Friday, March 23, 2012

Sexual violence as a tool of political terror

The Cuban transition wears a skirt, its rhythm is marked by so many women who will achieve a more inclusive, maternal, free country :-) - Yoani Sanchez, on twitter March 8, 2012

"Tyrants with pathological cravings for power have organized campaigns of rape since ancient times, from Troy to Nanking and Sierra Leone to Cyprus, from East Pakistan to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and beyond. And yet, everyone ever convicted of orchestrating mass rape could be crowded into a single holding cell." - AIDS Free World, 2009

IACHR: Complaints of Attacks on Women Human Rights Defenders in Cuba Credit: Juan Manuel Herrera/OAS

Listening to the report on Complaints of Attacks on Women Human Rights Defenders in Cuba presented on Friday afternoon during an audience before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights by representatives of the Directorio Democrático Cubano, Madres y Mujeres Anti-Represión en Cuba, and the Coalition of Cuban-American Women raised concerns about the practices of the dictatorship in Cuba targeting women.

Laida Carro of the Coalition of Cuban-American Women summed up the purpose of their testimony: "We came to reiterate before the IACHR that it is inacceptable that in our hemisphere women who defend fundamental rights are discriminated against and subjected to cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment."

Janisset Rivero, of the Directorio Democrático Cubano highlighted a troubling trend stating that "Since 2011 a considerable increase in the practice of stripping naked, hurling sinuous words and sexual threats against the Ladies in White."


Laura Pollán, interviewed in the above video, died under mysterious circumstances on October 14, 2011

It is a troubling trend because at least two of the Castro brothers allies, Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, and the late Muammar Gaddafi of Libya have both used rape as a political weapon to terrorize women from participating in the political process. It appears that Cuban state security is testing similar tactics in order to see how the international community reacts and with each non-reaction push the envelope further.

For example, on March 1, 2012 a violent arrest was carried out against female members of the Rosa Parks Feminine Movement in the central city of Placetas who were attacked as they were protesting in front of the Cuban Communist Party Municipal Headquarters. Yris Perez Aguilera was beaten and arrested by officer Yuniel Monteagudo, who pulled down her pants inside the patrol car and threatened to rape her. The women remained under arrest until Saturday, March 3rd.

In the case of Libya the raping of women appears to have been conducted during an armed conflict. On the other hand in the case of Zimbabwe as in Cuba there is no armed conflict underway in the country.


Zimbabwe Rape Survivor 1

However there is plenty of documentation on the use of rape as a political weapon to silence women in Zimbabwe. AIDS-Free World in 2009 published a detailed report titled Electing to Rape: Sexual Terror in Mugabe's Zimbabwe which analyzed the situation there during the 2008 elections and the aftermath:
In the weeks immediately after the June 2008 presidential elections in Zimbabwe, AIDS-Free World received an urgent call from a Harare-based organization. The human rights activists were overwhelmed with reports from women associated with the opposition party, Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), who had been raped by members of President Robert Mugabe’s ruling party, ZANU-PF, in a vicious campaign to intimidate voters and emerge victorious in the presidential election. In response, AIDS-Free World undertook a series of investigative trips to the region with teams of lawyers to interview survivors of this violence. What emerged from the testimony was a brutal, orchestrated campaign of rape and torture perpetrated by Mugabe’s ZANU-PF youth militia, agents of Zimbabwe’s Central Intelligence Organization (CIO), and people who identify themselves as veterans of the liberation war (known as war veterans) affiliated with ZANU-PF. The exceptionally violent rapes, as described by women from every province of Zimbabwe, were often nearly fatal. Survivors’ terror was prolonged by fears that their attackers were among the 15% of adults infected with HIV in Zimbabwe.
Cuban women are in the vanguard of political change in the island and like the women in Zimbabwe are now a target of an entrenched and brutal dictatorship that is willing to do anything to remain in power. The world ignored Mugabe's brutalization of women in Zimbabwe and this led to the systematic use of rape as a political weapon against female human rights defenders and political activists. Trends in Cuba point to the possibility that the same tragic outcome could be repeated if the international community does not speak out early and often against the violence visited against Cuban women by the dictatorship on the island.



