"Providing safe spaces to talk about our mental health is the responsibility of everyone. Every individual, family, employee, and community member must be concerned about physical and mental health protection to build a healthy society.”
Nabaz Ahmed, Psychotherapist at Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights
Senior Psychotherapist at Jiyan Foundation, Nabaz Ahmed, teaches paralegals and community facilitators methods for interacting with clients suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder or other symptoms.
Every month is Mental Health Awareness Month at Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights. In addition to our ongoing psychotherapy work, we have implemented several new training programs designed to build local capacities and provide much-needed awareness to youth in the region.
From May 9th to 11th, our senior psychotherapy staff conducted a comprehensive three-day training for community facilitators and paralegals in Sulamaniyah. The training is designed to empower our staff with knowledge of some psychological symptoms and conditions our clients may face. This training equips our legal team with the necessary know-how to effectively support and assist our clients throughout the implementation of our projects. This project is generously funded by Misereor.
Since March, we have continued training 19 local staff in psychotraumatology modules across the region and conducted a 10-day training program called FOR-NET to treat trauma spectrum and offenders for 15 other mental health professionals from Yazda and Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights.
Our local teams have begun implementing awareness sessions for fourth and fifth-grade students on the impacts of domestic violence and bullying on mental health. These awareness sessions focus on four major concepts - equality, freedom, respect, and non-violence. Through these awareness sessions, students receive valuable insight on how to protect themselves and find assistance if confronted with violence or sexual assault, knowledge of their fundamental human rights, and tools for building cooperative, non-violent relationships with people of different backgrounds.
All students receive take-home materials, which they can share with friends and family. In each session, our trainers emphasize the impact individual behaviors can have on their mental health and their communities. These awareness sessions have been conducted in Baghdad and Arbat Refugee Camp in the Sulamaniyah region.
Fourth and fifth-graders are especially receptive to our trainers and eager to engage in awareness activities.
Duhok (May 08, 2023)
We are deeply troubled by the choices of local religious leaders to use their influence to incite violence and spread hatred and misinformation about the Yazidi community after the recent unrest in Sinjar on April 29th. Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights calls for a public campaign to promote coexistence and constructive dialogue between all parties and faiths in Iraq.
Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights condemns any act of violence, including hate speech and rhetoric that incites division and violence.
Through our psychotherapy and humanitarian work, Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights is very familiar with the lasting mistrust between Yazidi and Muslim communities in Sinjar. The reported events on April 29th demonstrate how these feelings can quickly manifest into violence and confusion. Furthermore, the decision of local leaders across Iraq to spread misinformation is counter-productive to constructing a peaceful society.
We call on all parties involved to engage in well-intentioned, public dialogue on the events of April 29th. Through our dialogue programs, we have seen firsthand how communication and a willingness to promote peace lead to progress and understanding. Coexistence between all communities is the only path forward. We urge all sides to come together and find a way to resolve their disputes constructively and nonviolently to build a better future for Sinjar.
The world is watching, and we stand ready to assist in any way we can in this process.
Psychological trauma can affect individuals for their entire lives. Our goal is for every client to lead a fulfilling life free from the constraints of sustained mental trauma. The diversity of our psychological treatment services reflects the diverse populations and struggles we see within our communities. Monthly gifts allow us to better plan our services and save money in the process. Please consider giving just $5 a month to provide sustainable psychotherapy and mental health awareness programs in Kurdistan-Iraq, Iraq and Syria.
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March 8th is International Women’s Day, a global day bringing attention to issues of gender equality, reproductive rights, violence and abuse against women. It is an especially important day for survivors of ISIL violence in Iraq. On March 8th, 2021, then President Barham Salih ratified the Yazidi Female Survivors Law that mandates several critical reparations for survivors of ISIL crimes from Yazidi, Christian, Turkmen and Shabak communities.
Former President of Iraq Dr. Barham Salih sat down with Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights on behalf of the Coalition for Just Reparations to discuss his motivation for drafting the initial bill, its implementation, and what it means for the future of survivors in Iraq. Listen now or Read the conversation
To mark the second anniversary of the passage of the Yazidi [Female] Survivors Law, Jiyan Foundation and the Coalition for Just Reparations publishes a report More than “Ink on Paper”: Taking Stock two Years After the Adoption of the Yazidi [Female] Survivors Law. This report provides an overview of circumstances leading up to YSL´s enactment and content, reactions and the state of implementation. Read the report
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Dear Friend of Jiyan Foundation,
Today is Giving Tuesday – a global day of giving to support organizations like ours that are working to change our world for the better. Today I’d like to share with you my personal experience addressing Yezidi womens’ health in Kurdistan-Iraq.
Yezidi women living in Shingal (Sinjar) don’t have access to proper medical and mental health services. As a Psychiatrist at Jiyan Foundation, it is my duty to not only provide essential psychiatric services, but also identify special medical cases which require intervention. The Yezidi women we treat through our mobile teams and Duhok branch are impoverished, and often lack the formal reproductive education many people take for granted.
This past summer I was confronted with two similar cases of young Yezidi women who were depressed after going through the process of divorce. I had met with each woman separately in a therapy session; Arya* (24 years) and Sara* (20 years). During our conversations, both women expressed sadness, disinterest of daily activities and weight loss among other signs of clinical depression. In addition, both women shared that they did not experience a menstrual cycle, and that this was a reason for their divorce.
Donate to Jiyan Foundation and help us provide mental health and medical treatment to Yezidi survivors of violence in Shingal.
Arya* was previously diagnosed with Primary Amenorrhea, the absence of menses, due to a congenital anomaly on her uterus, ovary and reproductive organs which required major surgery. Despite being diagnosed more than a year and a half ago, Arya has been unable to afford the cost of surgery, and therefore continued her life without it. Indeed, living with such a condition could have negative affects on her mental health. I immediately referred Arya to a specialist gynecologist and obstetrician who confirmed the diagnosis.
