Women Activists

"Africa will inevitably rise like those many heads of the hydra, but first it needs a decolonial break from the tether that ties its economies to the global capitalist market."

"“You are probably right, but if we try and fail, we can at least tell our daughters we tried but could not change the conditions, now it is your turn to try. But if we do nothing and just watch the rights that our mothers and grandmothers fought to secure for us wash away at the whims of fundamentalist and corrupt politicians, what do we have to tell them?”"

"Describes sexual liberation as ‘served on a plate’"

"The Left appears to be hindered by Eurocentrism, focusing more on their own struggles with government policies towards migrant minorities in Europe. They applied their analysis of this situation to events in our countries, neglecting the vital resistance forces against the Muslim Far Right. In prioritizing victims of the state, they created a hierarchy of victims, overlooking those targeted by non-state actors. By failing to address the crimes committed by Muslim fundamentalist non-state groups against women, they also established a hierarchy of rights, where women's rights are placed last, after religious, cultural, and minority rights."

"Secularism is the legal and administrative principle that separates the state from organized religions. It was established during the French Revolution and later formalized in the 1905-1906 laws on separation. Article 1 of these laws guarantees individuals the freedom to believe and practice their faith. Article 2 states that the Secular Republic neither recognizes, engages with, nor funds religions, their representatives, or institutions. In a secular Republic, all citizens are equal and have the same rights under the law."

"Marieme Helie Lucas respond to the question "How was the FIS in Algeria able to hijack the youth revolt and gain so much popularity in their conflict with the authoritarian Algerian government"?"

"Reactionary forces have always sought to govern in the name of God. Secularism, defined as the separation of religion and state, is the most effective way to prevent them from directly wielding political power. Historically, progressive religious interpreters and liberation theologians have been marginalized and defeated within their own religious traditions."

"I realized failing is still better than doing nothing to regain one’s rights and human dignity."

"It's never a bad thing to fight for what is right."

"Our goal is to challenge the state to enforce the Constitution and the private actors to respect their business and human rights responsibilities, but also to give a voice to those who are systematically not listened to."

"Being an environmental activist is a lifetime commitment, that requires resilience and a strong support system. Right Livelihood Award"

"Do not rely on the few disabled people you might know or work with to take on the responsibilities of creating the change that is needed."

"i’m used to losing,I lost in NRC and CA races but continued to work for my people"

"I have a clear picture of the Benet people now, and I do apologize on behalf of the government for those that have lost their lives in the struggle.”"

"At least 120 girls have been circumcised in the last month in Uganda’s northeastern region of Karamoja, Ugandan State Minister for Disaster Preparedness"

"The returning officer did not show impartiality as required by the law and the ogwal tampered with the register which allowed some illegal voters to cast ballot in Favour to Kullany"

"When I die, I want to die a philanthropist”"

"it is also important that employers state in their job advertisements that the position on offer is especially welcome to those with disabilities – unambiguously stated – in order to attract people."

"These changes can be simple, but are often not considered because either no disabled people or organisations were consulted, or, as some may point out: there simply is no willingness to make changes."

"leaders and those in charge of hiring to reach out to organisations such as Norges Handikapforbund to access the many resources they have on offer, such as information and training, as well as recommendations for how to seek out excellent candidates living with disabilities that might be interested in the roles you offer."

"We could welcome people with disabilities into working industries previously considered “not suited” for their abilities, and consequently also increase the visibility and inclusion of disabled people, reducing stigma and misunderstanding as well."

"Even within the conversation about lack of representation, disability discrimination does not get the attention that it requires, leaving disabled people out of the decision-making processes that directly impact their lives."

"We cannot stop the crime taking place as long as there is conflict so we need to end the conflict but in the meanwhile we also need to give hope to these women."

