ADVOCACY | EVENTS
Submissions to Parliament/Fundraising/Conferences/
Guest Speaker/Panel Discussion/Campaigns
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"We work to ensure the voices and perspectives of survivors and community feed in to all important decisions relating to policy and reform"
UN WOMEN CSW68 (NEW YORK)
Boland Parwaz with support from Settlement Services International (SSI), 2024
Role: Delegate/Panel Speaker
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Our founder and executive director, Helena Hassani, attended the 68th annual Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68), the UN’s largest annual gathering on gender equality and women’s empowerment and represented Boland Parwaz as a guest speaker on two panels relating to child and forced marriage.
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We spoke with many stakeholders, leading NGO's and government officials to share our knowledge relating to EMERGING TRENDS DRIVING CHILD & FORCED MARRIAGE affecting displaced and 'at risk' women and girls in Australia, Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan and Turkey. We brought attention to the current deportations taking place in Pakistan and Iran as well as raising concerns facing newly arrived women and girls from the Hazara community in Australia, South Asia and Europe. (here)
UNITED NATIONS (GENEVA)
Department of Foreign Affairs, Australia, UNHCR, 2023.
Role: Delegate
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Our founder and executive director, Helena Hassani, was selected as one of Australia’s delegates to the United Nations for the Annual Tripartite Consultations on Resettlement (ATCR) 2023 in Geneva. She went as a representative of the Refugee Council of Australia and the National Refugee Agency Advocacy Group (NRAAG) where she had an incredible opportunity to meet world leaders from across the globe to discuss the rights of refugees worldwide and raise awareness of the risk to displaced young women and girls of child and forced marriage. This incredible experience allowed her to network with like-minded people internationally and discuss how the world could collaborate, learn and adapt best practices relating to refugee resettlement.
Human rights advocates especially refugee advocates play a critical role in how we can support those displaced in different parts of the world with limited or no resources and assistance.
PARLIAMENTARY INQUIRY INTO THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN & CHILDREN (AUSTRALIA)
Geeta Documentary with Acid Attack Survivor Neetu Mahor, 2022.
Role: Cultural Consultant/Testimony
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We provided valuable information and insights regarding the intersection between acid violence and family violence and child and forced marriage for inclusion in a submission by Neetu Mahor and the Geeta documentary to the Australian Parliamentary Inquiry into the Human Rights of Women and Children.
As part of our involvement in this campaign, we testified to the Inquiry live at Parliament House about our founders first hand experience managing a case of acid violence in Melbourne and our knowledge of a number of incidents of acid violence on Australian permenant residents or citizens who were attacked in another country. There is some evidence that threats to disfigure or attack someone with acid can occassionally be linked to coersive control related to forced marriage. In 2022 there were 3 acid attack in Australia. In Europe cases have esculated to approxomately 3000 every year.
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EMERGENCY SUPPORT FOR AFGHAN GIRLS & THEIR FAMILIES
Emergency Responder/Advocate, 2021
Role: Creator/Project Lead
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In response to the take over of Afghanistan by the Taliban in 2021 we created a fundraising campaign to ensure emergency supplies reached the most vulnerable Hazara girls and their communities in their time of need.
Our covert campaign helped Harara women and girls at risk of child and forced marriage, abduction or those escaping sexual violence at the hands of the Taliban to be resettled. We also provided finacial and medical support to 20 families affected by the girls school bomb blast in Afghanistan in 2022 and delivered 300 families (who were trapped in the mountains and facing starvation during the 2021 conflict) with life changing food packages of rice, flour, oil and beans when international charities were unable to reach them due to security risks.
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Our work continues, so if you wish to support please DONATE HERE
INTERNATIONAL METROPOLIS CONFERENCE
The International Metropolis Conference, Sydney, 2018
Role: Guest Speaker/Panelist
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Our founder, Helena Hassani, was a guest speaker at The International Metropolis Conference when it came to Sydney in 2018 where she spoke about child and forced marriage in the Afghan community. The conference sought to celebrate individuals and organisations active in migration initiatives, cultural diversity, and their shared stories.
AUSTRALIAN FORCED MARRIAGE CONFERENCE
Anti-Slavery Australia, UTS, 2018
Role: Guest Speaker/Panelist
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Our founder, Helena Hassani, was a guest speaker at Australia’s first Forced Marriage Conference in 2018 organised and funded by the Anti-Slavery Australia. She was a panelist for the victim-survivor voice workshops and spoke about the challenges of escaping/leaving a forced marriage including how decisions are made, who are the decisions makers, how marriage works and the complexities involved with forced marriage. She also spoke about the role of support services in addressing these challenges and how our current approach is not working.
AUSTRALIAN FORCED MARRIAGE CONFERENCE
Anti-Slavery Australia, UTS, 2018
Role: Guest Speaker/Panelist
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Our founder Helena Hassani was a guest speaker at Australia’s first Forces Marriage Conference in 2018 organised and funded by the Anti-Slavery Australia. She was a panelist for the victim-survivor voice workshops and spoke about the challenges of escaping/leaving a forced marriage including how decisions are made, who are the decisions makers, how marriage works and the complexities involved with forced marriage. She also spoke about the role of support services in addressing these challenges and how our current approach is not working.