Sara*, whom I met with later and was not previously diagnosed, shared similar symptoms. I also referred her to a gynecologist and obstetrician for similar tests including an ultrasound of her pelvis, CT scans, blood tests etc. The results pointed toward a congenital anomaly of uterus, ovary and vagina. Like Arya, Sara was also diagnosed with primary amenorrhea.
In cases like these, the mental health issues are difficult or impossible to address without resolving the patients’ medical issues. Fortunately for both women, through Jiyan Foundation I was able to negotiate their operations free-of-charge with Soma Private Hospital in Sulaimani.
In addition to their operations, Arya and Sara were provided with information about their conditions and education on issues concerning women’s health that they had never had access to before. Since their operations this past summer, Arya and Sara have both recovered successfully and participate in Jiyan Foundation’s mental health support programs.
Arya has expressed a generally good mood and looks forward to her group therapy sessions with other women from Shingal.
Sara continues her monthly therapy sessions with another Jiyan Foundation psychotherapist and has expressed much thanks and optimism to her own well-being.
Without Jiyan Foundation’s mental health programs for Yezidi women in Shingal, Arya and Sara would have not received the medical interventions, nor education about their conditions. I am thankful to work with Jiyan Foundation whose network and influence can provide women with access to mental health and healthcare services they would otherwise go without.
Please, this season consider donating to Jiyan Foundation and help us provide free of charge medical and mental health treatment to people who need it most.
Sincerely,
Dr. Jamal Omar Tawfeeq
Psychiatrist
Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights
Listen: The force of self-awareness in Iraq with Asmaa Ibrahim and Jiyan Foundation
Jiyan Foundation’s Co-head of Trauma Care & Health Asmaa Ibrahim joins Philippa White to answer questions ranging from how she began training in psychotherapy to the culture and stigma associated with mental health treatment.
During this conversation, Asmaa gives us a brief window into life in Iraq. Asmaa talks about the stories from when the war broke out in 2014, and what she has heard from the people that she helps. Then she explains what she does to help start the healing process.
Asmaa tells us one of her favorite techniques that she uses to help people heal from trauma. We hear about how children were militarized and educated under ISIS. We learn what she and Jiyan Foundation are going to do to reintegrate these now-young adults back into society.
There is a lot here. So grab that favorite beverage or throw on those running shoes, and enjoy this conversation with Asmaa.
We need you now more than ever. Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights US provides mental health, psychotherapy, medical treatment & other support services to survivors of trauma, terror, domestic violence & human rights violations. Our programs support 9 treatment centers, a clinic for Yazidi women & families, a Healing Garden and mobile teams helping survivors in 11 refugee & IDP camps & 9 regions throughout Kurdistan-Iraq, Iraq & Syria.
What are you waiting for? Donate Now
Last month along with providing our regular mental health services, our staff and volunteers have been working to train and educate children, human rights defenders, and mental health workers across the region. Here are some highlights:
Role Models for our Communities in Sinjar
“You are the first and only organization that visited us and supported our students." - Principal of Barzan School in Sardashti, Sinjar Mountains
Jiyan Foundation volunteers of the Youth Network for Peace and Dialogue educated first-grade students in "Muhadar in Kolka" primary school and "Barzan School in Sardashti", located in Sinjar Mountains, about the importance of education in building stronger communities.
Children growing up in the Sinjar Mountains are often forced to study without proper learning materials. Coming from families who were recently targeted by ISIS terror, youngsters living in the region have been historically denied access to study materials and primary education. In addition to providing each child with school bags, stationery, and study materials, Jiyan Foundation’s volunteers developed a lesson designed to encourage youngsters to commit themselves to education and build peaceful sustainable communities.
Jiyan’s volunteers of the Youth Network for Peace and Dialogue are committed to serving their communities, acting as multipliers of peace and role models for the next generation. This project was conceived and developed locally by members of the Youth Network for Peace a Dialogue, embodying Jiyan Foundation’s local approach to humanitarian programming throughout the region.
We could not be more proud of Jiyan’s Youth Network leaders and their commitment to their communities. Keep an eye out for more this month from our Youth Network leaders!
Jiyan Foundation Releases a Toolkit on Transitional & Restorative Justice for Iraq
In collaboration with Iraqi civil society organizations and with the financial support of the German Government, Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights and the Coalition for Just Reparations have published a manual aimed at enhancing knowledge in transitional & restorative justice.
“A Toolkit on Transitional & Restorative Justice”, aims at enhancing the Iraqi civil society organizations (CSOs) knowledge in Transitional and Restorative Justice (TJ/RJ) and improving their capacities in planning and implementing relevant activities. The manual combines both theoretical knowledge and practical steps to explore, plan, and implement interventions at the local levels. While the manual draws on academic discourse and experiences from other post-conflict contexts, it was specifically developed in conformity with the Iraqi context and based on accumulated inputs from civil society actors.
“At this point in time, it is crucial for members of Iraqi civil society to think about, discuss, and engage in restorative and transitional justice practices. These engagements may provide an impulse for greater change and set the groundwork for a prosperous future for all Iraqis.” Dr. Bojan Gavrilovic, Head of Program for Rights and Justice at Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights. Click here for the toolkit.
We need you now more than ever. Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights US provides mental health, psychotherapy, medical treatment & other support services to survivors of trauma, terror, domestic violence & human rights violations. Our programs support 9 treatment centers, a clinic for Yazidi women & families, a Healing Garden and mobile teams helping survivors in 11 refugee & IDP camps & 9 regions throughout Kurdistan-Iraq, Iraq & Syria.
What are you waiting for? Donate Now
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