‘Jaago Chandigarh’ Campaign Launched

Consultation Workshop on

“Making Chandigarh Girls and Women Friendly-A step towards Human Rights City”.

 

To commemorate International Women’s Day, on March 6, 2014 Yuvsatta-an NGO based in Chandigarh, India along with  Department cum Centre for Women Studies & Development, Panjab University and State Cell of NSS (National Service Scheme), Chandigarh organized a Consultation Workshop on “Making Chandigarh Girls and Women Friendly-A step towards Human Rights City”. Mr. Justice Surya Kant, Judge, Punjab & Haryana High Court inaugurated the same at Golden Jubilee Hall of Panjab University, Chandigarh. In which over 150 students, NSS volunteers, teachers from 26 Colleges of the city, NGO & RWA representatives also participated.

 

In his Inaugural address, Justice Surya Kant emphasized upon changing the present discriminatory mindset against the Women. He called for a need for renewed social engineering, bridging the rural urban divide and also making accountable parents for raising brats. Prof. Pam Rajput  in her presidential address, gave a critique of social system and discrimination against women by sharing her lived experiences. She stressed upon the collective outreach campaign to eradicate the gender based violence.

 

While dwelling upon “Problems and Possible Solutions”, Prof. Manju Verma of Punjabi University, Patiala who also associated with PDHRE (People’s Movement for Human Rights Learning), US, stressed upon holistic strategies to counter gender violence. She called for a formation of a Steering committee comprising of all stake holders. In other deliberations, the prevalence, cause and remedial strategies were deliberated upon. Implementation of laws with right mind set and gender sensitization also was emphasized.

Nominated Asian Girl Ambassador 2013: Zehra Shah (Finalist)

Name: Zehra Shah

Organization: Pakistan’s Human Resources Organization (HRO)

Awards/Achievements: 1) Facilitator for non-formal education; 2) Human rights education trainer; 3) Volunteer with different non-profit organizations

 

 

Introduction

I am from a Pathan family (same ethnic group as Malala Yousafzai, who was shot by extremists last year). In Pathan communities, girls are discouraged from going to school, and they face early marriages. I started volunteering at the age of 14, when I saw the discrimination between girls and boys. I have conducted seminars and facilitated sessions on young women’s empowerment and leadership. I also facilitated training for girls at government schools to help them understand their fundamental rights, as well as help develop their communication skills.

I want to continue this struggle for girls’ rights, so that women in my country will also be included in democratic processes in every sphere of life. I want to be a role model in my society and promote education, women’s and girls’ rights, young women’s leadership, and civic education among women and girls.

My organization, the Human Resources Organization (HRO), is an NGO formed and led by young, professional, well-educated activists from Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province. All of the founding members were under 20 when the organization was created in 2008, so they did not immediately register it, but after two years, they wanted to have a legal identity and expand its work.

HRO started its work from human empowerment initiatives and started small, community-based educational institutes, providing free computer and language courses. HRO works with various education institutions to offer scholarships to poor students. HRO also works to improve the lives of poor students, child laborers and street beggars by providing skills-based training in things like automobile repair and the beautician field.

Today, HRO is a leading organization for other small-scale organizations. It also works on initiatives like advocacy and capacity building for SRHR and HIV/AIDS. HRO is harnessing the strong support of young people to work on anti-drug and harm-reduction awareness campaigns through different media outlets and networks. HRO involves young people in policy-making dialogues and supports them to raise their voices for their rights.

The Asian Girl Rights Ambassador program will be an opportunity for me to increase my exposure and experience, allowing me to learn from people around the world on how to fight for people’s rights. I will also share my experience of people in my country, so that others can understand our situation too. I will share my knowledge about my community work, how we face gender discrimination, how I implement my projects in the community, and the issues I face in my work, which arise from the negative stereotypes about girls who are active in the community system.

HAXSTRONG

Haxstrong is a charity organization based within the Kaohsiung community. We provide emotional, psychological and financial support to individuals who find themselves in dire need due to unfortu- nate circumstances such as accidents or disease.

Our work began when Gregg Haxton had a terrible motorbike accident in 2010 in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. He suffered severe physical injuries which also resulted in great emotional and psychological trauma, not to mention the huge financial burden of the necessary treatments.

It was the love and support from his friends and the community what helped him on his way to recovery. Today, Haxstrong has grown to be an important movement within the community which aides other people in similar need.

Mission:

As Haxstrong, we aim to:

• Be a source of emotional support and encouragement to individuals and families who are going through difficult experiences.

• Help alleviate the financial burden that usually arises with tragic events.

• Assist people on their journey towards a full recovery from physical, emotional, and psychological traumas resulting from personal misfortune.

Vision:

Haxstrong seeks to become a pillar of unity and support within our community. We aim to be the medium through which people can connect, organize and help each other. Whichever the circumstan- ces, we want people to know that they are not alone; they have someone to count on.

Our work:

Creating Support Networks:

Haxstrong encourages people to get acquainted and involved with those in need. This involves occasional visits or simply the sending of messages or gifts filled with love and encouragement. We know that these small gestures – from friends or strangers – make a great difference to our friends.

Case – Specific Events:

We organize events around particular cases to raise funds and awareness on our friends’ situations. The events provide a channel to engage or keep the people already involved updated and foster our community support efforts.

Financial Aid:

Haxstrong distributes the money raised from donations and other activities among our friends currently in need. Unfortunate events such as accidents and disease already carry a big emotional and psychological burden. We hope that by aiding with bill payments, we can alleviate at least some of the stress of the situation.

More info:

http://haxstrong.org/