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 Home > Focus > Women and war News Women with missing relatives: recognizing the plight of those left behind 5-3-2008 News release 3-3-2008 TV news footage Section Women and war Section covering the specific dangers and suffering confronting women in wartime, whose plight could be improved if the rules of humanitarian law were fully respected. Access to the ICRC study Women facing war as well as related resource materials and links to other sites concerning women. © ICRC / V. Louis / v-p-u-e-00514
Chechnya. A woman showing a photo of her son, who disappeared in 2002 during riots in their village.
Countless women and girls all over the world suffer the trauma of war - as widows or orphans, perhaps displaced from their homes, sometimes detained. They are often separated from loved ones and become victims of violence and intimidation.
Women's Day 2008
Women and the Missing: the burden of those left behind International humanitarian law, which grants general protection to all war victims, regardless of gender, provides extensive specific protection for women in war. If these rules were better observed, the suffering faced by women in war would be greatly reduced.
See also
 Key document29-2-2008 Women and the Missing: living between hope and despair A large majority of those who disappear or are killed in armed conflict or other situations of violence are men, and thus the burden and anguish of clarifying their fate falls to the women left behind. This collection of images and text describes the ordeals women face when their male relatives go missing and what the ICRC is doing to support them. (Info resources\Photos) Photo Collection Includes Photo 28-2-2008 Women and warThis publication looks at the ways in which women can be affected by conflict and the actions taken by the ICRC to take their specific needs into account. It also promotes those rules of international humanitarian law which provide specific protection for women in war. (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Protection) ICRC Publication Includes PDF 28-2-2008 Women and the Missing: the burden of those left behindOn the occasion of International Women’s Day (8 March), Florence Tercier, ICRC’s women and war adviser, explains the immensely challenging plight of women whose male relatives have gone missing in war and what the ICRC is doing to support them. (Focus\Women and war) Interview Includes Photo 2-3-2007 Women and war: the ICRC's responseThe ICRC is dedicated to preserving the lives and dignity of people affected by armed conflict and internal strife, to aid those suffering the consequences of war and to act as the guardian and promoter of international humanitarian law. Recognizing that conflicts have a different impact on men, women, children and the elderly, and deeply concerned about the nature and magnitude of the violations committed against women in recent conflicts, the ICRC pledged in 1999, to assess the needs of women and girls and to promote respect for them, with a particular focus on sexual violence. (Focus\Women and war) Feature29-2-2008 Iran: long years of incertitude and anguishDuring the Iran-Iraq war of 1980-88, tens of thousands of soldiers went missing on both sides. In Iran alone, the families of some 11,000 people continue to wait for news. Close-up on three Iranian women who have lived through the pain of uncertainty. (Focus\Women and war) Feature Includes Photo 29-2-2008 Nepal: the long, lonely wait of SunamatiOne night, armed men came to Sunamati's house in mid-western Nepal and left with her husband. Since then, six years have passed without news of him. The mother of three ekes out a living and hopes, one day, for news. (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Nepal) Feature Includes Photo 29-2-2008 Argentina: “some atrocities are too awful to contemplate”Bárbara Noailles is a doctor. She was just seven years old when her father, a mechanic, was abducted from his workshop in Buenos Aires in October 1976 and “disappeared”. (Focus\Women and war) Feature 29-2-2008 Peru: "my hope and my reason for existing"In the 1980s and 1990s, Peru experienced an internal armed conflict between the army and police on one hand and insurgent groups on the other. It is now estimated that some 13,000 people went missing during those years. Juana Huaytalla Méndez, who has attended psychosocial support groups run by the Child and Family Network with ICRC backing, tells her story. (Focus\Women and war) Feature Includes Photo 29-2-2008 Dzidza's story: years of torment waiting to learn the fate of her entire familyMore than 12 years after the war in Bosnia ended, some 16,000 people* are still unaccounted for, leaving their surviving relatives in a state of permanent anguish. Journalist Nick Danziger describes the pain of Dzidza, whose family disappeared in the 1995 Srebrenica massacres. (Focus\Women and war) Feature Includes Photo 29-2-2008 Olja's story: a missing husband, an interrupted life and no way outA decade of armed conflicts in the Balkans in the 1990s caused thousands of people to disappear. The following is one woman's story of the pain of a husband gone missing, of holding out hope in vain, and the support that helped her get through it all. (Focus\Women and war) Feature Includes Photo 20-12-2007 Eastern DRC: widespread sexual violence against women threatens familiesCountless women in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have fallen prey to sexual violence carried out by armed bands. The ICRC provides support to local groups which help traumatized women recover. Bernard Barrett reports on the scourge of Kivu and meets two of the victims. (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Congo-Kinshasa) Feature Includes Photo 31-10-2007 Afghanistan: on the frontline of health careSharifa Seddiqi is a most unusual woman. Not only is she the sole female surgeon in Afghanistan's war-ravaged southern province of Kandahar, she also runs Mirwais hospital in Kandahar, the main hospital in the region. (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Afghanistan) Feature 2-3-2007 Democratic Republic of the Congo: "I want my child and me to be accepted"A group of South Kivu women who were abducted by armed groups, raped and mistreated are struggling to survive and to protect