La'o Hamutuk Article: Women and Gender Equality

June 2008
The Stuggle for Gender Equality Continues

On 9-13 June 2008, 25 women working on women’s issues, advocacy and media came together for the “Revitalizing The Women and Young Feminist Movement” workshop in North Sumatra. Participants came from Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Philippines, Burma, Indonesia and Timor-Leste. Yasinta Lujina (La’o Hamutuk) and Sribuana da Costa (JSMP) shared information on the women’s movement in Timor-Leste. This workshop was part of a broader initiative to strengthen women’s leadership and women’s movements in Mesoamerica, Asia and Southern Africa.

This regional workshop was organized by Just Associates (JASS), a global community of feminist and social justice activists, and PESADA (Sada Ahmo Association), a Sumatra-based NGO fighting ethnic discrimination and promoting women’s rights in North Sumatra.

This workshop aimed to:

1. Strengthen and diversify the leadership of women’s movements, involving women of all ages and nations, building their skills through learning and action;
2. Re-politicize gender equality and women’s rights strategies, creating a clear vision for the future. This will be achieved by improving women’s political skills, better analysis of power relations and better organizing and mobilizing of the women’s movement through dialogue, popular education and inclusive processes.
3. Build bridges between different women: rural and urban; grassroots and policy makers; researchers and activists.

Representatives related stories of women’s movements in their countries; discussed ideas and lessons from the conference, and shared traditional music, traditional dress and gifts.

We reflected on three decades of women’s rights and empowerment efforts, examining developments which shaped our countries and how they affect women and our movement.

We looked at national, regional and global challenges for the women’s movement: NGO-ization, weakening of solidarity, religious fundamentalism, militarization, corporate globalization, neoliberalism and the shrinking of the state’s capacity to protect women’s rights. We learned that power, social movements and feminism are key to making our movements strong, and must be central to our activities. We found that women across Southeast Asia have similar experiences. Women face the same issues: cultural and traditional, social, economic, religious and political. We identified key challenges:

* Legacy of colonization

The legal systems of many Asian countries are based on colonial structures. These laws do not address the fundamental legal issues of colonization, which are racist and gender discriminatory (in the laws and in how they are implemented). For example, crimes which take place in the home are considered less important than those in public. These legal issues are a major force for women’s subordination.

* Fundamentalist interpretation of law

In Asia, fundamentalist movements linked to Islam and Christianity are growing in strength. These groups generally have a conservative interpretation of religious doctrine, with negative impacts on women. An example is Shar’ia law in Indonesia which discriminates against women and limits women’s opportunities.

* Capitalism and Neoliberalism

Political and economic developments in capitalist and neoliberal systems have increased poverty across Southeast Asia. By undermining sharing, cooperation and communal assets, these systems increase economic inequality, with a few people becoming rich but many becoming poor. The need for money, by women themselves or their families, often causes women to be exploited by prostitution, trafficking and pornography.

* Legal system

Many legal systems discriminate strongly by gender, not valuing women the same as men. While formal laws and regulations across Asia can benefit women by stopping domestic violence, trafficking and increasing political access, in reality they are not yet implemented and mostly male rulers do not see this as a priority.

* Patriarchal system

Most people in Asia place men above women. Differences in gender roles and functions enforce the patriarchal system. The patriarchal mentality gives greater power to men in all areas, and leads to men’s domination over women.

Challenges to the women’s movement in Timor-Leste include:

1. The culture and system of patriarchy are so strong, giving power and value to men over women.
2. Catholic doctrine strongly enforces patriarchal thinking.
3. The Justice system is inefficient in implementing many laws, and laws are still needed to address women’s needs.
4. Some people believe that women’s empowerment is against men and breaks up the family, giving a negative stigma to the women’s movement.
5. Because of discrimination, women are economically, psychologically and socially dependent on men.
6. Many women and men are not yet aware regarding gender equality.

The women who participated in the workshop learned:

* about women’s situation and condition in other countries in South East Asia.
* how to liberate ourselves from our thinking that women and men are not equal.
* that the struggle for gender equality is not finished.