Stop rape now in Zimbabwe, Cuba and wherever else it arises.

"They can either kill us, put us in jail or release them. We will never stop marching no matter what happens." - Laura Inés Pollán Toledo, Ladies in White founder (February 13, 1948 – October 14, 2011)

19 comments:

  1. I am indeed very happy for my life; My name is Grace Tessy, I never thought that I will live on earth before the year runs out. I have been suffering from a deadly disease (HIV) for the past 5 years now; I had spent a lot of money going from one places to another, from churches to churches, hospitals have been my every day residence. Constant checks up have been my hobby not until last Month, I was searching through the internet, I saw a testimony on how DR. Ben helped someone in curing her HIV disease, quickly I copied his email which is (drbenharbalhome@gmail.com).I spoke to him, he asked me to do some certain things which I did, he told me that he is going to provide the herbal to me, which he did, then he asked me to go for medical checkup after some days after using the herbal cure, I was free from the deadly disease, he only asked me to post the testimony through the whole world, faithfully am doing it now, please brothers and sisters, he is great, I owe him in my life. if you are having a similar problems just email him on (drbenharbalhome@gmail.com) or simply whatsapp him on: +2348144631509.He can also cure disease like Cancer, Diabeties, Herpes. Etc. You can reach me on email: gracetessy1995@gmail.com..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Am Susan Rodrick by name, i was diagnosed with Herpes for 4 years ago i lived in pain with the knowledge that i wasn't going to ever be well again i contacted so many herbal doctors on this issue and wasted a large sum of money but my condition never got better i was determined to get my life back so one day i saw mrs amber post on how Dr Emmanuel saved him from the VIRUS with herbal medicine i contacted Dr Emmanuel on WhatsApp at +2348140073965 or email address: nativehealthclinic@gmail.com we spoke on the issue i told him all that i went through and he told me not to worry that everything will be fine again so he prepared the medicine and send it to me through courier service and told me how to use it,after 14days of usage I went to see the doctor for test ,then the result was negative,am the happiest woman on earth now. this testimony is real.thanks to Dr Emmanuel God bless you. you can also reach him on his whatsApp number +2348140073965

      Delete
    2. Its a pleasure for me to write this testimony about this wonderful thing that happened to me last week on how i got my HIV aids cured, i have been reading so-many post of some people who were cured of HIV, but i never believed them, I was hurt and depressed so I was too curious and wanted to try dr.idedia then i contacted him on his email on dr.idediatraditionalhealinghome@gmail.com  when i contact him, he assured me 100% that he will heal me, i pleaded with him to help me out, its a great success that he healed just as he promised, he told me that in three days time that i should go and check on my HIV status, I was floored that when i went to the hospital to check of my status that i was HIV negative, i never thought possible that dr. idedia can do miracles, i never really believed in magic but I played along with a little hope and faith and after everything but dr Idedia changed my life and made me a true believer you can contact him dr.idediatraditionalhealinghome@gmail.com or whattsapp Number: +2349074505296 visit his website https://sites.google.com/view/dridediatraditionalhealinghome/ orhttps://dr-idedia-traditional-healing-home9.webnode.com/  or visit his blog http://dridediatraditionalhealinghome.blogspot.com so he can help you out.  he said that he is also specialize on the following diseases: HERPES, HIV, ALS, HPV, DIABETES, HEPATITIS B, CANCER,SICKLE CELL, VIRGINAL DRYNESS,  And Bring Back Yours Ex back. 

