AWID Forum 2012: Screening of Women's Initiatives' documentaries

On Thursday 19 April, during the AWID Forum 2012, the Women's Initiatives for Gender Justice will host the screening of two short documentaries produced by the Women's Initiatives and 15 partners in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in collaboration with Witness. The advocacy films centre around interviews with women living in these conflict and post-conflict environments, and their demand for justice in response to the violence committed by armed groups.

Through six testimonies of women abducted by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), 'No Longer Silent' highlights their experience in returning to their communities and rebuilding their lives. Access to housing and land, as well as food security and the desire for their children to receive an education are amongst their primary challenges and concerns. The documentary exposes the shortcomings of the current Peace, Recovery and Development Plan of the Ugandan Government which has to date not included women as beneficiaries in the reconstruction programmes.
 
'Our Voices Matter' shows the multiplicity of perpetrators operating in Eastern DRC, and includes powerful testimonies from women victims/survivors reflecting their desire for justice, the lack of accountability for perpetrators as well as their urgent needs for medical services, psychosocial assistance and economic opportunities for women victims/survivors.

The documentaries will be screened on 19 April 2012, 19:00-21:00 at the Haliç Congress Centre - Balat Room. Speakers at the event include Jane Akwero Odwong, Uganda Programme Officer, Women's Initiatives for Gender Justice; Kate Orlovsky, Legal Officer, Women's Initiatives for Gender Justice; and Chat Garcia Ramilo, Women's Programme Coordinator for the Association for Progressive Communications (APC).

You can follow the event live by following us on Twitter @4GenderJustice

For more information about the AWID Forum, see here