Women should prepare ourselves to identify challenges, build up capacity, share information and develop relationship with others in the struggle for gender equality.

Conclusion

Women of all ages across the world face the same challenges and the same struggle. We know what we want to change and we must work together to make these changes.

We must draw on our resources the strengths, knowledge and learning from the women’s movement — to achieve equal rights for women.
(The La'o Hamutuk Bulletin, Vol.9, No.3)


The Impact of Mining on Women in the Pacific

Natural resources can help countries develop themselves in all sectors, but if they are not managed well, they can become a curse and a risk to people's lives. When nations are rich in natural resources, their people often expect great benefits from extracting and selling them. But in reality, nations with non-renewable resources such as oil, natural gas and minerals often suffer negative impacts such as human rights violations, economic dependency and social decay from the exploitation of their resources and its aftermath.

Human rights violations occur because governments and companies decide about exploiting minerals, gas and oil without consulting the people who live in the area, even though local residents will receive the bulk of the impacts, including:

* Communities are relocated, having to rebuild their lives in new locations. It can take significant time to adapt to new surroundings, such as different climate, soil and culture. As mothers and homemakers, women face special challenges, often needing more time to fetch water and gather wood and food for their families.
* Many people in rural areas have close relationships with nature, because they use the land, stones, trees and other resources, which becomes part of their culture. They use traditional natural medicines to cure their illnesses. When companies start mining activities, the natural habitat is destroyed, many plants die, wild animals diminish and the community must deal with these challenges. In cultures where women have a strong role in maintaining the household, cooking, washing clothes and looking for wood, women face larger challenges as it is difficult to find clean water, there is less water in general, and they have to travel farther to find wood.
* The exploitation of natural resources also often leads to child exploitation, because the companies can pay children less than adults. Because of this many children do not go to school, thinking it is better to earn money today than to get an education for the future, which is often encouraged by parents facing difficult economic conditions. Some children may be tempted to waste their wages on drinking, drugs, prostitution and other activities that harm both them and the larger community.
* Companies sometimes offer compensation to the communities, but this is often biased towards men. As the men control money in most families, it increases women's economic dependency on men. It can also increase domestic violence when men do not manage the money well, or use it to get drunk and then abuse their partners and children.

To share experiences, Oxfam Australia organized a conference in October 2007 on the impacts of mining on women in the Pacific. The conference took place in Papua New Guinea's Madang province, with participants from Western Australia, Fiji, Timor-Leste, PNG, Indonesia and the Solomon Islands, including Inês Martins from La'o Hamutuk.

This conference was designed for women to share information and to develop skills, ideas and strategies to improve their lives and those of their communities, with a particular focus on the effects of mining on women.

Participants from various countries shared their experiences with mining. Since Timor-Leste has not yet started onshore, industrial mining activities, Timorese participants discussed their government's management of revenues from oil and gas.

Given how mining can be very harmful to women and their children, women came to strengthen their struggle against the injustices committed by their governments and mining companies. During the three-day conference the participants produced an advocacy strategy to continue their struggle in their own nations.

Without appropriate regulation and controls, mining can result in serious human rights abuse and environmental destruction causing the loss of land and livelihoods, and the creation of community conflict and other social problems.

These negative impacts are not gender neutral, and women experience the direct and indirect consequences of mining in different and often more pronounced ways than men do. Women are often excluded from benefits of mining, the differences in the lives of men and women can cause mining projects to reinforce existing inequalities.

Timor-Leste

The Indonesian occupation of Timor-Leste ended in 1999, and the country is now in the process of development. Timor-Leste has large oil and gas reserves under the Timor Sea, and is working with Australia and international companies to explore and exploit it, with no direct impact on people's lives so far.

Gas and oil revenue to the Timorese Government can improve people's lives when it is spent accountably and transparently. .

