ActionAid Palestine to Demand Protection to Palestinian women and Promote their Digital Skills and Security
On International Women Day
Palestinian women can’t celebrate their special day- International Women Day 2023 (IWD) which falls on 8th of March every year due to the heavy burden and pains they carry as a result of illegal practices and policies of Israeli occupation committed against the Palestinian people. ActionAid Palestine (AAP) marked this occasion by calling international community to secure protection for Palestinian women by practicing pressure on Israel to stop its ongoing violations against Palestinian people that directly and indirectly affect women.
Palestinian women continue suffering from impacts of Israel’s widespread and systematic human rights violations, the gendered implications of the prolonged military occupation, as well as patriarchal social norms and discriminatory laws. Under these conditions, they continue to struggle against many forms of oppression and injustice, including Israel’s excessive use of force and shoot-to-kill policy, movement restrictions, house demolitions, harassment, intimidation and ill-treatment at Israeli checkpoints scattered throughout the West Bank, including around East Jerusalem, alongside increased measures of collective punishment, such as 16 years of illegal blockade imposed on Gaza, punitive residency revocations and punitive home demolitions.
18 women were killed by Israeli security forces during 2022, and one woman was killed from the beginning of 2023 to date.172 women were detained in Israeli prisons in 2022. There are 29 women in Israeli prisons until the end of 2022, two among them are underage (children) and two detainees are under administrative detention.
The Women’s participation rate in the labour force in 2022 is 19% out of the total number of women at work age in 2022. Notably, this percentage was 17% in 2021, knowing that the rate of men's participation in the labour force reached 71% in 2022, compared to 69% in 2021.
The unemployment rate among women participating in the labour force was about 40% compared to 20% among men in 2022.
The theme of IWD 2023 is “ DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality”, highlighting impact of digital gender gap in widening social and economic inequalities and calling for more efforts to be exerted to improve digital and personal skills of women and protect their rights in digital spaces and address online Gender Based Violence .
The Palestinian women suffer from digital gender gap. In 2022, about 72% of females (10 years and above) in Palestine owned a smart phone compared to 74% of males, while 88% of females (10 years and above) in Palestine used the Internet compared to 89% of males. out 10% of currently or ever married women (15-64 years) in Palestine were exposed to some forms of cyber violence through social media networks. Also, 8% of women were exposed to violence through telecommunication (any threatening, blackmailing, or harassing different people or parties through calls or messages). While about 12% of females (18-64 years) have never been married in Palestine were exposed to some forms of cyber violence through social media networks. 8% of females were also exposed to violence through telecommunication (any threatening, blackmailing, or harassing different people or parties through calls or messages).
To address this digital reality of Palestinian women, AAP adopts gender-responsive approach in designing and implementing its interventions and programs to improve the digital skills of Palestinian women and increase their awareness about their cyber security and digital rights on digital spaces through different media campaigns and trainings.
AAP currently implements INTERNISA project which aims to bridge the digital gender gap and provide marketable digital skills in Mediterranean territories by developing a network and a portal that brings closer the demand and supply of the labour market. AAP continues targeting women in marginalized areas in the south of West Bank and Gaza Strip where they suffer from marginalization ,GBV and effects of occupations by following a multilayered approach to strengthen community mechanisms for prevention and protection against GBV and sexual violence. At the heart of this lies enhancing the capabilities, leadership and influence of women and girls, being the key agents of change, informing them about their rights and the root causes for their discrimination and oppression, as well as mobilizing them to protect and advocate their political, social and economic rights, and in particular to confront GBV in all its forms.
Background Information
ActionAid in Palestine (AAP) is a part of global federation working for social justice and gender equality and eradicate poverty in more than 45 countries around the world. AAP started its work in Palestine in 2007 to strengthen the resilience of Palestinian People as ActionAid believes that they should enjoy their rights to freedom, justice and self-determination. AAP implements a number of programs through its engagement with communities and women and youth groups seeking to empower them and enhance their influential civil and political participation to understand their rights and undertake collective activism to address the protracted rights violations resulting from the prolonged occupation of Palestine. AAP works simultaneously to enhance their leadership capacity and knowledge to practice their citizenship in holding authorities and other duty bearers to account.
For more information, please contact.
Riham Jafari
Coordinator of Advocacy and Communication in Palestine
Mobile:
+972 (0) 595242890
Office:
+972 (0) (2) 22 13 137
Email: