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Women's Equality Branch
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WOMEN FEMMES NB

 

 

IN THIS ISSUE:

Featured Article:
Province commemorates International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women

Notices

Did You Know?

In the News:
    - Violence against newcomer women
    - The National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women
    - Women hold 19.5% of seats on Canadian corporate boards: study

Parting Thoughts

Province Commemorates International Day for the Elimination of Violence

International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women was officially commemorated by the provincial government [on November 25].

“Violence against women is a societal issue that impacts individuals, children, families, the workplace and our communities,” said Public Safety Minister and Solicitor General Stephen Horsman. “It is a violation of human rights.”

Nov. 25 was designated as a day of observance by the United Nations in 1999. According to the United Nations, 35 per cent of women and girls experience some form of physical and or sexual violence in their lifetime. In some countries, the number is as high as seven in 10, with most women and girls never reporting the abuse and continuing to suffer in silence.

Horsman pointed to the recently-launched Love Shouldn’t Hurt campaign as an example of the provincial government’s ongoing efforts to address issues related to violence against women.

The campaign aims to help change how New Brunswickers think and act about the issue of intimate partner violence and reduce society’s tolerance for such behaviour.

Through social and traditional marketing, the Love Shouldn’t Hurt campaign will increase public awareness and understanding of intimate partner violence with an aim to create a social environment that supports and encourages positive behavioural change. The campaign will also connect New Brunswickers with a variety of support services available to both victims and abusive partners.

The campaign is an initiative of the province’s Roundtable on Crime and Public Safety, which brings together community agencies, the police, the private sector, academia, First Nations groups, municipal and federal governments, and several provincial departments to collaborate on improvements to crime prevention policy and practice in the province.

Interested individuals can follow the campaign on Twitter and Facebook.

A number of diverse partners, including government agencies, are working together on various files related to issues of violence. These include:

  • delivering training to front-line interveners on risk assessment tools;
  • reducing crime and victimization, specifically domestic and intimate partner violence;
  • developing a multi-agency, co-ordinated approach to intervening with victims and offenders in high risk/high danger domestic and intimate partner violence cases;
  • rolling out the revised Woman Victims of Abuse Protocols across New Brunswick; and
  • delivering domestic violence outreach, second stage and transition house programs and services and implementing gender-based analysis.

“As long as violence against women and girls is a reality in our society, we will continue our work to improve lives by building a stronger and safer New Brunswick where families can live free from violence and abuse,” said Horsman.

http://bit.ly/1MTRVFe

www.gnb.ca/violence

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NOTICES

Trades & Tech Gala for Girls – Sussex. There will be a Trades & Tech Gala for Girls event on Wednesday, December 2 from 5:30-8:00pm at the Sussex Regional High School. All high school girls from grades 9-12 are invited to come explore exciting non-traditional careers and meet fascinating women working in these fields. Girls in attendance will have a chance to win an iPad at the end of evening. This event is free and a pizza dinner is provided. To register or for more information: http://bit.ly/1QEduvw, email [email protected] or call (506) 462-5910



The Roundtable on Crime and Public Safety launched a new campaign, Love Shouldn’t Hurt, to help engage NB communities in addressing the societal issue of intimate partner violence (IPV). The campaign aims to help change how New Brunswickers think and act about the issue of IPV and reduce society’s tolerance for such behaviour. Interested individuals can follow the campaign on Twitter and Facebook.

Preventing Domestic Homicides: Lessons Learned from Tragedies. The Learning Network is offering a webinar at 11:00 am Atlantic Time on December 10, 2015 with Peter Jaffe, Ph.D., Professor, Centre for Research & Education on Violence Against Women & Children, Western University. To register or for more information on other webinars offered by The Learning Network, visit http://bit.ly/1MVuo4z.

The Multicultural Association of Fredericton (MCAF) offers Lunch and Learn sessions for Refugee Sponsorship Groups & Volunteers: Every Thursday 12:00pm-1:00pm. Where: MCAF, 28 Saunders Street:
    - Dec. 3: Working with interpreters
    -
Dec. 10: Health services
    -
Dec. 17: Culture Shock
Please register by 12:00pm on the Wednesday before each session by emailing [email protected] or calling (506) 452-0665. Please bring your lunch.
The Multicultural Association is also looking for First Fredericton Friends, volunteers who will be matched with newly arrived Syrian Refugees to meet once a week for 2 hours or more (for a minimum 6 month period) for conversation, friendship building, and to introduce them to their new community. An information session on First Fredericton Friends will be held at MCAF on:
    - Tuesday, Dec. 1, 5:30-6:30pm
    - Tuesday, Dec. 8, 5:30-6:30pm

The Province of New Brunswick has opened a toll-free line for New Brunswickers looking to help welcome Syrian refugees: 1-855-444-6554. For more information, go to www.welcomenb.ca and click on Refugee Support.

Rose Campaign 2015: November 25-December 6. Rose Campaign 2015 will continue pressure for a national action plan on violence against women and girls and a national inquiry on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. The good news is that both of these, along with a host of other changes, were promised by the incoming government during the federal election. Rose Campaign 2015 echoes Justin Trudeau’s election promise to the country: Time for Real Change on violence against women and girls. Spread the Word - Go to www.rosecampaign.ca to learn more and download a full suite of resources.