Therefore, the Government held public consultations in 2004 about establishing a Petroleum Fund to manage petroleum revenue sustainably for future generations, and the law was enacted in 2005, along with the Petroleum Act to regulate the activities of oil and gas companies. The Banking and Payments Authority (BPA) is charged with managing and reporting on the Petroleum Fund. (See La'o Hamutuk Bulletin Vol. 8 No. 1 March 2007).

Since Parliament approves the Government Budget, more than 90% of which is funded with petroleum revenues, the law sets up a Petroleum Fund Consultative Council to advise Parliament, with representatives from government, business, church, civil society, and former high officials.

Nevertheless, Timor-Leste's petroleum management is weak in some areas:

* Democracy: relations with companies are handled only by the State Secretariat for Natural Resources, without checks and balances.
* Participation of the local community: Local residents have to provide land if the oil and gas industry wants it, regardless of local consultation, which could lead to human rights violations.

Timor-Leste can learn much from others' experiences:

* Exploiting natural resources almost always impacts negatively on nearby communities. Therefore, the Government should carefully think through any plans to conduct mining in our country.
* From 1990-1994 civil society in PNG fought hard for the peoples' interests, especially for communities being impacted by mining. But in 1995 much of civil society lost their dedication because they became dominated by large companies who passed out money and funded overseas travel to certain NGO staff. Because the national government received 40% of the mining revenues, it also prioritized serving the companies interests over the people. In addition, community members received $2/person from the NGO that works for the company, and were discouraged from participating in meetings to transmit community ideas and opinions about mining impacts to the companies and government. When they accept money from the company, civil society and NGO staff become accomplices, and they work for the companies and the government. Timorese civil society organizations who work for the rights of poor and oppressed people can learn that their independence is extremely important. Civil society can simply work with companies in partnership, but it is better for them to avoid receiving anything which will make them dependent and lose their mission.
* 97% of the land in PNG belongs to the people, according to the traditional law of community land owner, but the Government has forcibly taken land from people for large companies to exploit minerals, gas and oil, and produce palm oil, while neglecting to develop the rural agriculture sector which encompasses 80% of the population. As Timor-Leste is now receiving large oil and gas revenues, the Timorese Government should spread development evenly across all sectors to avoid dependency on oil and gas.
* Civil society, especially local NGOs, needs to continuously struggle and speak out about how mining affects communities. It can be a big problem when people are given cash by the government and companies, often of insufficient amounts for proper compensation. Timorese civil society can learn to continue to resist and work to educate so that the people can decide for themselves what to do with their natural resources. When the people are not well informed and do not participate in the process, those exploiting the mineral wealth can manipulate them.

On the last day of the conference, the participants representing six countries made a joint declaration that the impact of mining exploration has negative impact on people's lives. Therefore, it would better to stop exploring the mining and gas in all countries in future.
(The La'o Hamutuk Bulletin Vol.9, No.2)

June 2007
The Women's Movement: Looking Back and Looking Ahead

While many women's organizations and networks organize and struggle for women's interests, there is not yet a structural mechanism within the women's movement in either Indonesia or Timor-Leste. Culturally, young women in Indonesia and Timor-Leste don't yet have a strong role within the process and movement for change. In order to strengthen the women's movement with a strategy that supports village-based women's organizations and focuses on young women, a workshop was organized in Bogor, Indonesia from 18-23 June 2007 entitled "Reflecting on and Revitalizing the Women's Movement with Young Feminists in Indonesia and Timor-Leste."

The goals of this workshop were:

* To strengthen and broaden leadership in the women's movement through inter-generational political education and skill-building activities, as well as study and action across borders
* To remember what we have learned already as we "re-vision" the future: well-developed analyses of power, gender equity, women's rights, negotiating skills, as well as strategy/methodology for organizing and mobilization through popular education.
* To bridge the differences between village and city realities, between grassroots efforts and policy level work, between research and activism, and between the women's movement and other social movements including those working for minority rights and workers' rights.