"Sexual violence is being used as a “tactic of terror” to target religious and ethnic minorities and members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) communities"

"The third trend, which seems to come in a much clearer way, is that sexual violence in conflict is being used to forcefully displace people. People are forced out of their communities and off their land because the land is rich in natural resources or because groups want to use it to grow narcotics as is the case in Colombia."

"think the biggest challenge we have is a lack of understanding about the strategies that these people use and I think that has made it extremely difficult to access them, to engage them, to understand what is driving them and what they do"

"women’s groups are also advocating for political parties to introduce voluntary quotas for women’s participation, in case the bill is delayed or not tabled in parliament."

"It’s not about competition with men; it’s about working together to move Sierra Leone forward in a very positive way"

"We are going to the women to say ‘engage your MPs that you want the quota bill passed into law or else you won’t vote for them (in coming elections)"

"The most important thing is to make sure we have more community engagement, make sure that communities who are involved in this crime, as well as community and religious leaders give us a better understanding of the extent of the crime, the people who have been targeted and to respond in terms of services for the victims"

"In many societies, women are facing serious social, economic, cultural, moral and religious barriers to access to information on the disease, to protective measures and to medication to slow it development in the event of contamination."

"Moreover, women transmit the virus when giving birth, and so have an especially important role to play in fighting the propagation of AIDS. “It is vital to target women through specific programs."

"It’s not easy to deal with sexual violence because it requires capacity-building, providing technical assistance and support, changing laws, working with the judiciary to make sure that this crime is investigated and that the perpetrators are prosecuted"

"Inequalities between the sexes, societies and continents must be eliminated to halt the epidemic’s spread"

"Uganda has AIDS. We call it siliimu. And siliimu is within us and among us. And It is only Philley Bongoley Lutaya that has accepted to show us that it is here. And it is up to us know how to handle it."

"But I hope and trust that you bear with me that for him it is a big thing to carry. He is carrying it for us, for you and me. And for generations to come"

"AIDS is considered a homosexual disease in developed countries, but it is a heterosexual disease in Africa and it affects us all. Everyone knows someone who is infected or has a family member who has died."

"It finds women on their marriage beds, especially rural women."

"The men go to the towns looking for work and when they come home, the women open their loving arms and everything else and they get it from their husbands."

"They (men) say such a rule does not allow people to freely choose who they want to represent them and infringes on people’s basic human rights."

"The idea is for political parties to ensure that those seats that are reserved for women are winnable seats, but the men are saying that such a policy is undemocratic,”"

"Furthermore, rallying our people to fully embrace the peace agreement is key to moving towards the actualization of peace, living it and protecting it. This shall further help our people prioritize and see clearly the need for an elected responsible, competent government that shall serve and be answerable to them."

"We shall further advocate for basic freedoms as expression and assembly, multi-partism and the ability to move freely safely in South Sudan. Furthermore, we shall work with like-minded political parties, individuals and civil society to consistently call for free fair elections."

"Driven by our people’s suffering, motivated by our people’s yearning for a just dignified life and lasting peace, urged by the gap in the required leadership, I have decided to answer the call. South Sudan must arise peacefully against violence, political exploitation, and manipulation."

"STEPS is a national political party that addresses issues pertaining to peace and democracy in South Sudan."

"it is our prime concern to address injustices and empowerment issues regarding the youth and women such as education and economic empowerment. Women, historically and traditionally due to several conflicts, continue to bear the brunt of wars the most and areas such severally affected and marginalized."

"It is truly time to heal our traumatized war-burdened souls. Hence, my straight-up answer is we have no choice but to believe in this peace agreement because war is not an option."

"it is our concern to ensure women’s holistic empowerment ranging from their inclusion in peace-and decision-making processes, politics and the economy."

"Women are heavily engaged in community peace efforts, however, given peace is concentrated on political elites, we at John Garang Women Peace Institute do our best to research on women’s peace efforts at grassroots."

"the political party is rapidly growing in different parts of South Sudanese, among the displaced and refugees as well the Diaspora where many had lost hope in peace."