WUNRN
Making
By Marcela Valente
|
This
"discovery," as she called it, was described to IPS by Ofelia
Retamoso, who lives in the east-central Argentine city of
Women like
Retamoso consider catcalls and often aggressive come-ons that are typical in
public spaces in
Nervousness
or even fear of such street harassment, even among young girls, prevents women
from freely moving around, hinders their personal development, in terms of
studies, work or recreation, and has an isolating effect on them.
The women
taking part in the programme are participating along with local governments in
actions to fight this phenomenon, ensure equal access to public spaces, and
help design and build cities that are safer for everyone.
The
programme is sponsored by the United Nations Development Fund for Women
(UNIFEM) with the support of the Spanish Agency for International Development
Cooperation (AECID), and coordinated by the Women and Habitat Network of Latin
America and the Caribbean (Redmujer), based in Argentina.
"The
aim is to help women exercise their rights more fully, in order to reduce the
violence that we face in both the public and private spheres in cities,"
architecture professor Liliana Rainero, coordinator of Redmujer, told IPS.
Besides
"The
project is based on an assessment that shows that public safety policies in
According to
UNIFEM, one out of three women in
The
programme has several strategic lines of action, Rainero explained. In first
place, it seeks to generate knowledge on gender violence in cities, as an
extension of violence against women in the domestic sphere.
Another
focus is training and raising awareness on the issue among women, young people
and police. In addition, specific strategies are developed to bring about
concrete changes in the way cities are designed.
Debates
among experts and women's organisations in the various countries are helping
spread the idea that "public spaces can either promote or stand as hurdles
to peaceful coexistence between men and women," Rainero said.
"Planning
should not be the exclusive domain of experts," the architect said, adding
that women at a grassroots level should express their fears and needs, in order
to drive changes and make public spaces their own.
In
But with the
support of the city government, the plazas were once again made safe for women
and children. They were redesigned, with playground equipment for children and
nearby tables and benches, football goal posts and better public lighting.
"The
nice thing was that we painted murals, all of us together -- the women from our
organisation, local residents who stopped being afraid, and the kids (the
youngsters who hang out in the plazas)," Retamoso said.
In Suba, a
district in
"Neither
at home nor on the streets" is one of the slogans used in the
neighbourhood campaign to fight violence against women.
One of the
most effective aspects of the programme in Suba involved the transportation
system. Many women complained that they had been harassed on the Transmilenio,
Bogotá's modern bus system, where men frequently take advantage of the crowding
to press up against or grope women.
Posters put
up at bus stops show a man pushing up against a woman, in a red circle with a
bar through the middle. The caption "We don't want this support" uses
a play on words in which "apoyo" or "support" in Spanish
also refers to the practice of men leaning up against women.
Actresses
and actors also took part in the campaign, acting out scenes on buses to raise
awareness on the gender harassment that women frequently suffer in the public
transit system.
In
Thanks to
that agreement, a gender perspective was incorporated in 2008 in the housing
upgrade programme launched by then president Michelle Bachelet (2006-2010)
called "Quiero mi barrio" (I Love My Neighbourhood).
Besides the
cities in the seven countries taking part in the programme, other urban areas
"have been inspired by it" to carry out their own efforts, Rainero
said.
One example
is an initiative against "machista" violence in public transport in
Other cities
in the Mercosur (Southern Common Market) trade bloc, made up of
"The
gender perspective used to be included in questions of health, education or
domestic violence. But now it has been expanded to a focus on women's right to
safe access to cities and their services," Rainero concluded.
================================================================
To contact the list administrator, or to leave the list, send an email to:
wunrn_listserve-request@lists.wunrn.com. Thank you.