The workshop was organized by Just Associates (JASS) with financial support from HIVOS. JASS is an organization founded by women's movement activists from North America and the Asia Pacific region. The primary goal of JASS is to bridge women's movements in the global North and South. JASS publishes reference books, participates in lobbying and advocacy at the international level and supports social justice. HIVOS receives money from the Netherlands government and from individuals in Europe and America to support projects in, among other places, Indonesia and Timor-Leste. Two foci of the organization are gender mainstreaming and strengthening the women's movement by supporting village-based women's organizing.

The overall workshop was facilitated by Nani Zulminarni and Dina Lumbantobing from Just Associates. Lely Zailani (Director of the Political Commission HAPSARI-Himpunan Serikat Perempuan Indonesia or Association Women Union Indonesia) facilitated the workshop "Sharing Experiences about the Women's Movement" and Dian Kartika Sari (Deputy Director of INFID-Indonesian Federation for Development) facilitated the workshop "Understanding Events and Actions from Local to Global." Other activities included:

* Poster Café: participants divided into three groups, and each day each group made an informational stand with posters, pictures, brochures and books. Participants then visited each other's cafés to gather ideas and information.
* Learning Group: For an hour each day, participants divided into small groups to discuss topics related to the women's movement and feminism. They shared ideas, deepened understanding, met one another and shared strategies from the personal to the public.
* Discussion Room: Different rooms were given different discussion topics; groups met to discuss and prepare presentations to the rest of the group the following day. Topics came from material presented in the seminars and related to the women's movement and feminism and the individual experiences of women.
* Informal Discussion about Sexual Orientation: This session wasn't in the agenda but emerged because the participants included lesbians and those who serve the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) community. This discussion was very interesting because besides giving information about LGBT issues, it raised awareness about sexual orientation. A major point gleaned from the discussion was that differences in sexual orientation shouldn't be a barrier to working together; instead they should enrich and strengthen our movement.
* Social Night: On the last night of the conference, participants put together performances to share, representing their different regions of Indonesia and Timor-Leste.

Representatives of organizations that work on women's issues, advocacy and media at all levels throughout Indonesia attended the workshop. Timor-Leste sent six representatives: Rosa Maria Do Rosario De Sousa and Maria G. Barreto (Fokupers), Maria Evelina Iman (Rede Feto/Women's Network), Natércia Barbosa De Deus (Asosiasaun HAK), Maria Do Rosario Fatima Correia (JSMP) and Yasinta Lujina (La'o Hamutuk).

A total of 34 women from different generations who work in the women's movement and other social movements for change and justice participated. Older and younger generations shared their experiences and studied together about women's movements of the past and the present. Reflecting on key events of the past, particularly those connected with the local, national and international women's movements, the group examined what, where and how the women's movement has contributed, as well as where the movement is today. Studying the history of the women's movement can help motivate the current women's movement as it continues to confront injustice.

We observed that the women's movement grew when there were monumental levels of oppression against women. By reflecting on that history, we see that the women's movement has been intertwined with other struggles on social issues, and how much it has contributed through the work of individuals, organizations and as a movement.

During the five-day workshop, participants reflected on the women's movement in Indonesia and Timor-Leste to better comprehend what makes a movement, the elements of a movement, strategy, approach, methods, follow-up, as well as leadership and intergenerational issues. We studied how to strengthen the movement, build communication, exchange ideas and information, understand the context of the movement from the local to global, micro to macro, and all of the power dynamics within it. We studied movement-building skills about creating a collective vision and mission, feminist leadership, popular education, organizing, networking, and creating new strategies for the women's movement to link up with other movements and build effective and clear collaborations between activists, organizations and movements.

From the above reflections, it was agreed that there are great similarities between the experiences of women in Indonesia and Timor-Leste and even across the world. While women's problems are multidimensional and varied, women face the same problems of discrimination, cultural and economic isolation, political and personal disempowerment, and violence. It is important for women to recognize common enemies and also to recognize the enemy within ourselves - internalized oppression - and free ourselves in thought, feeling, and action from these feelings that women are somehow less than men. We need to understand well the principle that before we can free another, we must first free ourselves. We must also be aware that we all experience some form of oppression. Women must unite and work together to oppose all forms of discrimination and injustice, to bring about social justice and transformation.

