Italy's worst earthquake in nearly 30 years strikes city of L'Aquila

06 Apr 2009 14:49:00 GMT

Source: British Red Cross Society - UK

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6 April 2009

In the early hours of 6 April 2009, a powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 6.3 on the Richter scale struck the city of L'Aquila in central Italy, 120 km northeast of Rome.
According to the Italian Red Cross at least 40 people have been killed, 400 injured and eight remain unaccounted for. The numbers of dead and injured are expected to grow.
Tens of thousands of people have become homeless in the city, which has a population of 70,000.The Italian Red Cross rescue teams were on the scene of the disaster within an hour after the earthquake struck. It is presently scaling up personnel and equipment in the affected area to reinforce capacity for search and rescue, as well as meals and blankets for the survivors.

Italian Red Cross responds

The Italian Red Cross is responding with health, first aid, logistics and humanitarian relief. It also established a field hospital to relieve the burden on local health facilities, which are under an enormous strain. The Italian Red Cross has also set up mobile kitchens able to provide 10,000 meals a day. Two soup kitchens providing 200-400 meals a day have been set up to respond to the needs of L'Aquila hospital which is being evacuated.Thirty-six ambulances from the Italian Red Cross are on rotation to evacuate injured people from L'Aquila to the hospitals in Tagliacozzo, Pescina and Avezzano and it is also evacuating an orphanage in San Gregorio and will ensure care is provided for all the children.

Additionally, five psychological support teams from the Italian Red Cross are now operational on the ground.With up to 10,000 buildings in the city expected to be badly damaged, if not destroyed, the Italian Red Cross foresees growing problems with shelter, warm clothes and food provisions for the survivors. "Once we have addressed the need to reinforce emergency healthcare in the region, the next major challenge, apart from urgent search and rescue, is to find a solution for the thousands of homeless survivors," said Tommasso Della Longa, head of communication for the Italian Red Cross.

Co-ordinating emergency response

Working in close co-ordination with the Italian Civil Protection, the Italian Red Cross has activated its national operations centre, as well as four regional ones, to effectively address the needs of the population.In consultation with the Italian Red Cross the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is currently assessing what assistance can be best provided right now to supplement and support the efforts of the Italian Red Cross.Pete Garratt, British Red Cross relief operations manager, said: "The Italian Red Cross has significant resources in emergency response and is currently able to deal with the situation effectively. We are monitoring the situation and should the scale of need continue to grow, with request for international assistance, we are ready to respond."

Italian Red Cross Responds to Earthquake in L'Aquila

The American Red Cross will continue to monitor the situation and communicate with our sister society, the Italian Red Cross, and the International Federation, and stands ready to provide further assistance if requested. The Italian Red Cross has not yet asked for international assistance.

At 3:30 a.m. a powerful 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck the city of L'Aquila in central Italy, 75 miles northeast of Rome. It’s the worst earthquake to hit this region in nearly 30 years.

According to recent reports at least 90 people have been killed and 400 injured. The numbers of dead and injured are expected to grow as search and rescue efforts continue. Tens of thousands of people have become homeless in the city which has a population of 70,000.

Italian Red Cross rescue teams were on the scene of the disaster within an hour after the earthquake struck, searching for people trapped in the rubble and providing emergency care for the injured.

The Italian Red Cross has established a field hospital to relieve the burden on local health facilities which are under an enormous strain due to the sudden upsurge in demand. Also, the Italian Red Cross has set up mobile kitchens with the capacity to provide 10,000 meals a day run by a team of 16 Italian Red Cross staff and 30 volunteers. Two soup kitchens providing up to 400 meals a day have been mobilized to respond to the needs of L’Aquila Hospital, whose patients are being evacuated to other cities.

Thirty-six ambulances from the Italian Red Cross are on rotation to evacuate injured people from L'Aquila to hospitals in Tagliacozzo, Pescina and Avezzano. They are also providing care for children evacuated from an orphanage in San Gregorio. Additionally, five psychological support teams from the Italian Red Cross are now on the ground to help deal with the emotional needs of survivors.

Additional resources, including 30 search and rescue dog units, five other psychological support teams and three veterinary teams, are on standby depending on the needs.

With up to 10,000 buildings in the city believed to be badly damaged or destroyed, the Italian Red Cross foresees growing problems with shelter, warm clothes and food provisions for the survivors.

“Once we have addressed the need to reinforce emergency health care in the region, the next major challenge, apart from urgent search and rescue, is to find a solution for the thousands of homeless survivors,” says Tommasso Della Longa, Head of Communication for the Italian Red Cross.

Working in close coordination with the Italian Civil Protection, the Italian Red Cross has activated its national operations center, as well as four regional offices, to respond effectively to the growing needs of survivors.

In consultation with the Italian Red Cross, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is currently assessing which assistance can be best provided right now to supplement and support the efforts of the Italian Red Cross.

Since 1968 the International Federation and member National Societies have supported the Italian Red Cross three times after earthquakes in 1968, 1976 and in 1980. In 1980 some 3,000 people lost their lives after a deadly quake hit the region of Naples. In 1992 a quake in Umbria claimed 13 lives and countless cultural treasures. The most recent deadly quake was in 2002 when 30 people died, including 27 pupils and their teacher, in the southern Italian town of San Giuliano di Puglia.

An Italian police officer walks through the rubble after an earthquake in the Italian village of Onna April 6, 2009. A powerful earthquake struck a huge swath of central Italy as residents slept on Monday morning, killing at least 90 people when thousands of houses, churches and other buildings collapsed or were damaged. Chris Helgren/Reuters/courtesy www.alertnet.org

A couple embrace near the ruins of their house after an earthquake in the Italian village of Onna April 6, 2009. Chris Helgren/Reuters/courtesy www.alertnet.org

An injured walks past his destroyed house after an earthquake in the Italian village of Onna April 6, 2009. The powerful earthquake has displaced tens of thousands making up to 50,000 homeless. Chris Helgren/Reuters/courtesy www.alertnet.org

You can help the victims of countless crises around the world each year by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross International Response Fund, which will provide immediate relief and long-term support through supplies, technical assistance and other support to help those in need. The American Red Cross honors donor intent. If you wish to designate your donation to a specific disaster, please do so at the time of your donation by mailing your donation with the designation to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243 , Washington, D.C. 20013 or to your local American Red Cross chapter. Donations to the International Response Fund can be made by phone at 1-800-REDCROSS or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish) or online at www.redcross.org.

Italian earthquake: 40 dead and 50,000 homeless

By Nick Squires in L'Aquila and Gordon Rayner
Last Updated: 1:03PM BST 06 Apr 2009

Rescuers are desperately searching through the rubble for trapped survivors of the 6.3 magnitude tremor, which struck the mountainous Abruzzo region at 3.32am this morning.

Countless buildings have been destroyed in the regional capital of L'Aquila and in neighbouring villages including Paganica, one of the nearest places to the epicentre.

Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian prime minister, has declared a state of emergency.

An Italian civil protection official told the BBC that between 3,000 and 10,000 buildings may have been damaged by the earthquake.

Earlier, Massimo Cialente, mayor of Abruzzo capital L'Aquila, said around 100,000 people had left their homes as a result of the damage, and Italian media reported that up to 50,000 people have been made homeless.

He said: "The situation is terrible, really terrible. Many of my fellow citizens are weeping and I, too, have shed a tear."

The death toll from the 'quake rose steadily during the morning as emergency services scrambled to pull many people trapped under thousands of collapsed homes and apartment blocks.

Among the dead were an elderly woman and a baby girl who were pulled from the rubble of their home in the town of Fossa near L'Aquila. Rescue workers were unable to revive them, an Italian news channel reported.

Police also confirmed that five people were killed in the small towns of Castelnuovo, one in Poggio Picenze and one in Tormintarte.

Another four children died in a hospital in the Abruzzo capital L'Aquila, Italian news agency ANSA reported. At least eight people are missing in nearby San Demetrio dei Vestini.

Most of the damage centred on L'Aquila where homes, churches and university buildings had been damaged. During the 30 second tremor, thousands of the city's 70,000 residents ran on to the streets in panic.

Rescue workers were trying to rescue people from collapsed homes, including a student dormitory where a half a dozen students remained trapped inside, RAI state TV reported.

Television footage from the scene showed residents and rescue workers hauling away debris from collapsed buildings and bloodied residents waiting to be tended to in hospital hallways.

The powerful 'quake struck about 60 miles northwest of Rome at a depth of 6.2 miles.

It was felt in the Italian capital, where some residents were woken by the shaking. It was also felt as far south as Naples.

Magnitude-6 earthquakes have the potential to cause severe damage.

It came just hours after a 4.6-magnitude tremor shook Italy's north-central region with no reports of damage.

The epicentre of the quake that occurred at 10:20 pm local time on Sunday near Ravenna in the Emilia-Romagna region was exceptionally deep at 17 miles.

Because of its depth, the tremor was felt over a wide area, notably in the Marche region further south on the Adriatic coast.

People inland near Bologna, as far north as Trieste and as far south as Aquila also reported feeling the quake, ANSA added.

Powerful earthquakes are relatively rare in Italy.

Funcionário das Nações Unidas libertado!

By ASIF SHAHZAD and STEPHEN GRAHAM

The Associated Press
Sunday, April 5, 2009; 12:58 AM

ISLAMABAD -- An American U.N. worker abducted more than two months ago headed home Sunday, a day after he turned up unharmed alongside a road in western Pakistan with his hands and feet bound and pleading "Help me, help me."

John Solecki was discovered Saturday evening abandoned in a village some 30 miles south of Quetta near the Afghan border after his captors called a local news agency to tell them where to look, officials said. At one point, the kidnappers had threatened to behead him.

Mohammed Anwar, the owner of a restaurant alongside the main Quetta-Karachi highway, told The Associated Press that he found a bound Solecki lying in the dirt near a wall. Anwar said he heard a voice in the gloom saying "Help me, help me" in English.

Solecki, who headed the U.N. refugee agency's operations in Quetta, made no public comment. Police and U.N. officials declined to discuss what led to his release.

U.N. spokeswoman Jennifer Pagonis said Solecki left the country on a special medical flight early Sunday morning after spending the night in a military hospital in Quetta.

"He seemed OK this morning," Pagonis said, adding that he was looking forward to being reunited with his family. She declined to offer further details.

Interior Minister Rehman Malik said Solecki would fly to Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan and then continue on to the United States.

Malik said the U.N. worker was released after Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari formed a task force that worked with the top official in Baluchistan, where Quetta is the capital, to convince the kidnappers to free Solecki.

The release was a rare piece of good news amid intensifying violence here that has raised international alarm over the nuclear-armed country's stability. On Saturday, a suicide bomber attacked a paramilitary base in the capital, killing eight.

Solecki's abduction and the killing of his driver on Feb. 2 in Quetta raised concern that he was another victim in a spate of attacks on foreigners blamed on Islamist militants operating from strongholds along the Afghan frontier.

A previously unknown group, the Baluchistan Liberation United Front, had claimed responsibility for the abduction, threatening to behead him and issuing a grainy video on Feb. 13 of a blindfolded Solecki pleading for help.

But the group's name and demands indicated they were ethnic Baluch separatists who have been waging a long low-level insurgency in the impoverished but oil-rich southwest of Pakistan and have no record of taking or killing Western hostages.

The kidnappers had demanded the release of hundreds of people from alleged detention by Pakistani security agencies.

Zardari last week announced that the government had "traced" 200 people previously listed as missing and provincial leaders insist they are no longer holding any political prisoners.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he was grateful for the efforts to secure Solecki's release, citing Zardari and Afghan President Hamid Karzai. But Ban, who was in Paris, also pleaded for the release of another U.N. official, Robert Fowler, was still missing in Niger.

Kidnappers in December took Fowler, a Canadian diplomat who serves as Ban's special envoy for Niger, an aide and their driver. The driver was released unharmed almost two weeks ago.

Antonio Guterres, Ban's high commissioner for refugees, expressed relief and gratitude.

The suicide bomber who attacked the base Saturday in Islamabad sneaked in after dark from a wooded area at the rear and detonated his explosives inside one of several large tents used as sleeping quarters.

Another four members of the paramilitary Frontier Constabulary, many of whose members are assigned to guard foreign embassies and VIPs in the city, were wounded, senior police official Bin Yamin said.

The blast was the second in Islamabad in two weeks and follows a militant assault on a police academy in the eastern city of Lahore.

There was no claim of responsibility for Saturday's attack on the police base. However, the leader of a Taliban faction accused of ties to al-Qaida warned Wednesday that militants would strike soon in Islamabad.

U.S. special representative Richard Holbrooke is due in Islamabad this week to discuss Washington's offer of more assistance _ and call for more resolute action against militants on Pakistani territory _ under a plan to turn around its stalemated Afghan war effort.

However, U.S. officials have already made clear that they will take action on their own in an area that President Barack Obama last month described as the "the most dangerous place in the world" and almost certainly the hiding place of al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden.

On Saturday, a suspected U.S. missile strike on an alleged militant hide-out in Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal region left 13 people dead, Pakistani intelligence officials said.

The dead and injured in Data Khel village included local and foreign militants, but women and children were also killed, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

Pakistan says the strikes violate the country's sovereignty, kill innocent civilians and generate sympathy for the militants. But the U.S. argues that the attacks are an effective tool that has killed a string of militant leaders.

____

Associated Press writers Zarar Khan in Islamabad, Abdul Sattar in Quetta, Mohammad Rasool Dawar in Miran Shah and John Heilprin at the United Nations contributed to this report.

Libertação dos membros da Cruz Vermelha Internacional raptados nas Filipinas

Photo: ICRC

MANILA, 3 April 2009 (IRIN) - Abu Sayyaf Islamic militants have freed one of three International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) hostages seized in January on the southern Philippine island of Jolo, in a bid to stave off a potentially bloody confrontation with troops who have cornered them in a dense jungle area, the government says.

Mary Jean Lacaba, 37, has been turned over to authorities, and despite being weak and haggard from weeks in captivity, was otherwise unharmed, Philippine President Gloria Arroyo said.

"We are happy that Ms Lacaba is back with us and we hope the ASG (Abu Sayyaf group) will also release the other two hostages very soon," Arroyo said in a statement on 2 April.

"This is the answer to our people's prayers, and also confirmation that we should always stand behind our policy of dealing firmly with any form of lawless behaviour."

Two other hostages, Eugenio Vagni of Italy and Swiss national Andreas Notter remain with the Al Qaeda-linked group, and latest intelligence reports from the ground say they too are still alive.

The release came just days after a tense stand off between the Abu Sayyaf and the military, which had refused to give in to a demand by the gunmen to pull out all its forces from the impoverished island of Jolo or they would behead one hostage.

The Vatican, the Italian government, as well as the ICRC president have all issued appeals for the three to be released.

Marine Colonel Eugene Clemen said the Abu Sayyaf decided to hand over Lacaba to Jolo Vice Governor Nur Ana Sahidulla, who has earlier been granted access into the rebel camp to check on the hostages.

He said the gunmen had refused to allow the three hostages to contact their relatives during the stand off, but that apparently the rebels were also showing signs of weakening. He would no disclose other details of the release, except that there have been a flurry of talks between intermediaries that led to the breakthrough.

"She was very tired. They didn't have anything much to eat during captivity and the past few days was filled with anxiety after they were told they were going to be beheaded," Clemen said.

"She is now resting and is having a medical check up. She has also talked with her colleagues in the ICRC," he said.

The ICRC in a statement in Geneva and in Manila confirmed that Lacaba has been freed, and that "she appears to be in good health, although very tired and extremely worried for her two colleagues."

It said that Lacaba informed them that Notter and Vagni were still alive when she left the rebel lair.

"Although we're very happy that Ms Lacaba will soon be back with her family, we remain very concerned for our other colleagues," the ICRC said.

The Abu Sayyaf, or bearers of the sword, is the smallest but the most brutal of several Islamic groups operating in the southern Philippines. It once received funding from the Al Qaeda and is believed to maintain an alliance with the Jemaah Islamiyah, an Indonesian-based group blamed for the Bali bomb attacks that killed over 200 in 2002.

The Abu Sayyaf had not demanded any ransom for the three, although previous abductions blamed on them had led to millions in dollars in money changing hands.

From a high of about 1,500 in the early 1990s, the group's strength has now dropped to around 300 fighters due to military successes on the field that had killed many senior leaders and followers.

Operating in small units, the Abu Sayyaf had kidnapped dozens of foreigners in the past.

It is on the US government's list of foreign terrorist organisations, and is blamed for the deaths of two American captives seized from an island resort in 2001 - one of them was beheaded.

ÁFRICA DO SUL: Homens violentos mais suscetíveis ao HIV

Photo: Divulgação/White Ribbon Campaign

Violência contra mulheres e HIV: relação íntima

RIO DE JANEIRO, 2 Abril 2009 (PlusNews) - Um estudo realizado na África do Sul mostrou que homens violentos têm mais probabilidade de contrair o HIV do que homens não-violentos.

Rachel Jewkes, directora da unidade de saúde e gênero do Medical Research Council e uma das autoras do estudo, observou que embora não haja uma relação directa entre estupros e HIV - um estuprador não necessariamente tem mais chance de contrair o vírus - existe uma ligação directa entre homens que cometem violência contra mulheres e HIV.

Segundo ela, isso acontece porque o comportamento violento desses homens vem acompanhado de outros factores de risco.

"O factor de risco faz parte da construção da masculinidade", explicou.

O estudo, conduzido nas províncias de Eastern Cape e KwaZulu Natal, mostrou que homens que já haviam sido violentos com suas parceiras em mais de uma ocasião tinham mais parceiras sexuais, se envolviam mais em sexo transacional e sexo com prostitutas.

Além disso, homens violentos consumiam mais álcool, apresentavam taxas mais altas de estupros de mulheres e usavam a camisinha de maneira menos consistente.

A pesquisa observou que tais homens tinham um risco 2,5 vezes maior de contrair o vírus.

"Promover um modelo de masculinidade voltado a igualdade de gêneros deve ser uma prioridade chave na prevenção do HIV", disse.

Michel Sidibé, director executivo do Programa Conjunto das Nações Unidas para HIV/SIDA, ressaltou que a violência tem uma grande parte na transmissão do HIV.

Para conter a epidemia, Sidibé destacou a importância de se trabalhar contra a desigualdade de gêneros no longo prazo e quebrar os esterótipos masculinos.

"Homens e mulheres precisam estar juntos na resposta à epidemia", disse.

A pirâmide de Maslow

Sei que para alguns que lêem o blog vão estranhar o porquê das notícias que temos colocado on-line.
A nossa resposta é simples, em situação de crise convém que as necessidades básicas das pessoas a quem damos apoio estejam adequadamente respondidas. As notícias que escolhemos para ilustrar a realidade, pois nem todos sabemos bem o que se passa no mundo, ou melhor, se todos perdessemos tempo a perceber o que se passa lá fora não teríamos tempo para a nossa vida, são exemplo de necessidades não satisfeitas.
Para lembrar :Sabemos também que muitos destes acontecimentos, i. e., violência doméstica, maternidade, tratamento dado às crianças, pobreza, fome, etc, fazem também parte da nossa realidade. De facto, entre nós e o mundo, há muito que nos separa mas mais o que nos une. Por isso, falamos e mostramos aqui sem ilusões de o salvar, o que está a ser feito, gota a gota, um dia de cada vez, porque é assim que fazemos a mudança, não mudando o mundo mas aquilo que somos e o que nos cerca.

