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Program Highlights Fall 2004

US Elections

MADRE led a coalition of national organizations to urge the US Congress to invite a team of international observers to monitor the 2004 US presidential elections. Although the effort drew fire from conservatives and was ultimately derailed by the Bush Administration, it helped ensure a substantial monitoring presence by the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). The controversy and debates surrounding the issue of international election monitors were widely publicized in the press.

Haiti

MADRE has initiated a partnership with Zanmi Lasante, a community-based health care center co-founded by Partners in Health in the rural district of Cange, Haiti. MADRE supports Zanmi Lasante's innovative HIV/AIDS program, which provides life-saving antiretroviral medication to hundreds of HIV-positive patients. MADRE is also providing support for Zanmi Lasante's women's health clinic, which provides pre- and post-natal care, vaccinations for women and children, and screening and treatment of sexually transmitted infections and cervical cancer to women who have no other source of health care available to them.

Iraq

MADRE has initiated a partnership with the Organization of Women's Freedom in Iraq (OWFI), which is fighting for women's social, political, and economic rights in Iraq. Together, OWFI and MADRE have opened three women's shelters�in Baghdad, Kirkuk, and Erbil�to provide a sanctuary for women who are threatened by rape, "honor killings," and other forms of violence against women. MADRE provided startup funds to open the shelters, and is now providing resources and support for trainings in women's leadership development.

Guatemala

MADRE worked in partnership with the Barcenas Maquila Workers' Committee to conduct a women's health campaign, providing free PAP smears, trainings in family planning, and other health services for women who work in maquilas (sweatshops) and have no other source of health care. MADRE also sent computers, printers, and other technical equipment to create a new computer literacy and human rights training center in Barcenas, an essential resource in our sisters' ongoing struggle against human rights abuses at their workplaces. Additionally, MADRE facilitated an exchange between the Barcenas Maquila Workers' Committee and Wangki Tangni, our sister organization in Nicaragua. Together, the Barcenas Committee and Wangki Tangni conducted a series of intensive technical trainings at the new computer center for women who work in maquilas and their children.

Nicaragua

• MADRE sent two shipments of medicines and medical supplies to CADAMUC Clinic on the North Atlantic Coast.
• Through our Sisters Without Borders program, Dr. Hector Diaz, an OB/GYN from Texas, traveled to the North Atlantic Coast to volunteer at CADAMUC. Dr. Diaz brought donations of critical medical supplies, including a laparoscope, which is used for gynecological surgeries. Dr. Diaz performed surgeries to remove ovarian cysts, and trained Dr. Cunningham in the various uses of the laparoscope. MADRE also sent a medical student from the US to CADAMUC Clinic for one month, to assist doctors in their care of women and children.
• Working with our partner organization, Wangki Tangni ("Flower of the River" in Miskito), MADRE expanded Harvesting Hope, a food-security program that provides chickens and vegetable seeds, along with training in poultry management and organic gardening, to Indigenous families. Families in 12 communities along the Coco River have benefited from the expanded project.
• MADRE also sent six sewing machines and over 700 yards of fabric to support the Wangki Tangni Women's Sewing and Upholstery Collective, and provided this year's salary for a nurse to work at the maternity center.

Kenya

Working in partnership with the Indigenous Information Network, MADRE has initiated a new HIV/AIDS education and prevention program in Indigenous communities in rural districts of Kenya. MADRE provided support for the production of educational posters and pamphlets, and is now providing logistical support�including transportation funds and stipends for teachers�to conduct HIV-prevention workshops at primary and secondary schools.

Chiapas, Mexico

• MADRE provided support for the construction of a new human rights training center for Indigenous women in Chiapas, Mexico. Through the center, MADRE will offer trainings on women's human rights, the collective rights of Indigenous Peoples, women's sexual health and reproductive health, women's political participation, and food security. Community women will be trained in organic gardening and other skills necessary to promote sustainable development and economic autonomy in Indigenous communities. Through our Sisters without Borders program, MADRE sent volunteers to K'inal Antzetik to paint the new center, plant organic gardens, and provide administrative assistance as K'inal prepares to open the center.
• MADRE also sent a Voyages with a Vision delegation to Chiapas. Delegates learned about the impact of free trade and militarization on women and families and participated in exchanges with Indigenous communities.

Colombia

• Through our sister organization, Taller de Vida, MADRE sent support to Reinventing Life Through Art, an art-therapy program that offers classes in acting, painting, music, pottery, video, photography, and dance to former child combatants and other children who have been displaced by war. MADRE also sent support to Taller de Vida's scholarship fund, which pays school fees for children who have no other source of funding for their education.
• Ana Elena Obando, an international human rights lawyer, represented MADRE at the International Conference of Women Against War, held in Bogota, Colombia. Ana Elena met with a representative of Colombian President Alvaro Uribe and presented a women's human rights perspective on ending Colombia's 40-year war.