      Delete
    3. MY HIV HEALING TESTIMONY

      My mouth is short of words, i am so happy because Dr voodoo has healed me
      from HIV which i have been suffering from the past 5years now, i have
      spend a lot when getting drugs from the hospital to keep me healthy, i have
      tried all means in life to always i can become HIV negative one day, but
      there was no answer until i found Dr voodoo the parish of African who
      provide me some healing herbs that i uses , now i am glad telling everyone
      that i am now HIV Negative, i am very happy, thank you Dr voodoo for
      helping my life comes back newly without any form of crisis, may the good
      lord that i serve blessed you Dr voodoo and equip you to the higher grade
      for healing my life. i am so amazed. so i will announced to everyone in
      this whole world that is HIV positive to please follow my advice and get
      healed on time, because we all knows that HIV disease is a deadly
      type,contact Dr voodoo for your HIV healing herbs today at:
      voodoospelltemple66@gmail.com He will be
      always happy to assist you online and ensure you get healed on time,
      contact Dr voodoo today for your healing hearbs immediately, you can also
      add him on whatsApp +2348140120719 thank you sir.

      Delete
    4. Am jeremiah, I am testifying about a great hebal man that cured my wife of hepatitis B, and liver cirhosis. his name is Dr oniha. My wife was diagnose of hepatities two years ago, i almost spent all i had then, until i saw dr oniha recommendation online, and i call him, then he told me how to get the herb. You can also call him on +2347089275769 or email him at dronihaspell@yahoo.com

      Delete
    5. Good news this is to everyone out there with different health challenges, as I know there are still a lot of people suffering from different health issues and are therefore looking for solutions. I bring you Good news. There is a man called Dr Emmanuel  a herbal practitioner who helped cure me from HSV (2), i had suffered from this diseases for the past 5 years and i have spent so much money trying to survive from it. I got my healing by taking the herbal medicine Dr Emmanuel sent to me to drink for about 14 days . 3 days after completion of the dosage, I went for a medical checkup and I was tested free from HSV. all thanks to God for leading me to Dr Emmanuel who was able to cure me completely from this deadly diseases, I’m sharing this so that other people can know of this great healer called Dr Emmanuel because I got to know him through elizabeth who he cured from HIV. I was made to understand that he can cure several other deadly diseases and infections. Don’t die in ignorance or silent and don’t let that illness take your life. Contact Dr Emmanuel through his email traditionalherbalhealingcentre@gmail.com You can also whatsapp/call him on:+2348140033827 .He cure all forms of disease {1}HIV/AIDS {2}DIABETES {3}EPILEPSY {4} BLOOD CANCER {5} HPV {6} BRAIN TUMOR {7} HEPATITIS {8}COPD{9} SICKLE AND ANAEMIA.etc Be kind enough to share as you received.  

      Delete
  2. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I never thought i would be HIV negative again after been diagnosed in 2015, i have tried everything possible in life from one doctor to another, one hospital to another, series of tests, different kinds of medication, i had already lost hope until i meet Great Dr. OSAGIE online testimonies, a specialist in herbal medication from Africa, i contacted him (drosagiesolutiontemple@gmail.com OR
    DROSAGIESOULTIONTEMPLE@YAHOO.COM) and he prepared HIV herbal medication for me which i took for 7days and now i am completely cured. i want to use this medium to express my gratitude to him for saving my life and curing me from HIV, for taking away all my pains and sorrows, I''m indeed grateful and i am so happy I''m now HIV negative. i will continue to tell the good news of your great works to everyone, if you have HIV or other disease contact him, Email: his email: (drosagiesolutiontemple@gmail.com OR
    DROSAGIESOULTIONTEMPLE@YAHOO.COM ) or His Whatsapp number: +2347030465649...thank you He also have a herbal cure for Following DISEASES,this is 100% Real
    -COLD SORE
    -ALS
    -LOWER RESPIRATORY INFECTION
    -LOW SPERM COUNT
    -STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS
    -STROKE
    -CANCER
    -BARENESS/INFERTILITY