A vida tem preço ? Ou melhor a morte? MAURITANIA: Thank you for reparations - but where is the justice?

Photo: Manon Riviere/ IRIN

Victims' families gather for a ceremony promising them reparations

NOUAKCHOTT, 1 April 2009 (IRIN) - Twenty years after a military regime killed hundreds of mostly black Mauritanians, another military government is promising to compensate their families. While some victims' associations welcome reparations, other affected families and many NGOs say compensation equals impunity for those who ordered the killings - and remain in power.

"Three of the officers responsible for extrajudicial killings in the 1990s are once again in power in the military council," said Abdel Jemal Nasser Ould Yessa with the Mauritanian human rights group S.O.S. Esclaves. "They have killed once before. What is to stop them from killing again?"

Following a 6 August coup that ousted President Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdallahi, a 12-member military council declared itself the desert country's new government.

On 25 March coup leader Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz pledged in a ceremony in Kaédi - a community 430km south of the capital Nouakchott that is home to many of the victims - that the government would compensate families of 244 identified victims with cash or property.

Former Peulh army lieutenant Abou Sy, who told IRIN he was arrested, jailed and a witness to widespread beatings and killings, said victims' families need such recognition to honour the memory of those killed.

Border violence

In the late 1980s tensions grew between Senegal and Mauritania after Mauritania jailed black army officers - many with Peulh family ties across the border in Senegal - following a coup attempt against the Arab-dominated government of President Maaouiya Sid'Ahmed Ould Taya.

A 1989 land dispute between herders and farmers fuelled political and ethnic tensions on both sides of the border; after thousands of light-skinned Mauritanians living in Senegal were expelled, the Mauritanian military responded with widespread beatings th

...No amount of money, none, would equal the value of a human life...

at forced out tens of thousands of people, the majority of whom were black.

More than 500 Mauritanians died during the crackdown, according to 1994 investigations by Human Rights Watch and the International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH).

Compensation

Officials and victims' families declined to give figures for the reparations. "No amount of money, none, would equal the value of a human life," said Abdel Aziz at the ceremony.

But money cannot equate - and could even obstruct - justice, said Fatimata M'Baye, president of the Mauritanian Association of Human Rights. "To compensate is not enough. The killers have to be brought to justice, if not, that [reparations] opens the way for impunity."

Widow Maïmouna Sy told IRIN her husband, a customs official, was killed in 1990 because he was black. "If only [former President] Maaouiya Sid'Ahmed Ould Taya were brought to justice, I would finally have peace."

Ould Taya was overthrown in a 2005 coup and now lives in exile in Qatar.

Ousted President Abdallahi had pledged during the 2007 campaign to pursue national unity and reconciliation related to the 1990s murders.

In November 2007 Abdallahi convened a roundtable on national unity. Nine months later he was deposed and put under house arrest when the military council took power.

More on Mauritania

Overview of pressures leading to military coup

Reaction sharply divided on military coup

What will be the impact of post-coup cuts in donor aid?

Since independence in 1960 a succession of military leaders has ruled Mauritania until the 2007 election that brought Abdallahi to power.

The military council led by Abdel Aziz has pledged to hold a presidential election on 6 June. In interviews with Arab media Abdel Aziz has said he will honour the constitution, which prevents the military from holding office, by resigning from the military 40 days before the election - in which he will be a candidate.