Family Enrichment is offering the following workshops at 356 Queen Street in Fredericton: 
    - Mindfulness & Meditation for Recovering Alcoholics - Mondays 7 to 8 pm. Starts on January
      11
- Freewill offering gratefully accepted
    - Changing Ways: A Program for Men, in this 10-week program you will learn ways of interacting
      effectively with everyone in your life! The principles in this program apply to all relationships
      including those at work - Wednesdays, 6 – 8 pm. Starts on January 13 - Free
For further information, visit www.familyenrichment.ca.  To register please contact Family Enrichment at 506-458-8211 or by email at [email protected].

Current Opportunities to Serve on New Brunswick Agencies, Boards and Commissions (ABCs):   Qualified women and men having the highest personal and professional integrity are invited to serve on New Brunswick Agencies, boards and commissions (ABCs).  For more information, check out the following link:    ABC current opportunities

Voices of New Brunswick Women Consensus-Building Forum – Contact Us: Sartain MacDonald Building, 551 King Street, Suite 103, Fredericton NB E3B 1E7, T. 506.462.5179, 1-844-462-5179, F. 506.462.5069, E. [email protected], www.voixfemmesnb-voiceswomennb.ca.

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The 14 Domestic Violence Outreach workers working in 2012/2013 provided assistance to 1,293 individuals. The great majority of people who consulted the outreach workers were women (96%).
 
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In the News:

Violence against newcomer women

Key Issue: Conditional permanent residence for sponsored spouses
In October 2012, the federal government announced the introduction of a conditional permanent residence period for sponsored spouses and partners. 

Under the new rules, there is a period of conditional permanent residence of two years for sponsored spouses and partners who have been in a relationship of two years or less with their sponsors, and who have no children in common. If the sponsored spouse or partner does not remain in a conjugal relationship and cohabitate with their sponsor during the conditional period, their permanent residence could be revoked, and they could be deported.

Conditional permanent residence for sponsored spouses puts newcomer women at increased risk of violence and abuse.

Although immigrant, refugee, and non-status women experience the same forms of violence in their intimate relationships as those experienced by Canadian-born women, they also face particular barriers. A newcomer woman abused by her spouse or partner may suffer forms of abuse unique to the newcomer experience.

One form of abuse faced uniquely by immigrant, refugee and non-status women is the threat of reporting them to the immigration authorities and having them deported. Many women fear deportation even if they have the right to remain in Canada, because their partner may keep them uninformed of their full rights.

Immigration, refugee and sponsorship processes often put one partner in a position of power over the other. The reinforcement of power imbalances works in favour of an abusive partner or spouse.

(…) Newcomer women in situations of violence also sometimes fall through the cracks between women’s organizations and settlement organizations due to a lack of awareness and training of front-line workers regarding the particular vulnerabilities and problems they face.

For more information on the particular ways that newcomer women can be affected by violence, see this page on how immigration status can affect women in situations of violence or abuse.

Continued: http://ccrweb.ca/en/violence-against-women

 

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The National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women

December 6 is the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence against Women in Canada. Established in 1991 by the Parliament of Canada, this day marks the anniversary of the murders in 1989 of 14 young women at l'École Polytechnique de Montréal. They died because they were women.

What will you do?

The National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women is about remembering victims; it is also a time to take action. Get Involved

Why a National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women?

As well as commemorating the 14 young women whose lives ended in an act of gender-based violence that shocked the nation, December 6 represents an opportunity for Canadians to reflect on the phenomenon of violence against women in our society. It is also an opportunity to consider the women and girls for whom violence is a daily reality, and to remember those who have died as a result of gender-based violence. And finally, it is a day on which communities can consider concrete actions to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls.

November and December are important months for raising awareness of gender-based violence in Canada and around the world. In addition to the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women on December 6, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women takes place on November 25 and marks the first day of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence, which ends on December 10, with International Human Rights Day.

http://bit.ly/1yUcqds

 

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Women hold 19.5% of seats on Canadian corporate boards: study

A new report says women hold 19.5 per cent of the seats on the boards of Canada's biggest companies, up from 17.1 per cent in 2014.

The report by the Canadian Board Diversity Council says it's the largest one-year increase in female representation on the boards of FP500 companies, which are Canada's largest firms by revenue, since 2001.

The rise follows the introduction of a new "comply or explain" policy that forces publicly traded companies to disclose certain statistics on the representation of women on their boards and in executive officer positions.

Securities regulators in every province and territory except for Prince Edward Island, Alberta and British Columbia implemented the "comply or explain" rules at the end of last year.

Pamela Jeffery, the founder of the Canadian Board Diversity Council, says that although Canada is heading in the right direction, the pace of change is too slow. (…)

In comparison, 109 of the companies in Canada's FP500 have boards comprised entirely of men, said Jeffery.

"In the context of board diversity at a global level, Canada is falling behind," said Jeffery.

Jeffery says one of the reasons commonly cited by companies for not having more women on their boards is a lack of qualified candidates.

However, Jeffery points to the Diversity 50 -- a list of 50 diverse, board-ready candidates published annually by the Canada Board Diversity Council -- as proof that qualified candidates do exist.

"Don't tell me there are no women with the skills to be on executive teams and boards of directors in 2015, because the rest of the world is proving us wrong," Jeffery said.

http://bit.ly/1O5Hh0b 

 



Parting Thoughts

“It’s an objective fact, that if you want to solve some of these huge,
kind of bigger problems of extreme poverty, you have to include women. 
They’re the ones who will get it done.”

-Matt Damon
Co-Founder, Water.org

 

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Women's Equality Branch | 551 King Street, Suite A | Fredericton, NB E3B 5H1