    ReplyDelete
  4. God will continue to bless you more abundantly, for the good works you are doing in peoples life, I will keep on writng and posting testimonies about you on the Internet, I was a HIV patient, I saw a post on blog on how Dr. Omohan cured someone, I contacted him and also got my healing, kindly email him now on (dromohanherbalmedicine@gmail.com or His Whatsapp number: +2348164816038...thank you my great DR
    Dr Omohan CAN AS WELL CURE THE FOLLOWING DISEASE:-
    HIV/AIDS
    HERPES
    CANCER

    ReplyDelete
  5. hello I?m from USA , I have been suffering from HERPES virus for the past 3 years and i had constant pain especially in my knees, During the first year I had faith in God that i will be healed someday, but this disease started circulate all over my body and i have been taking treatment from my doctor, few weeks ago i came in search on the internet if i could get any information concerning the prevention of this disease, on my search i saw a testimony of so many people who has been healed from Hepatitis B, HIV/AID, Diabetes,HSV, ALS HPV and Cancer by this Man called Dr, Akioya and he also gave the email address of this man and advice we should contact him for any sickness that he would be of help, so i wrote to Dr. Akioya telling him about my HERPES Virus he told me not to worry that i will be cured from this deadly disease i never believed it, well after all the procedures and remedy given to me by this man, few weeks later i started experiencing changes all over me as the Doctor assured me that i will be cured,after some time i went to my medical doctor to confirmed if i have be finally cured behold it was true,and now i?m cure totally with Dr.Akioya, So friends my advise is if you have such sickness or any other at all you can email Dr,Akioya on this email; drakioya17spellhome@gmail.com or add him up on what-app +2348105257464

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello viewers I am glad to have met with the powerful herbal healer called
      Dr voodoo who use his herbs to cure my HIV disease I suffered from 15years,
      but now I am a happy woman and i am free from this sickness that has been
      problem to my living, after using Dr voodoo herbal medicine within 1week i
      was diagnose negative, I will recommend Dr voodoo to everyone reading this
      article because this herbal healer is capable to heal anything, the
      scientist said has no cure, Email him : voodoospelltemple66@gmail.com or
      add Dr voodoo on whatsApp: +2348140120719

      Delete
  6. I almost gave up on ever getting cured of HIV VIURS because i have try many treatment none of them work out for me i have go to different hospital they always tell me same thing there is no cure for HIV when i came across a post about Dr OSAGIE, in the net from a lady called Angela i contacted him and he reassured me with him herbal medicine which i took according to the way he instructed, that how i was cured. I doubted at first because i have been to a whole lot of reputable doctors, tried a lot of medicines but none was able to cure me. so i decided to listen to him and he commenced treatment, and under two weeks i was totally fee from #HIV V`IURS i want to say a very big thank you to DR OSAGIE for what he has done in my life. feel free to leave him a message on email his email: (drosagiesolutiontemple@gmail.com OR
    DROSAGIESOULTIONTEMPLE@YAHOO.COM ) and also WhatsApp him +2347030465649..
    He can still be able to help you with this herbs medicine:
    1...ALS CURE
    DIABETES CURE
    EPILESY CURE
    HPV CURE
    LUPUS CURE
    HEPATITIS CURE
    CANCER CURE
    thank you my great dr .,,

    ReplyDelete
  7. Am Susan Rodrick by name, i was diagnosed with Herpes for 4 years ago i lived in pain with the knowledge that i wasn't going to ever be well again i contacted so many herbal doctors on this issue and wasted a large sum of money but my condition never got better i was determined to get my life back so one day i saw mrs amber post on how Dr Emmanuel saved him from the VIRUS with herbal medicine i contacted Dr Emmanuel on WhatsApp at +2348140073965 or email address: nativehealthclinic@gmail.com we spoke on the issue i told him all that i went through and he told me not to worry that everything will be fine again so he prepared the medicine and send it to me through courier service and told me how to use it,after 14days of usage I went to see the doctor for test ,then the result was negative,am the happiest woman on earth now. this testimony is real.thanks to Dr Emmanuel God bless you. you can also reach him on his whatsApp number +2348140073965

