Virtual Thematic Seminar-Workshop on The Intersection of Religion, Gender, and Human Rights

Concept  

ICF will hold virtual thematic seminar-workshops in November and December that will be open to the public but will maintain a specific group of young people – women and men – as regular participants. The activity is in line with the UN campaign called 16-Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence that starts on November 25 and culminates on December 10, 2020. ICF picks up the UN’s UNiTE Campaign “that calls for global actions to increase awareness, galvanize advocacy efforts, and share knowledge and innovations.”

However, ICF chose to hold the sessions on Thursdays to weave into the UN’s call the World Council of Churches’ campaign named #ThursdaysinBlack. WCC calls on women and men to wear black on Thursdays to indicate one’s commitment to be part of the global movement in “resisting attitudes and practices that permit rape and violence, and to “show respect for women who are resilient in the face of injustice and violence.”  ( https://www.oikoumene.org/en/get-involved/thursdays-in-black)

Since December 1 is World Aids Day, and December 3 is International Day of Persons with Disabilities, ICF wishes to incorporate these issues under the rubric of Health as Human Rights and Peace Issues.

Objectives:
Whatever religious tradition the participants come from, they should be able to –

1. identify the interconnection of religious views on gender and women’s sexuality with various forms of sexual abuse;

2. formulate one’s personal answer to the question: “Is God’s love exclusive for the straight people?”

3. explain why health is a human right and a peace issue, and connect this especially with the struggles of Persons with Disability and of those afflicted with HIV and AIDS; and

4. analyze the situation of women in different sectors and explain how people and their respective government systems either uphold or violate women’s rights.

Dates and Time	Topics	Resource Persons
November 19 – Thursday 4:00 – 6:00 HKT	Religion, Femicide, and Various Forms of Sexual Abuse	Dr. Liza Lamis – Executive Secretary,  International Fellowship of the Least Coin Ms. Mercy Kappen – Executive Director, Vishtar, Bangalore, India
November 26 – Thursday 5:00 – 7:00 HK time	Religion and LGBT Communities: “Is God’s Love Exclusive for the Straight People?”	Dr. Sharon Bong – Associate Professor of Gender Studies, Monash University Malaysia; Dr. Al Fuertes – Associate Professor, George Mason University, Virginia specializing in psycho-social trauma healing as an important component of conflict transformation
December 3 – Thursday 4:00 – 6:00 HK time	Health as Human Rights and Peace Issue (incorporating the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Persons with Disabilities and those afflicted with  HIV/AIDS)	Dr. Erlinda Senturias – physician, former WCC and CCA consultant on the church’s role in Addressing HIV/AIDS, now based in the Philippines Dr. Tabita Kartika Christiani – Associate Professor, Duta Wacana Faculty of Theology, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
December 10 –Thursday 4:00 – 7:00 HK time	Women’s Rights are Human Rights	Hon. Samira Gutoc – lawmaker, journalist, Human Rights champion from Mindanao, Philippines Dr. Sonia George – General Secretary, Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) Union in Kerala, a feminist activist Atty. Anjana Ramanathan – young lawyer, recipient of Support Staff Silver Medal in Human Rights from Damodaram Sanjivayya National Law University

Who can participate in the Virtual Seminar?

The Public 

ICF welcomes anyone interested to join the Virtual Seminar-Workshop sessions. The interested person, however, needs to register too.

For those interested to join as Regular Participants

ICF welcomes twenty young people from Asia to join as regular participants of the Virtual Seminar-Workshop. ICF will maintain a balance of gender and religious affiliations. The participants will submit reflection papers after each session and maybe asked to do some doable tasks such as research and readings during the week. Those who complete the sessions will receive a reimbursement of their internet connection expenses at the end of the four meetings. They are also encouraged to prepare a small and doable project proposal that makes use of the lessons gathered during the Virtual Workshop. The participant-proponents may implement these projects in their communities at least two weeks after the 4th session.  

 Suggested Flow of the Session

November 19, 2020, and December 3, 2020
Time	Activity	Person-in-Charge
4:00 – 4:30	*Introductions –  Participants, ICF, Theme, Resource Persons	ICF Staff/Program Committee member
	*Opening Prayer
	*Welcome Remarks	Nam Boo Won, Gen. Sec. APAY
4:30 – 4:40	*Sharing, Testimonies, or a Video Clip
4:40 – 5:10	Religion and Femicide	Dr. Liza Lamis
5:10 – 5:40	Sexual Violence in India – An Intersectional Analysis	Ms. Mercy Kappen
5:40 – 5:55	Q and A
5:55 – 6:00	Closing Remarks	ICF or APAY Staff

 

The November 26, 2020 session will be from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. Hong Kong time
Time	Activity	Person-in-Charge
5:00 – 5:30	*Introductions  – Participants, ICF, Theme, Resource Persons	ICF Staff /Program Committee member
	*Opening Prayer
5:30 – 5:40	*Sharing, Testimonies, or a Video Clip
5:40 – 6:10	1st Resource Person’s Input –	Dr. Sharon Bong
6:10 – 6:40	2nd Resource Person’s Input	Dr. Al Fuertes
6:40 – 6:55	Q and A
6:55 – 7:00	Closing Remarks	Ms. Sunita  Suna, Exec. Sec., APAY

 

December 10, 2020 session  – 4:00 – 7:00 p.m. Hong Kong Time
4:00 – 4:30	*Introductions – Participants, ICF, Theme, and Resource Persons	ICF Staff /Program Committee member
	*Opening Prayer
4:30 – 4:40	*Sharing, Testimonies, or a Video Clip
4:40 – 5:10	1st Resource Person’s Input	Atty. Anjana Ramanathan
5:10 – 5:20	Intermission
5:20 – 5:50	2nd Resource Person’s Input	Hon.  Samira Gutoc
5:50 – 6:00	Intermission
6:00 – 6:30	3rd Resource Person’s Input	Dr. Sonia George
6:30 – 6:35	Announcements
6:35 – 6:55	Q and A	ICF Staff
6:55- 7:00	Closing Remarks	Ms. Cristina Lastima-Miranda, Exec. Sec., APAY