taken up the the issue of violence against women around the globe to protest against increasing exploitation and oppression greatly impacting women and children by neoliberal policies spearheaded by US imperialism. The United Nations has also declared this day, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (IDEVAW).
Today, GABRIELA USA is kicking off an IDEVAW campaign throughout the next 4 weeks culminating on December 18, International Migrants Day to further expose the issues faced in our communities here in the US and in the Philippines. We have seen atrocious crimes committed against the Filipino people intensify while the Philippine and US governments tighten their relationships through the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) and Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA).
Just last week, discussions were held in Manila among 17 world leaders including US President Barack Obama at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit to assess their economic “progress” and discuss plans for the future. Among the topics discussed was the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA), which will only further plunder of the nation’s natural resources, worsen the exploitation and oppression of women, and continue to perpetuate the cycle of poverty and political repression of the Filipino people in the name of economic development and progress.
President BS Aquino has failed to assert Philippine sovereignty despite the countless human rights violations committed against Filipina women due to continued US militarization as was the case with the murder of Jennifer Laude, the transgender woman choked to death by US Marine PFC Joseph Scott Pemberton last year. We are urgently anticipating the long awaited verdict to be delivered on December 14.
Even with an increase in human rights violations and the government’s neglect to genuinely address the issues of the people, we have also seen women and their families rise up to expose and resist repression. Over the course of the next 4 weeks, the IDEVAW campaign will seek to address various issues contributing to the worsening violence against Filipina women while also promoting creative forms of resistance.
On November 24, the women’s desk of the Portland Committee for Human Rights in the Philippines (PCHRP) held an evening of resistance and healing to kick-off GABRIELA USA’s 4 Weeks of IDEVAW and celebrated the resilience of the survival of women through cultural sharing, story telling, and art.
We invite you to join us for actions across the US throughout the next 4 weeks. Below is a list of important dates and contact information of the various chapter organizations and women’s desks near you.
November 25: International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (IDEVAW)
December 4: Anniversary of the Guilty Verdict of Lance Corporal Daniel Smith for the rape of “Nicole”
December 10: International Human Rights Day
December 12: International Day Against Human Trafficking
December 14: Court Verdict for US Marine PFC Joseph Scott Pemberton for the brutal murder of Jennifer Laude
December 18: International Migrants Day
Gabriela Los Angeles
Gabriela SF
Gabriela Seattle
GABRIELA New York
GABRIELA Washington, D.C.
Fellowshipfor FilipinoMigrants
224.381.6888
PortlandCHRP – Portland Committee for Human Rights in the Philippines
