Year: 2013

Out with the old year and in with the new!  As we plan our work for 2014, we’ve also been thinking about some of AWARE’s most significant achievements in 2013.  Here’s our top 10 list – all thanks to the help and support of our members and friends.

1) We took 3372 Helpline calls from women in need of information and/or support.  The AWARE Helpline, Singapore’s only helpline for women run by women, turned 22 this year, and continued to provide advice, assistance and a listening ear to women all across the island.  Our legal clinic provided free consultations to 248 clients facing challenging personal circumstances, while 178 clients benefited from our counselling services. Finally, our Sexual Assault Befrienders Service (SABS), launched in 2011, remained a vital source of support for victims of sexual assault, assisting 64 women in 2013 through reporting and/or recovery.

2) We made recommendations on population policy. Through submissions to government and media statements, AWARE pushed for the national conversation on policy to focus on human welfare and environmental sustainability, not just economic growth.  Population will almost certainly remain a major focus of debate in years to come, and AWARE will work to keep a gender equality perspective in the political conversation.

3) We initiated the We Can! campaign.  In May, Singapore became the 16th country to join the We Can! international movement to end violence against women, which empowers individuals and organisations to tackle the root causes of violence in their communities. In just seven months, We Can! has gone from strength to strength, including:

• Recruiting over 700 Change Makers who pledged to commit to a violence-free life.
• Encouraging bystander intervention through Would you step in, an inspiring video drawing over 116,000 views in a single month.
• Sharing everyday stories of violence in Blk 2511, an innovative Facebook app.
• Drawing 270 visitors to the inaugural We Can! Arts Fest – 89% said the event helped them better understand what they could do to end violence.

4) Paternity leave became a reality.  For years, AWARE has advocated more inclusive family policies, including paternity leave to support shared care-giving and give fathers the opportunity to better participate in family life. This year, our work paid off – fathers are now entitled to one week of paternity leave. Though this is less than we’d asked for, and we still have much to say about the 2013 Parenthood Scheme, it’s a good first step.

5) We pushed for a socially equal national Budget.  In February, we made extensive budget recommendations advocating lifelong comprehensive healthcare, especially for the elderly. (Here’s our press release summary.)  Pleasingly, the Prime Minister’s National Day Rally speech also outlined policy shifts towards more comprehensive healthcare and inclusive housing.  We’re heartened that recognition of these essentials is growing and we will continue to advocate for those in need with Budget 2014.

6) Our supporters celebrated at the Big Red Ball.  Over 350 friends and supporters raised more than $250,000 at our annual fundraising gala to support our work for a more equal society.  Our annual awards honoured pathbreaking icons Constance Singam and Rachel Chung, as well as others who have helped erode gendered barriers in Singapore, while the popular Alamak! award highlighted some egregious examples of sexism in the past year.

7) We put the need to eradicate sexual harassment on the map.  AWARE has long lobbied to raise awareness of sexual harassment – including collecting over 1,700 signatures on our SHOUT petition.  In November, after consultation with us and others, Minister of Law K Shanmugam announced that the government will strengthen legal protection against harassment by next year.  We will keep the pressure on to ensure that these measures include employer responsibility for ending workplace sexual harassment.

8) We’ve been awarded our first United Nations grant! Specifically, a three-year grant by UN Women’s Fund for Gender Equality, one of the most significant global funds dedicated to women’s economic and political empowerment. Together with our Indonesian partner, Solidaritas Perempuan, AWARE won this grant in a worldwide competition for projects that innovatively advance gender equality and women’s empowerment. Our winning project, “Gender equality is our culture”, aims to train 500 gender advocates to promote the principle that gender equality, in accordance with CEDAW, does not contradict culture. AWARE is working with allies to develop context-appropriate training. Join us to reclaim gender equality within your own culture!

9) Gender equality in the military came under scrutiny.  AWARE pushed once again for a fresh look at gender and the military.  We also successfully persuaded the Ministry of Defence and the Singapore Armed Forces to halt the singing of certain marching song lyrics celebrating sexual violence.  This prompted a much-needed national conversation about the normalisation of sexual violence and the bonding rituals of masculinity – including an entire page of editorials in the Sunday Times.

10) We spoke up for sexual and reproductive autonomy.  AWARE supports the right of every person, especially women, to control our own bodies and fertility.  In 2013 this right came under heavy pressure from pro-natalist and other agendas – including through spreading misinformation.  AWARE vigilantly ensured that the public conversation included a robust defence of reproductive freedom, access to patient-centred medical services including abortion, and full and accurate information about health and sexuality.

What would you do if you saw a man abusing his girlfriend in the middle of Orchard Road?  The We Can! campaign poses this question with a new video, ‘Would you step in?’, which has attracted more than 41,000 views on YouTube in just two days.

This video shows how we can all step in to help strangers in need and to end violence against women – a message that urgently needs to be heard. The Charities Aid Foundation, which measures the willingness of people to help strangers across 135 countries and economies, ranked Singapore in second last place in its latest index.

The video depicts violence in a public place, but it also points out that most violence against women happens at home. Visit the We Can! Facebook app, Blk 2511, to go behind the doors of a seemingly peaceful HDB block and uncover everyday stories of abuse.

Intervention is as important here as it is out on the street.  Many survivors of domestic violence cite a lack of support from family and friends as a major reason they were forced to remain in an abusive situation.  They may be told that it is their responsibility to placate their abusers, or that they should endure abuse for the sake of their children.  Leaving violent relationships can have consequences for matters such as finances and housing, which can only be addressed with support from others.

We Can! asks every one of us to provide that support.  On an individual level, we can offer a listening ear or a safe place to stay.  We can also intervene to let abusers know that their abusive conduct is unacceptable and correct the misconceptions that they use to justify it.  We can participate in changing the social structures and attitudes that enable, legitimise and perpetuate violence.  People who wish to find out more about the changes they can make are invited to participate in a We Can! workshop where these questions are explored in greater detail.

Frequently asked questions about ‘Would you step in?’

1.  Why focus on violence against women specifically?

Violence of any kind is deplorable, regardless of the gender of the victim.  Blk 2511 showcases a range of stories of violence, and both male victims and female abusers are among the characters featured.

However, the gendered attitudes that enable and excuse violence against women have many specific features that differ from societal attitudes towards other forms of violence, so it is helpful to address them separately.  Moreover, recent statistics released by PAVE indicate that spousal abuse is the most common form of family violence and most victims of spousal abuse are women.  This is consistent with global patterns in intimate partner abuse (see for example the findings of the World Health Organisation).

2.  Does the video trivialise violence against women?

The scenario acted out in the video, like the stories in Blk 2511, has been created based on the accounts of real people who have encountered violence.  One of the messages of We Can! is that violence isn’t always black and blue – it can take many forms and verbal abuse is often part of a broader pattern of abuse involving other kinds of violence too.