Exemplo de Violência Doméstica em Países pobres

Photo: Lilian Liang/PlusNews

Pelo fim da violência contra mulheres

RIO DE JANEIRO, 1 Abril 2009 (PlusNews) - Dona de uma beleza frágil, Lori Handrahan, conselheira sênior sobre gênero e poder na organização internacional CARE USA, é capaz de discorrer por horas sobre a desigualdade de gêneros.

Não à toa. Essa norte-americana de Washington DC construiu sua carreira internacional ao redor do tema e fala com autoridade sobre dinâmicas de poder, diferenças entre sexos e vulnerabilidade feminina, citando estudos e destrinchando números.

O que ela não sabia é que ela mesma entraria nas estatísticas em 2007. Foi nesse ano que ficou grávida de sua primeira e única filha. Foi nesse ano também que ela se tornou vítima de ataques de raiva de seu então parceiro, com quem se relacionava há um ano.

A violência começou no seu sétimo mês de gestação, quando seu parceiro jogou comida em seu rosto. Os abusos verbais e físicos recomeçaram três horas depois do nascimento de sua filha.

"Eu fiquei três dias e meio em trabalho de parto, estava exausta. Eu o acordei, pedindo que ele cuidasse um pouco dela. Ele teve um ataque de fúria num estalo, dizendo ´Sua p**a, eu vou te dar uma surra´", lembra.

Outras ocorrências seguiram. Numa delas ele atirou um vidro de creme de amendoim em sua cabeça porque ela cogitou contratarem uma babá para meio-período.

A violência contra mulheres e como engajar homens e meninos para combatê-la é um dos temas centrais do 1º Simpósio Global Engajando Homens e Meninos pela Igualdade de Gêneros, que acontece entre 30 de Março e 03 de Abril no Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.

Da negação para acção

Prova de que o assunto está longe de ser fácil foi o facto de a pergunta de Handrahan ter ficado sem resposta após ela ter compartilhado brevemente sua história em público - num simpósio cujo objectivo é exactamente discutir tais questões.

"O primeiro passo para o maior engajamento dos homens é que eles escutem e reconheçam que o problema existe", destacou. "Eles precisam parar de negar. Só porque um homem não comete a violação não significa que ele não tenha responsabilidade."

Citando o caso recente de uma menina de nove anos no Brasil, submetida a um aborto para interromper a gravidez de gêmeos, resultado de repetidos estupros pelo padastro, Margareth Arilha, directora executiva da Comissão de Cidadania e Reprodução do Centro Brasileiro de Análise e Planejamento, defendeu mais sinergias no debate público.

Eu o acordei, pedindo que ele cuidasse um pouco de nossa filha. Ele teve um ataque de furia num estalo.

"Quando os homens se manifestaram nesse caso, foi através do Ministério Público, que está indiciando a mãe por negligência; através do pai da menina, que dificultou o aborto por ser evangélico; e a igreja católica, formada principalmente por homens, que excomungou os médicos que realizaram o procedimento e a menina", listou.

Tudo isso, porém, passa primeiro por uma mudança na compreensão da masculinidade e nas referências que identificam o homem, como de que homens devem ser agressivos ou usar a força para provar a virilidade.

Ines Alberdi, directora executiva do Fundo das Nações Unidas para o Desenvolvimento das Mulheres (UNIFEM), destacou ser essa a norma em zonas de conflito, onde a violência sexual e o estupro são usados como armas de guerra e instrumentos de poder.

"Na reunião do Conselho de Segurança no ano passado, um dos presentes disse que era mais perigoso ser uma mulher do que um soldado nas áreas de conflito", afirmou. "Para mulheres, um acordo de paz não representa o fim da violência."

"Os papéis de mulheres e homens e as relações de gênero são definidos socialmente, portanto é possível mudá-los", completou.

Embora o envolvimento dos homens já seja reconhecido como fundamental para a igualdade de gêneros, o caso de Handrahan mostra o longo caminho pela frente.

