Combat Sexual Violence in Haiti

by MADRE, An International Women's Human Rights Org.

Project Report | Dec 4, 2013
KOFAVIV's Vision for Ending Violence Against Women

By Elizabeth Droggitis | MADRE Staff Member

MADRE’s sister organization in Haiti, KOFAVIV, has been hard at work in their attempts to combat the widespread violence against women in their country. Despite substantial progress, they still face obstacles in their fight for a life free from violence. However, these difficulties do not stop their ambition to ensure that women are granted the full range of human rights.

In a recent interview with KOFAVIV, they shared with us their vision to end violence against women stating, “Within KOFAVIV, we hope to see new, more effective laws to punish rapists and we would like to see commitment from the Haitian government regarding the international human rights conventions, specifically the rights of women and girls.”

KOFAVIV works hard to bring awareness to their communities through organized activities to help engage the population in a commitment to stop violence against women. But, as they inform us, “there is still a lot to do…we still need reinforcements in order to continue accompanying survivors, to continue providing medical help, legal help, psychosocial help and to maintain our training projects for girls living in forced prostitution situations.”

With your continued support we can help transform KOFAVIV’s vision to end violence against women into a reality!

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Sep 4, 2013
Shots Fired at MADRE Partner's Home

By Elizabeth Droggitis | MADRE Staff Member

Shots Fired at Haitian Human Rights Defender’s Home

Escalating violence against KOFAVIV founder and 2012 CNN Hero

August 26, 2013—New York, NY— Early Friday morning, a group of armed men arrived at the home of Malya Villard Appolon, General Coordinator of KOFAVIV, a Haitian grassroots women’s organization and long-time MADRE partner. The assailants fired gunshots at Ms. Villard Appolon’s house, leaving several bullet holes in her front gate and striking and breaking her front doorbell. The attackers returned later while police were at the scene, but officers were unable to make an arrest or apprehend the shooters.

“We are being attacked for trying to change something some people do not want changed,” said Marie Eramithe Delva, co-founder of KOFAVIV, in a statement to MADRE Executive Director Yifat Susskind. “We are being punished for defending women who are abused and for publicly speaking for women and children who cannot speak for themselves. They won’t stop until they silence us.”

This attack is the latest in series of escalating threats against KOFAVIV workers and their families. Unknown attackers have killed Ms. Villard-Appolon’s dogs, entered her home without permission and attempted to obtain information about her whereabouts, and appeared at the KOFAVIV office and both Ms. Villard-Appolon’s and Ms. Delva’s personal residences demanding money.

Both Ms. Villard Appolon’s and Ms. Delva’s children have been followed, making it unsafe for them to attend school. Since March 2012, there have been several kidnapping attempts aimed at both Ms. Villard Appolon’s children and Ms. Delva’s children. Ms. Villard Appolon herself was held at gunpoint in 2010 and paid a ransom to be allowed to return to her family. Ms. Delva and Ms. Villard Appolon are outspoken survivors of politically-motivated beatings and sexual assaults.

MADRE strongly condemns the actions of the perpetrators who terrorized the home of Ms. Villard Appolon, as well as the escalation of aggression against KOFAVIV’s members and defenders of human rights throughout Haiti.

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Jun 5, 2013
Hygiene kits and legal services for rape survivors

By Elizabeth Droggitis | MADRE Staff Member

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