    ReplyDelete
  8. i want to inform the public how i was cured of HERPES Simplex Virus by a Doctor called Dr.EBHOTA. i visited different hospital but they gave me list of drugs like Famvir, Zovirax, and Valtrex which is very expensive to treat the symptoms and never cured me. I was browsing through the Internet searching for remedy on HERPES and i saw comment of people talking about how Doctor EBHOTA cured them. I Was scared because i never believed in the Internet but i was convince to give him a try because i was having no hope of been cured of HERPES so i decided to contact him on his email, i searched his email on net and i saw a lot of people testifying about his goodness. when i contacted him he gave me hope and send a Herbal medicine to me that i took and it seriously worked for me, am a free person now without problem, my HERPES result came out negative. You can contact him on
    his Email: drebhotasolution@gmail.com or whatsapp him on +2348089535482 and get all your problem solved.
    1Sickness of any kind
    2 Help to CURE Hepatitis B, HIV/AIDs CANCER and BIPOLAR
    3 Divorce, Breakup problem and To Re-unit
    4 Pregnancy problem
    5 Financial problem and Job promotion
    6 To get a good and rich life partner
    7 To Lose your wath
    8 to enlargement of pennis
    9. CANCER
    10. ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease)
    11 Hepatitis B
    12 chronic pancreatic
    13 emphysema
    14 COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)   

    ReplyDelete
  9. i will love to share my testimony to you all the people in world i got married to my husband about 2 year ago we start having problems at home like we stop sleeping on the same bed,fighting about little things he always comes home late at night,drinking too much and sleeping with other women out side i have never love any man in my life except him. he is the father of my child and i don't want to loose him because we have worked so hard together to become what we are and have today .few month ago he now decided to live me and the kid,being a single mother can be hard sometimes and so i have nobody to turn to and i was heart broken.i called my mom and explain every thing to her,my mother told me about DR.azen how he helped her solve the problem between her and my dad i was surprise about it because they have been without each other for three and a half years and it was like a miracle how they came back to each other. i was directed to DR. azen on his email. (azentemple@gmail.com ) and explain everything to him,so he promise me not to worry that he will cast a spell and make things come back to how we where so much in love again and that it was another female spirit that was controlling my husband he told me that my problem will be solved within two days if i believe i said OK So he cast a spell for me and after two days my love came back asking me to forgive him i Am so happy now. so that why i decided to share my experience with every body that have such problem contact Dr azen the great spell caster on his email addresses (azentemple@gmail.com)or whatsapp Dr azen on (+2349038299828)

    ReplyDelete
  10. i will love to share my testimony to you all the people in world i got married to my husband about 2 year ago we start having problems at home like we stop sleeping on the same bed,fighting about little things he always comes home late at night,drinking too much and sleeping with other women out side i have never love any man in my life except him. he is the father of my child and i don't want to loose him because we have worked so hard together to become what we are and have today .few month ago he now decided to live me and the kid,being a single mother can be hard sometimes and so i have nobody to turn to and i was heart broken.i called my mom and explain every thing to her,my mother told me about DR.azen how he helped her solve the problem between her and my dad i was surprise about it because they have been without each other for three and a half years and it was like a miracle how they came back to each other. i was directed to DR. azen on his email. (azentemple@gmail.com ) and explain everything to him,so he promise me not to worry that he will cast a spell and make things come back to how we where so much in love again and that it was another female spirit that was controlling my husband he told me that my problem will be solved within two days if i believe i said OK So he cast a spell for me and after two days my love came back asking me to forgive him i Am so happy now. so that why i decided to share my experience with every body that have such problem contact Dr azen the great spell caster on his email addresses (azentemple@gmail.com)or whatsapp Dr azen on (+2349038299828)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Herbal Penis Enlargement product is 100% guarantee to Enlarge and get a better ERECTION ,
    the reason why most people are finding it difficult
    to enlarge Penis is because they bedlieve on medical
    report, drugs and medical treatment which is not
    helpful for Penis Enlargement . Natural roots/herbs are the best remedy which can easily Enlarge your Penis permanently
    Contact Dr ABAKA via Email : drabakatemple@gmail.com or via WhatsApp : +2347010538590 for Natural root and herbal remedies put together to help you get Enlarge and Erect healthy.
    Thank you

