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The Humble Workers

Lacac Pe Lony Palwo

Reducing violence against women due to conflicts over property rights

Issue: Conflict over land and property rights is a pressing issue in women's lives. There are three main areas that cause this conflict. First, there is a lack of awareness and knowledge of women's land rights. Second, women are often denied equal decision-making power in the household and, finally, women who are unmarried, unable to have children, or have only daughters are disrespected.

Mission: To help women gain access and ownership of land through creating awareness in the community about women's land rights

Solution: Education and awareness building are at the heart of our team's strategy for change. Since men in this community often ostracize or blame their wives for not "giving them sons," it is clear that education about reproductive health is desperately needed. By helping couples understand that biological sex is actually determined by male chromosomes, we hope that women will no longer be blamed, disrespected, or forced to flee their homes for not giving birth to male children. We also use theatre performances to educate the community about women's property rights, the dangers of land conflict, and where someone in such a situation can find help. We have opened a support center and trained 15 volunteers to provide counseling services to victims of land conflict and we are strengthening the capacity of local leaders to solve cases of land conflict fairly. Finally, the group determined that women need advocates and allies in the local leadership and from local men therefore we are working to form five men's "champion groups" who will advocate at the village level for women's land rights.

12-Month Goals:

• at least 320 people will be educated about women's property rights
• 40 couples experiencing conflict over property will go through mediation to come to a fair and rightful decision
• 20 male champions of women's land rights will be mobilized