Is Rwanda on the Piccadilly Line?

The best comedy writes itself.  My journey began this morning,  as so many journeys do, at North Greenwich station, where I jumped aboard the Jubilee Line train and read my Saturday Guardian all the way to Green Park.  Here, I jumped off the Jubilee Line and onto the Piccadilly Line.  I had my giant Vango rucksack strapped to my back, like an awkward orange tortoise.  A man said to me - 'Where are you going?' I replied - 'Rwanda'.  The response came - 'Is that on the Piccadilly Line?'

The other comical thing to report today is that Doha International Airport is a 'silent airport'.  I know this, because there are constant announcements telling me so.  Think about it.

I watched a video on the plane.  I don't know if any of you have seen it.  It hasn't won any awards, to my knowledge.  It's a cracker.  It's called 'How to relieve earache caused by flying'.  Yes indeed.  I couldn't find my headphones, but the images of a man wriggling his jaw from side-to-side were enough to give me the idea, so I copied him.  The man next to me moved to a different seat.

Earlier, in a coffee shop at Heathrow Terminal 4, I pulled my Guardian out of my bag, to read the main news; my bag is tightly packed and the front page ripped, tearing Nigel Farage's laughing face in half, quite inadvertently of course.  I was reading, tweeting, e-mailing, texting, doing  all those things that I do, when suddenly I felt someone nudge me.  I turned and a lady had fainted.  She bashed her head against the floor and blood started gushing out.  A dramatic scene ensued, involving staff on emergency phones and radios and paramedics on bicycles.  I do hope this lady is ok, as it must have been a shock. 

So where am I? I write to you - assuming people are reading this - from the transit area at Doha International Airport.  Doha is the capital of Qatar, the only country in the world which begins with the letter Q. I have always been intrigued by Qatar, as it is so tiny, but so rich, and because I have never been to a country beginning with Q.  Let me tell you about Qatar.  Qatar is the richest country in the world, based on GDP per capita.  Qatar Airways has an enormous fleet of planes in the sky, and flies to all sorts of destinations, both the mainstream and the obscure.  Their planes are environmentally friendly (if that's not tautology).  They also make delightful stamps.  I know this because I am a closet philatelist.  Well, I was.

I am going to the Fifth World Centre pilot in Rwanda, a 'Stop The Violence' conference.  How am I feeling about this? I can't wait to arrive, meet all the other delegates, including the other UK delegate, Lyndsey, who I've been corresponding with for the last few months, and start on the programme.  There are going to be 28 countries represented at this event, and there will be a few people whom I have met before - Doryne from Burundi, who I met at the epic Girls' World Forum in Chicago last year, and Rachel who I have met twice, but never in England, where we are both from.  It will be a great opportunity to make new contacts from around the world, share knowledge and experiences,  and look at how we can take our Stop The Violence  projects forward in our Member Organisations, which range from small organisations with a few hundred members, to giant movements.

Guiding is the ideal vehicle for driving the Stop The Violence agenda forward, and I'll be writing more about that as the days go on.  WAGGGS has 10 million members worldwide - what a force that is!

So why is this conference of interest to me? I have always been interested in the position of women in society, and the gender inequalities which still pervade within societies across the world.  In so many settings, women are considered the subordinate gender, with domestic responsibilities, as well as an expectation that they will bring in an income.  My interest in VAWG started when I worked for FORWARD, the Foundation for Women's Health, Research and Development, which campaigns for an end to FGM and child marriage.  FGM is an acute form of violence against girls.  FGM is an horrific, un-necessary procedure widely practised in 28 countries worldwide, and organised in many more.  Look at the FORWARD website for details.  It's not a 'faraway' issue.  24,000 girls in the UK were at risk of FGM.  24,000! Cutting ceremonies are organised during the summer holidays, when girls from cutting communities may be taken back to their country of origin and forced to undergo the procedure.  It is illegal to organise FGM in the UK, but to date, there have not been any prosecutions.

I was one of the researchers for a WHEC report called The Road to Sustainability where I spoke to organisations who work with BMER women who are affected by violence, to find out about the sorts of issues which they face and the challenges they face in trying to secure funding.  There is a profound need for specialist services for women from BMER communities, as there may be a whole range of cultural and other issues to be taken into consideration.  Mainstreaming these support services is a bad idea, as there is a need for specialist knowledge and understanding of BMER communities.

I have been researching the topic of VAWG in the UK, and have gathered information from charities and other organisations.  Read the statistics from the previous post and you will see why there is a critical need for VAWG to be taken seriously.  Over the next few days, there is going to be a great deal of conversation, thinking, reflecting, challenging ideas and ultimately, looking at how to move forward. 

I gave a talk yesterday to a group of Norwegian Young Leaders who are on a leadership programme in the UK.  I spoke about Girlguiding, particularly the Advocacy agenda.  If you are in Guiding and haven't already, plan to use the Girls In Action resources.  Print it all out, take it to your next unit meeting, tell the girls all about it, then ask them how they want to take it forward.  Girlguiding is partnering with 5 charities and there are resource packs full of activities to raise awareness of violence against women, as well as other important topics.  Why not go and read through it all right now?

I'm going to sign out there and go and have a snooze, before boarding the Kigali flight.  I think the plane is stopping at Entebbe in Uganda as well.  I spent a semester studying African Christian Theology in Uganda in 2004, and researching my dissertation.  I was staggered at the attitudes amongst men towards their wives, hence another reason for my interest in this area.  I witnessed a group of male students laughing about how they treat their wives.  There is a long way to go.