INVITATION: "Let me not die before my time": A panel discussion on domestic violence in West Africa, May 21
THE INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE
Invites you to attend:
LET ME NOT DIE BEFORE MY TIME:
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN WEST AFRICA
Please join us for a discussion about the International Rescue Committee’s critical report on the global issue of domestic violence, focusing on West Africa.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Panel Discussion at 4:30 pm
Cocktail Reception at 6:00 pm
1777 F Street, NW, 1st Floor
Washington, DC 20006
Space limited. Please RSVP to Virginia Zuco by May 17th at:
212 551 2726 or Virginia.Zuco@rescue.org
Panelists:
George Rupp
President and CEO, International Rescue Committee
Pamela Shifman
Director, Initiatives for Girls and Women, NoVo Foundation
Heidi Lehmann
Director, Women’s Protection and Empowerment, International Rescue Committee
Moderator:
Susan Dentzer
Editor-in-Chief, Health Affairs
Others to be confirmed.
Years after the end of war in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Ivory Coast, women continue to suffer violence at alarming levels and with shocking frequency. The primary threat to women’s lives in post-conflict West Africa is not strangers or men with guns, it is their husbands. In these countries, more than 60% of women seeking assistance from the IRC after suffering violence and abuse are victims of domestic violence.
We invite you to join us in a discussion of how domestic violence can be better prioritized on the humanitarian agenda. Representatives of the IRC-led Commission on Domestic Violence will talk about their recent trip to Sierra Leone and Liberia where they met with women, survivors, traditional leaders and key government officials, including President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. As the United States deepens its commitment to women through the U.S. National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security, now is an important moment to discuss how domestic violence can be recognized as the public health crisis it is.
THE INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives. For over 75 years, we have offered lifesaving care and lifechanging assistance to refugees forced to flee from conflict or disaster. At work today in over 40 countries and 22 U.S. cities, the IRC leads the way from harm to home.
From Harm to Home | Rescue.org