Women struggle in various arenas, including public, domestic, political and economic. Many women's organizations therefore focus on one arena and work separately from other groups. Divisions arise based on the regional or issue focus of each organization. There are also divisions between the generations, between those who work in rural areas and those who work in cities, between those with more experience and newly formed groups, etc. These divisions weaken the movement, crippling its ability to address differing individual interests and sometimes leading to suspicions and competition between groups, leaving a "movement" in name only.

The workshop identified several important points about the women's movement:

* The women's movement cannot focus only on one issue because the problems women face are extremely complex; we must work to link various issues together.
* Young feminists in the movement should be respected and nurtured, and receive trainings and access to leadership in the movement.
* We must work towards critical awareness of women's issues beginning with ourselves and the people closest to us.
* We must activate community participation (women and men, young and old) within the movement, thus diversifying the movement.
* We must always reflect on the movement's journey in order to renew and rebuild our common commitment.

The workshop and reflections helped all the participants think more deeply about community organizing, movement building, feminist leadership and power differences. The workshop helped to build solidarity, friendships and comradery between the older women's movement and young feminists to encourage them to be more active in the movement at local, national and global levels.

Women's struggle to chase the sun is not easy. Activist women — young and old — must support each other as women and come together to oppose discrimination. Come and let us all work together for social change.
(The La'o Hamutuk Bulletin, Vo.8, No.3)


February 2006
Public Hearing on Timorese WW II Comfort Women

Survivors of Japanese sex slavery give public testimony. Left to right: Virginia da Costa, Aniceto Neves (translator), Mariana Araújo da Costa Marques and Alicia Prego.

The HAK Association, in cooperation with the Japanese Coalition for East Timor, held a two-day public hearing session on World War II sex slavery at the Canossian convent in Becora, Dili on 6-7 February. The objective of the public hearing was to reveal the truth about the imperial Japanese military occupation in Portuguese Timor, which was accompanied by many cruel and inhuman war-related atrocities, including forced sexual slavery (jugun infu, romusa and heiho). The hearing encouraged Timorese women, particularly victims and their families, to speak out so that the Timor-Leste public will become aware of the sexual slavery during the Japanese occupation from 1942-1945.

The public hearing also featured a panel discussion with Bishop Goro Matsuura of Osaka, Yasushi Higashizawa (law professor and a lawyer in cases of sexual violation), members of the Timor Leste Parliament Lucia Lobato (PSD) and Vicente Faria (Fretilin), and Father Martinho Gusmão, Director of the Justice and Peace Commission of the Diocese of Baucau.

Participants in the hearing urged the Japanese government to acknowledge the inhuman and cruel behavior of its soldiers during WW II. The participants asked the Japanese government to apologize to victims in then Portuguese Timor, and to pay compensation to victims of sexual slavery.

The hearing followed a year of research by the HAK Association in close cooperation with the Japanese Coalition for East Timor.
(The La'o Hamutuk Bulletin, Vol.7, No.1)

January 2006
Gender Analysis Training in Yogyakarta

La'o Hamutuk staff member Yasinta Lujina participated in a gender analysis training, held in Yogyakarta, Indonesia from 23-29 January. The training, which was organized by Yogyakarta based NGO USC-Satunama, had around 30 participants from various religious groups, NGOs, media groups, academics and women organizations from both Indonesia and Timor-Leste.

The objective of the training was to increase the capacity of the participants in analyzing gender in its conceptual frameworks and then to equip the participants with methods of analysis, so that the participants can apply these methods to their community organizing and empowerment work. The training also provided the participants with a critical understanding of the conditions in which gender relations take place and the impacts resulting from these relations.

The follow up of the training was the establishment of the Gender Satunama Group, a forum that is designed and dedicated to those who underwent the same training. In Timor-Leste, people interested in these issues can contact Yasinta Lujina at La'o Hamutuk; elsewhere contact the Gender Satunama Group at gender_satunama@yahoo.co.id.
(The La'o Hamutuk Bulletin, Vol.7, No.1)