    ReplyDelete
  12. HELLO EVERYONE.. FEW MUNINETS TO REDY THIS INFOR ON HERPES CURE 2018..
    2017 MY MOTHER WAS DIAGNOSED OF HERPES/ KNOWN AS GENITAL WARTS ,I SPENT A LOT OF MONEY ON HER MEDICATION TILL A POINT I EVEN LOST HOPE,BECAUSE MY MOTHER WAS GRADUALLY DYING AND LOST HER MEMORY TOO, I WAS SO DESPERATE TO GET MY MOTHER BACK TO NORMAL, ONE DAY MY UNCLE WHO LIVES IN LONDON UNITED KINGDOM TOLD ME ABOUT DR OLIHA ,WHO HELPED HIM GET RID OF HERPES /GENITAL WART WITH HERBAL MEDICINE AND HIS HERBAL SOAP ,I WAS SO SHOCKED WHEN HE TOLD ME ABOUT THIS ,ALTHOUGH I NEVER BELIEVE IN HERB BUT, I KEEP TO BELIEVE BECAUSE MY UNCLE CAN'T TELL ME LIES WHEN IT COMES TO HEALTH CONDITION I CONTACTED DR OLIHA VIA HIS EMAIL; OLIHA.MIRACLEMEDICINE@GMAIL.COM , YOU CAN TALK TO HIM VIA CALL OR WHATSAPP MESSENGER ON +2349038382931 , HE REPLIED AND ASK ME TO SEND MY HOME ADDRESS AND MY MOTHER'S DETAIL AND THEN I PURCHASED THE HERBAL MEDICINE,SENT ME THE HERBAL MEDICINE THROUGH COURIER SERVICE, WHEN I RECEIVED THIS HERBAL MEDICINE USED IT FOR 2 WEEKS, AND 4 DAYS OF USAGE THE WARTS FELL OFF, MY MOTHER I NOW TOTALLY CURED AND MY MOTHER IS LIVING FREE AND HAPPY AGAIN. YOU CAN TALK TO DR VIA HIS MOBILE NUMBER OR WHATS APP HIM ON +2349038382931.ALL THANKS TO DOCTOR DR OLIHA  

    ReplyDelete
  13. Good news this is to everyone out there with different health challenges, as I know there are still a lot of people suffering from different health issues and are therefore looking for solutions. I bring you Good news. There is a man called Dr Emmanuel  a herbal practitioner who helped cure me from HSV (2), i had suffered from this diseases for the past 5 years and i have spent so much money trying to survive from it. I got my healing by taking the herbal medicine Dr Emmanuel sent to me to drink for about 14 days . 3 days after completion of the dosage, I went for a medical checkup and I was tested free from HSV. all thanks to God for leading me to Dr Emmanuel who was able to cure me completely from this deadly diseases, I’m sharing this so that other people can know of this great healer called Dr Emmanuel because I got to know him through elizabeth who he cured from HIV. I was made to understand that he can cure several other deadly diseases and infections. Don’t die in ignorance or silent and don’t let that illness take your life. Contact Dr Emmanuel through his email traditionalherbalhealingcentre@gmail.com You can also whatsapp/call him on:+2348140033827 .He cure all forms of disease {1}HIV/AIDS {2}DIABETES {3}EPILEPSY {4} BLOOD CANCER {5} HPV {6} BRAIN TUMOR {7} HEPATITIS {8}COPD{9} SICKLE AND ANAEMIA.etc Be kind enough to share as you received.  

    ReplyDelete