Fanisa Masia

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

To commemorate the 16 days of Activism campaign of NO violence against women and children Women'sNet has been involved in a number of activities, including documenting women’s voices using technology and raising awareness on issues of communication and access to information rights of women

Under the “Take Back the Tech” banner and with the support of Vodacom, Women’sNet is running a campaign and twitter drive called Fone4Women. The campaign is aimed at getting people to donate their old cell-phones – which will be handed over to Women’s rights organisations, to benefit women and girls who experience violence.

As part of the 16 days of Activism campaign, Women’sNet is embarking on a campaign and twitter drive under the hashtag #fone4women. The campaign is aimed at the public to donate their old cell-phone to women and girls victim of violence as it has been previously reported that victims of violence more especially domestic violence use cell-phones to record and report incidents of violence to use as proof for their case. The cell-phones will be donated to victims of violence.

As part of the 16 days of Activism campaign, Women’sNet is embarking on a campaign and twitter drive under the hashtag #fone4women. The campaign is aimed at the public to donate their old cell-phone to women and girls victim of violence as it has been previously reported that victims of violence more especially domestic violence use cell-phones to record and report incidents of violence to use as proof for their case. The cell-phones will be donated to victims of violence.

Women’sNet is excited to be part of an innovating conference on September 14th and 15th, under the topic Wired Women Conference: Celebrating and Empowering Women in Tech hosted by Quality Life in Rosebank, Johannesburg. The two day conference will showcase the women thought leader, entrepreneurs and innovators who are shaping the digital economy while empowering delegates with practical strategies on how to use technology for personal and professional advancement.

Women’sNet hosted a training workshop funded by the Oxfam Canada Women’s Rights Advancement Programme (OWRAP). Joining us for the training is Women on Farms, Cape Town Rape Crisis Centre and Sex Worker Education and Advocacy Taskforce (SWEAT). The training workshop ran from 5th September up to Thursday the 8th in Cape Town.

On August 17, 2011 Women’sNet in partnership with Media Monitoring Africa held a seminar on the topic: When Technology Hurts: How Technology is Changing Experiences of Violence. The seminar saw a number of stakeholders, government, NGOs, media converge to Newtown, Johannesburg where the event was held. Women’sNet has been doing work looking at the role that technology play in women’s rights and gender equality; and has observed in the past years a growing trend where technology is implicated in acts of violence, especially in perpetrating violence against women. “As a response and through our project ‘TAKE BACK THE TECH’ we decided to lead a public dialogue together with MMA to get different stakeholders talking on”, elaborated Lerato Legoabe, Women’sNet co-Director. The seminar was aimed at getting different stakeholders to draw on opportunities where they have used technology in the fight against gender-based violence as a start point to challenge the problem, added Legoabe.

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What happens when access is there but threats to safety hinders you from competing in the exchange of information and ideas via the Internet? As strange as it may sound to some, apparently that’s one challenge that some young people in South Africa face in what would have been their key to new opportunities and being part of the Information society. Mobile technology penetration is high in South worldwide including especially among school-going youth to such to an extent that access to information is supposed to be on the tip of their hands. However this privilege is enjoyed by few. Challenges such as creating and distributing information that degrades some ICTs are increasingly reflecting physical spaces, with all the social ills faced by women and the girl child. Women continue to suffer harassment and stalking in on-line spaces.

On the 9th of May 2010, People Oppossing Women Abuse (POWA) set up a social experience in a townhouse complex in Johannesburg, which was captured in a video and distributed on the internet. The video went viral. Fanisa Masia , Project Officer at Women'sNet spoke to POWA's training manager, Kodwa Tyiso about POWA's strategic use of Information and Communication Technologies in their work

Statistics still shows that violence against women and girls is escalating. Some women rights organisations are working in finding ways to advocate for and empower women. Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are proving to be a good strategy to use as they allow a wider reach. Fanisa Masia spoke to Lisa Vetten, Director at Tshwaranang Legal Advocacy Center, to find out how they use ICTs for their Shukumisa campaign to combat violence against women