their children born of sexual violence. ICRC delegate Fabienne Garaud talked to one of them. (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Congo-Kinshasa) Feature 27-2-2007 Uganda: a lesson in courage given by women In northern Uganda, almost 1.5 million people, most of whom are Acholis, have had to abandon their villages and their fields and seek refuge in camps for internally displaced persons. Some of them have been living in these camps for ten years. They have tried to recreate a community there. But it has been difficult. (Focus\Women and war) Feature Includes Photo 27-2-2007 Women in Iraq: “Like being inside a big prison”The plight of women in Iraq is of growing concern, with increasing reports of murders, rapes and kidnappings, as well as general intimidation and oppression. Three Iraqi women give their views on living under the threat of violence. (The ICRC worldwide\Middle East and North Africa\Iraq) Feature Includes Photo 31-1-2007 Sierra Leone: shelter-for-war-widows brings hope to a womanThe war in Sierra Leone displaced hundreds of thousands of victims, the majority of whom fled to neighbouring Guinea and Liberia. They left behind a plethora of humanitarian problems, including wanton destruction of life and property. (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Sierra Leone) Feature ICRC film27-2-2007 Colombia: searching for safetyColombia has been ravaged by over four decades of armed conflict. An estimated three million people have fled violence in the countryside. In this film, we meet Carmen, Maria and Anna who have moved to Bogota in search of safety. They survive, despite their minimal income and the constant fear of further violence, receiving some help from the ICRC's emergency assistance programme. (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Films\From the field) ICRC film Includes Video 26-2-2007 Liberia: homecoming in GorluAfter 14 years of war, the villagers of Gorlu in Lofa County are finally starting to come home. But life is hard, especially for the women. Lofo, grandmother of seven, was forced out of the village 10 years ago and she's lost everything. But with tolerance and humour, she is determined to put down her roots again. With some assistance from the ICRC, her new house gradually takes shape. (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Films\From the field) ICRC film Includes Video 26-2-2007 Women fleeing warArmed conflict displaces people from their homes and livelihoods. Women often have to cope with the loss of close relatives and find new way to support themselves and their families. The ICRC works to understand the specific needs of women displaced by war, in order to better help them. This film tells the story of five women displaced by conflict in Colombia, Liberia and Sudan. Although the contexts are different, the challenges these women face bear striking similarities. (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Films\Protection) ICRC film Includes Video 1-12-2006 Congo Kinshasa: the hidden battlefieldBrutal rape has become commonplace in some parts of the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, an area plagued by warring groups who prey on local people with little fear of retaliation. (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Films\From the field) ICRC film Includes Video 31-12-2001 Women facing warEleven women tell their own individual stories of how their lives have been affected by war. Coping with displacement, physical and sexual violence, missing relatives, widowhood, detention... challenges and difficulties that these and thousands of other women must face in their daily lives. (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Films\Protection) ICRC film Includes Video ICRC Publication23-2-2007 Internally displaced peopleThe displacement of people within their own countries owing to war or natural disasters is a matter of growing concern worldwide. This concern is amply justified: time and again, internally displaced people (IDPs) suffer extreme hardship that jeopardizes their very survival. (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Protection) ICRC Publication Includes PDF 31-5-2005 Antenatal guidelines for primary health care in crisis conditionsWithin the area of mother and childcare, antenatal care plays a key role in reducing death, disease and suffering among women, whose vulnerability is always exacerbated by armed conflict and poor security conditions. These Antenatal guidelines for primary health care in crisis conditions provide field staff with basic practical information they need to run an antenatal clinic in situations that may vary greatly from one country to another. The handbook deal only with first level of health care, that is to say the community health centre, and not with the second and third levels (reference and district hospitals) (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Assistance) ICRC Publication Includes PDF 2-3-2004 Addressing the needs of women affected by armed conflict: an ICRC guidance documentBuilding upon the ICRC study Women Facing War, this guidance document intends to translate the findings of the study into practical terms. Aimed at staff concerned with the planning and implementation of humanitarian programmes, this document is intended as a means of sharing ICRC's experience in this area with other organisations. It is an important tool which can be used to address women's needs on an operational level, illustrating best practices and lessons learned. (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Protection) ICRC Publication Includes PDF 31-12-2001 Women and War postersA complement to the Women and War fact sheets, this series of five posters graphically highlights some of the difficult situations faced by women in armed conflict. They aim to create greater awareness of some of the specific problems faced by women - Sexual Violence, Detention, Displacement, and Missing Relatives, as well as to demonstrate the resilience of women in wartime through the poster on Support & Dignity. (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Protection) ICRC publication 31-12-2001 Women facing warThis ICRC study is an extensive reference document on the impact of armed conflict on the lives of women. Taking as its premise the needs of women, e.g. physical