{"id":5972,"date":"2024-01-05T13:43:27","date_gmt":"2024-01-05T19:43:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/asociacionama.org.gt\/?page_id=5972"},"modified":"2024-07-11T17:46:26","modified_gmt":"2024-07-11T23:46:26","slug":"covid-19-y-el-derecho-de-las-ninas-y-mujeres-a-vivir-libres-de-violencia-2021","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/asociacionama.org.gt\/en\/covid-19-y-el-derecho-de-las-ninas-y-mujeres-a-vivir-libres-de-violencia-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"COVID-19 and the Right of Girls and Women to Live Free from Violence (2021)"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo: Delivery of Food, Groceries and Cleaning Kits to Girls and Adolescent Young Women - Credits to AMA Association<\/em><\/h6>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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Project Name: <\/strong><\/h3>\n

COVID-19 and the Right of Girls and Women to Live Free from Violence (2021) <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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Start Date: January\/2021<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

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End date: June\/2021
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275 young female volunteers<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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The project \u201cCOVID-19 and the Right of Girls and Women to Live Free from Violence\u201d focused on strengthening the prevention of violence against adolescent girls and young indigenous and mestizo women in response to the effects caused by the Eta and Iota storms and COVID-19 in Guatemala. This was achieved by providing them with timely information on prevention mechanisms and strengthening their life skills, access to food, and economic reactivation in Southern Pet\u00e9n.<\/p>\n

To achieve the objective, the following activities were carried out:<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Activities 2021<\/h2>
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1. Broadcasts of Bilingual Spanish-Maya Q'eqch\u00ed Radio Program \u201cEl ABC de la Sexualidad\u201d.<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/h4><\/div>
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The AMA Association's radio programs were broadcasted through Shekina 102.9 FM community radio and on Facebook Live, reaching an audience of 6,000 girls and young women, primarily Maya Q'eqch\u00ed and mestizas from urban marginal areas. This strategy leveraged the high connectivity of these communities on social networks, achieving a total reach of 15,000 people.<\/p>\n

The 15 weekly programs, each lasting one hour and led by three Maya Q'eqch\u00ed and mestizo announcers, focused on relevant topics such as the Eta and Iota storms, shelters, support for local women producers, and safe practices in markets, emphasizing the use of masks and physical distancing. The prevention and reporting of sexual and domestic violence were also addressed, along with the importance of Sexual and Reproductive Rights during the pandemic and safe return to school. These topics were reinforced with educational spots in both Spanish and Maya Q'eqch\u00ed.<\/p>\n

All broadcast transmitted in radio was a crucial medium for delivering information to remote and rural communities in Southern Pet\u00e9n, often being the main or only communication channel. In indigenous communities, content was presented bilingually to facilitate understanding. Interaction with the audience was constant, using text messages, phone calls, WhatsApp, and Facebook. Public inquiries and comments ranged from the situation of the storms and available shelters to questions about violence and appreciation for the information provided.<\/p>\n

Thus, the program became a vital source of information, awareness, and education, particularly for girls, women, and indigenous, rural, and urban marginal communities with limited access to other information sources.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>

2. Placement of Culturally Relevant Material on Safety, Hygiene, and Prevention of Violence and COVID-19<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/h4><\/div>
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Three billboards were placed for five months, providing information on COVID-19 prevention and hygiene norms, prevention of sexual and domestic violence against Maya Q'eqch\u00ed and mestizo Guatemalan girls and women, and the importance of responsibly reactivating the economy.<\/p>\n

These billboards were strategically located in high-traffic areas of Southern Pet\u00e9n, such as the Popt\u00fan market, the main commercial center of Southern Pet\u00e9n, and on national highways. They reached about 30,000 people in Southern Pet\u00e9n, informing them about the aforementioned themes.<\/p>\n

A total of 8,000 culturally relevant posters were placed, containing information in Spanish and Maya Q'eqch\u00ed on proper prevention and hygiene measures to prevent COVID-19 and violence prevention. This was particularly important as the Eta and Iota storms and COVID-19 had increased the instances of violence experienced by adolescent girls and women.<\/p>\n

The materials were created considering the Maya Q'eqch\u00ed native language, customs, and traditions of the Maya and mestizo people to ensure a suitable and effective response, as ancestral and mestizo communities coexist in the department of Pet\u00e9n. The posters were displayed in schools to strengthen the return to classes, in the Popt\u00fan market, neighborhood stores, tortilla shops, nixtamal mills, and houses in urban marginal areas and Maya Q'eqch\u00ed and mestizo communities throughout the department of Pet\u00e9n.<\/p>\n

