“I called the police, who said they would come when I was dead.”
 Tatiana, St Petersburg, Russia

The King

“I don’t want my daughter to be a ‘good girl’.”     


Who:
Kgosi Mabe
What:
Uses his position as tribal king to work against violence against women.    


The Youth Leader

“Partner violence in Santa Marta has not disappeared, but it is no longer hidden away.”


Who:
Itamar Silva
What:
Runs a project to raise equality awareness in the Grupo Eco youth group in the Santa Marta favela.


The Veteran

“I said I had two other options: I could become a beggar or a prostitute.”


Who:
Ana Maria Perez del Campo
What: Started a women’s shelter where the women stay for eighteen months. So far no-one has returned to her violent husband after her stay.


The Radio Presenter

“The media are hugely important because what we don’t show doesn’t exist.” 


Who:
Martha Gomez
What: Journalist who for the last seven years has been broadcasting Tolerancia Cero (“Zero Tolerance”) a radio programme about violence against women.


The Instructors

“We help the helpless to be able to manage on their own.”


Who:
LAV (Laissez l’ Afrique Vivre)
What:
Offers support and vocational training to young people  - rape victims, child soldiers and street children.

Eight young women sit bent over their treadle sewing machines. They have learned how to thread the machine and pump the treadle at the right speed to sew evenly and safely. Their first task is to sew a straight seam on a piece of paper.


The Parents

“We had no idea of the dangerous life our daughter led. Now we want to warn other people.”


Who:
Marta and Rick Omilian
What:
Manage the Remembering Maggie Fund, which spreads information about violence among young people and agitates against the US liberal weapons legislation. 


The Village Activists

“You only have to look at the TV series, and how badly the women behave. It’s because they haven’t been circumcised!”


Who:
BLACD (The Better Life Association for Comprehensive Development).
What: Visit the villages to talk about genital mutilation, and have radically changed the situation. These days only one in ten girls undergoes genital mutilation; previously the figure was nine in ten.  


The Teacher

“If someone wants to murder me, they will.”  


Who:
Marisela Ortiz Rivera
What: Leads the association “Give us back our daughters”, at the risk of her life.