Ela deixou o pai de sua filha e hoje está numa batalha judicial pela guarda da criança. O juiz que avaliou o caso da primeira vez declarou que Handrahan "não tinha credibilidade e tinha um problema com a realidade".

Todas as suas economias foram gastas com advogados e hoje Handrahan conta com a solidariedade de amigos para pagar as despesas do processo. Com menor disponibilidade para viajar por causa da filha, ela corre o risco de perder o emprego.

"Muita gente deixou de falar comigo, ninguém quer ouvir essas coisas", lamentou. "Uma coisa é ser um caso no campo, outra é ser algo que acontece com alguém próximo de você."

Maternidade...Biking for safer childbirth

Photo: Peter Martell/IRIN

A motorbike ambulance is test driven in South Sudan at the launch of a pilot project aimed to cut maternal mortality

TORIT, 1 April 2009 (IRIN) - Southern Sudan has introduced motorbike ambulances to its remote Eastern Equatoria region in a pilot scheme aimed at cutting rates of maternal mortality.

Five powerful scrambler motorbikes with a sidecar "bed" have been deployed by the Ministry of Health to boost access to health facilities for pregnant women, officials said.

"We have a problem bringing critically sick people to the few referral facilities available," said Atem Nathan Riek, director-general of primary healthcare for Southern Sudan, which has among the worst rates of maternal mortality in the world.

A woman in the South has a one in six chance of dying during the course of her lifetime from complications during pregnancy or delivery, according to the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).

Sudan's overall maternal mortality ratio is 1,107 deaths per 100,000 live births, but rates are far higher in the South, rising to 2,243 deaths per 100,000 live births, according to UNICEF.

Lack of services is one reason - but so too is lack of transport to reach the few services available.

"We have in our budget this year at least one ambulance per county, but even that one ambulance will not be enough," Riek added. "So there is room for any other innovative activities like these motorbikes."

If successful, the pilot project of five motorbikes will be extended to the rest of the country, officials said. The motorcycles, donated by UNICEF, cost about US$6,000 each, with space for the patient to sit or lie down on the cushioned bed on wheels, and seat belts for legs and waist.

There is also space for a health worker to sit behind the patient to provide care and support.

Two mechanics are being employed, and they will train local mechanics in the bike's unique features.

Access problems

Only 10 percent of all deliveries in South Sudan are assisted by skilled health personnel, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in South Sudan.

Poor road conditions - or no roads at all in some areas - mean it is difficult for those needing emergency support to reach even basic health clinics.

In the rainy season, many roads become impassable to heavy vehicles, but it is hoped the lighter bikes will more easily negotiate narrower paths around flooded tracks.

They are also cheaper and easier to maintain in remote areas, experts say.

With more than 90 percent of the South living on less than $1 a day, few can afford to hire transport even if they become sick. The new service will be free to pregnant women.

"The advantage of the motorbikes is that they can easily be managed at a lower level health facility," said Joyce Mphaya, a safe motherhood specialist with UNICEF. "It is cost-effective in terms of fuel and you can easily move with the motorbikes to remote places, where there are no roads or where cars cannot go."

Photo: UNICEF

Southern Sudan is seeking to improve maternal mortality rates (file photo)

Southern Sudan is still recovering from a 22-year civil war with the North, which ended in a 2005 peace deal.

Eastern Equatoria was fought over by both northern and southern forces, while rebel Ugandan Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) fighters also used the region as a base, terrorising a wide area through their brutal raids.

"Life for a woman here is very hard," said Mary Emmanuel, who had three children in her village without professional help. "The clinic was too far to get to, so perhaps these motorbikes could help change that."

Sudan is not the first to use the bikes - other nations include Uganda and Malawi.

In Malawi, the bikes helped raise the number of women giving birth at health facilities from 25 to 49 percent over a period of four years, according to UNICEF.

The service also helped to reduce maternal mortality rates from 586 to 236 per 100,000 live births.

The bikes will be evaluated by the Ministry of Health for their success. They will be tested in health facilities run by both the government and international aid agencies.