safety, access to health care, food and shelter, in situations of armed conflict, the study explores the problems faced by women in wartime and the coping mechanisms they employ. A thorough analysis of international humanitarian law, and to a lesser extent human rights and refugee law, was carried out as a means to assess the protection afforded to women through these bodies of law. The study also includes a review of the ICRC's operational response to the needs of women as victims of armed conflict. Overview of contents and executive summary (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Protection) ICRC publication Includes PDF Interview20-12-2007 Sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: victims on trial Over the past 10 years, rape and sexual assault have been perpetrated on a regular basis by armed groups operating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In recent years, sexual violence has also been committed by civilians and former fighters. Most of these crimes go unpunished. Nancy Baudoin, who recently completed an assignment in the country as a psychosocial delegate, talks about how the ICRC assists the victims. (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Congo-Kinshasa) Interview Includes PDF, Photo 2-11-2007 Congo-Kinshasa: dramatic humanitarian impact of ongoing fighting Yann Bonzon is in charge of ICRC operations in Goma. He explains what the ICRC is doing for the victims of the fighting and denounces the numerous incidents of abuse of the civilian population, in particular the many cases of sexual violence. (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Congo-Kinshasa) Interview Includes Photo 26-2-2007 Women displaced by warOn the occasion of International Women's Day (8 March), Florence Tercier, ICRC's women and war adviser, explains why the plight of displaced women is a particularly difficult one. (Focus\Women and war) Interview Includes Photo Official Statement17-11-2007 Advancement of WomenUnited Nations, General Assembly, 62nd session, Third Committee, Item 63 (a) of the agenda, Statement by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), New York, 15-17 Octobre 2007 (ICRC Activities\Humanitarian diplomacy\United Nations\62nd General Assembly) Official Statement 3-11-1999 To promote the respect of women in armed conflictsPledge Statement of the ICRC at the 27th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent (Focus\RC Movement\International Conference\27th Conference) Official Statement Photo Collection26-2-2007 Women and displacement: bearing the burden Women bear the brunt of the burden of displacement, having to strike a delicate balance between the risks they run in often hostile environments and the imperative to provide for the immediate needs of the family. This gallery provides a glimpse of contexts from around the world in which the ICRC is active and in which courageous women come together in their struggle to survive in sometimes impossibly difficult environments. (Info resources\Photos) Photo Collection Includes Photo Report27-9-2006 Women in Armed Opposition Groups in Africa and the Promotion of International Humanitarian Law and Human RightsThis report retraces the exchanges and recommendations conducted at the 2005 conference held in Addis Ababa on how women combatants can help promote humanitarian and human rights norms. Two members of the ICRC took part as facilitators in this conference organised by the NGO Geneva Call and which gathered 40 women currently or recently involved in armed opposition groups from a dozen sub-Saharan African countries. (ICRC Activities\Promoting IHL\Armed forces and police) Report Includes PDF 11-5-2006 Violence against girls in Africa during armed conflicts and crisesSecond International Policy Conference on the African Child: Violence Against Girls in Africa, Addis Ababa, 11-12 May 2006. Report by Florence Tercier Holst-Roness, Women and War Adviser for the ICRC. (Focus\Children in war) Report 6-12-2003 Women and War, implementation of the ICRC pledge to the 27th International ConferenceReport prepared by the International Committee of the Red Cross, 28th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 2 to 6 December 2003 (Focus\RC Movement\International Conference\28th Conference) Report Includes PDF Video Collection31-8-2007 ICRC and TVRL win the 2007 CNN World Report Award "Best News Report"On 19 June 2007, an independent panel of media professionals awarded the prize of Best News report to the Télévision Région Lausannoise (TVRL) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for a co-produced report called 'Rape Violence in the DR Congo'. The item was broadcast on CNN International on 4 and 5 November 2006. (Info resources\Video) Video Collection Includes Video More in this section1-3-2007 Women in war: a particularly vulnerable group?Women are often considered particularly vulnerable in conflict situations. And yet they often prove to be surprisingly strong and remarkably ingenious at coping with difficulties. In any given situation, the ICRC assesses risk and vulnerability so that it can give help to those in greatest need as a matter of priority. (Focus\Women and war) Includes Photo Other site23-2-2005 United Nations Division for the Advancement of Women (UNDAW)(Info resources\Other sites\United Nations) Other site Other site 23-2-2005 WomenWatch (UN Internet Gateway on the Advancement and Empowerment of Women)Description of UN programmes for women. International instruments concerning women’s rights. Information on women and disarmament. Reports on UN conferences on women. News. Database of UN documents on women. List by country of organizations active in the domain. (Info resources\Other sites\United Nations) Other site 23-2-2005 UN International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of WomenNews. Research and training programmes. Library catalogue. Annotated list of Institute publication’s links. (Info resources\Other sites\United Nations) Other site 23-2-2005 Femmes Africa SolidaritéLinks to articles on African women. Description of organization activities. List of African and international NGOs working in behalf of women. Press releases. Conference calendar. List of organization publications. (Info resources\Other sites\Non-governmental organizations) Other site  |
