“I’m not brave, I’m afraid, but I have no choice.” 
Hina Jilani, human rights lawyer, Lahore, Pakistan

The Midwife

“When I look back on it, I feel genuine regret and compassion.” 


Who:
Enayat Abdelhanid
What: Midwife who has changed her opinion and is now opposed to genital mutilation.

“I used to circumcise up to twenty girls a day, and I was paid in money, tea and sugar. We used to cut out three parts. We held the girl down and she usually screamed. When I look back on it, I feel genuine regret and compassion.”


The Women’s Shelter

“Several women who have stayed at Dastak have been murdered by their families when they have dared to venture out.”


Who:
Dastak shelter
What:
Offer protection to women who have been subjected to violence or threats of violence. Lahore’s only private women’s shelter.


The Radio Station

We’re going to start a discussion about women’s rights in our area.


Who:
Rádio Mulher um Ambiente Comunitário
What:
Broadcast local radio for women in the favela, about women’s problems. 


The Support Person

“Those four months changed my life.”


Who:
Paulina Bengtson
What:
Runs Novahuset, a voluntary association which supports victims of sexual assault.

“Actually, I had a feeling straight away that something was wrong. He looked like someone from the Mafia, not at all as gentle as he’d seemed. But I was gullible and ignored my own warning signals. I was used to trusting people.”


The Pioneers

“As far as the politicians are concerned, it’s a reality that doesn’t exist.”


Who:
Casa Amiga
What: Centre for support and advice for women who have been subjected to violence.

She was a retired accountant who settled in Juarez where, in 1993, she began to notice the many reports in the local paper of young girls who had been found murdered and raped. Why was this spate of murders not attracting any attention?


The Police Commissioner

“The turning point was 2004, with the new law on violence in the home. Violence against women was no longer a private matter.”


Who
: Adolfina Prieto
What: Heads LIBRA, the special police unit which combats violence against women and also offers survival courses to women who have lived with a dangerous man.


The Men's Group

“It annoys me that people keep asking ‘Why doesn’t she leave?’ People seem to want to lay the blame on the woman, when the only valid question is - Why does he hit her?”


Who:
Sara Brammer
What:
Psychologist who treats violent men.


The Men’s Network

“Maybe it was time to shoot a few men … ?”


Who: 
Hans Hansson
What: 
Started the men’s network in Piteå and runs treatment sessions for violent men.