The placement of these posters was conducted in partnership with the three Health Area Directorates of Pet\u00e9n (Pet\u00e9n South East, South West, and North), the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food, and the Popt\u00fan Market Tenants Committee. This initiative helped educate and inform about 80,000 adolescent girls, women, and communities in the 14 municipalities of the Pet\u00e9n department.<\/p>\n

The posters were illustrated for easier understanding and to be interpretable by people who cannot read or write, as Guatemala has high rates of illiteracy. Initially, the plan was to create 5,000 posters, but with an additional USD 5,000 provided, it was possible to produce 3,000 more.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>

3. Delivery of 275 Bags of Groceries and Hygiene Kits<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/h4><\/div>
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275 bags of groceries and hygiene kits were distributed to strengthen the food and nutritional security of the families of 275 adolescent girl volunteers from the AMA Association. These included girls with disabilities, entrepreneurs from the Popt\u00fan municipal market, Pet\u00e9n, and communities in the border area between Guatemala and Belize.<\/p>\n

It's important to note that the initial proposal planned to deliver 400 grocery bags. However, due to the scarcity caused by the Eta and Iota storms of personal hygiene items and access to sanitary towels and COVID-19 prevention supplies, it was decided to also provide these supplies. Therefore, each beneficiary received a bag of groceries and a hygiene kit, reducing the number of beneficiaries from 400 to 275.<\/p>\n

With these deliveries, menstrual hygiene and COVID-19 prevention were also strengthened. Additionally, they aimed to prevent domestic violence, sexual violence, and early forced unions among adolescent girls. Due to scarcity, many parents trade girls for sexual favors or marry them off in exchange for food, land, or livestock, especially to older men, a sad reality that continues to afflict them.<\/p>\n

The 275 beneficiaries who received aid were: 50 adolescent Maya Q'eqch\u00ed and mestizo girls from the five basic education institutes participating in AMA's interactive training circles, 25 adolescent girl survivors of sexual violence from the AHICAM home, 25 adolescent girls with disabilities, 25 adolescent girls and women entrepreneurs from the Popt\u00fan municipal market, 50 adolescent girls and women from communities along the Guatemala-Belize border, and 100 young women members of 10 soccer teams participating in the \"Score a Goal Against Violence\" championship.<\/p>\n

It's also vital to mention that the donation helped to strengthen responsible economic reactivation in Southern Pet\u00e9n. The arrival of the Eta and Iota storms further affected the already damaged economy of adolescent girls and women entrepreneurs from the municipalities of San Luis, Popt\u00fan, and Dolores, Pet\u00e9n, who subsist on selling their crops and farm animals in the Popt\u00fan market. With the surplus from the donation (USD 10,000 requested, USD 15,000 provided by the FGM).<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>

4. \"For Me, For My Town\" Campaign<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/h4><\/div>
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In partnership with the women of the Popt\u00fan Municipal Market Committee, Pet\u00e9n, 1,300 reusable masks and 400 bottles of fifth-generation quaternary ammonium were distributed to adolescent girls and women entrepreneurs who travel from their communities to sell their products or who have stalls in the Popt\u00fan municipal market.<\/p>\n

This initiative aimed to provide them with adequate protection to prevent COVID-19 and comply with the biosafety measures required by Guatemalan authorities for economic activities. Due to the scarcity and high prices of these products, it was difficult for them to have access to them, exposing them to the risk of infection and potential closure of their small businesses for not meeting the established COVID-19 measures.<\/p>\n

This distribution significantly strengthened the well-being and economy of the adolescent girls and women entrepreneurs, enabling them to conduct their economic activities safely and responsibly. This improvement in their economic situation helps them escape from situations of violence arising from lack of economic autonomy and the confinement experienced in Guatemala.<\/p>\n

To locally strengthen responsible economic reactivation, eight large informational billboards with COVID-19 prevention messages were installed in strategic locations in Southern Pet\u00e9n. Additionally, municipal markets were visited safely, and 13 informational billboards were placed at the entrances of the Popt\u00fan municipal market. Thirteen gallons of liquid hand soap were also provided to ensure that all visitors could wash their hands and enter and exit safely.<\/p>\n

The campaign was enhanced with culturally relevant radio spots produced by AMA, which were broadcast in collaboration with U\u00b4tan Kaj, Shekina, and Popt\u00fan Stereo radio stations.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Results Achieved 2021<\/h2>
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Primary Beneficiaries:<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/h4><\/div>
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