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Description
The Radar project will increase the capacities of eight org. that work in the field of reproductive rights through activities that include: training CSOs to monitor breeches in women’s reproductive rights, preparing comparative reports on judicial practices in Croatia compared to international standards, filing strategic litigation, researching the extent to which professional standards are adhered to, participative workshops, organising an Edit-a-Thon, preparing a draft document for women’s health, workshops on international mechanisms and the preparation of shadow reports, shadow reports on the status of women’s rights in reproductive healthcare, a public campaign, program development and train-the-trainer workshops on techniques for Master Suppression Techniques and countering them and the preparation of a tool for countering these techniques. The project’s aim is to strengthen the advocacy capacities of CSOs to reposition women’s health from being a medical issue to being a human rights issue. The specific aims are: to increase the capacities of CSOs for strategic litigation in the field of women’s reproductive rights, to strengthen CSOs to advocate for evidence-based women’s reproductive rights, to develop mechanisms for a stronger role of CSOs in the protection of women’s human rights. The target groups are CSOs that work with women, including those that work with women with disabilities, asylum seekers, Roma women and former prisoners who will increase their capacities to advocate for the protection of women’s reproductive rights.
Summary of project results
The 2019 reports from the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, its Causes and Consequences, and the Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe highlight the issue of violations of women’s reproductive rights in Croatia, manifested through verbal and physical abuse in maternity wards. The Radar project addresses this issue, including problems such as the denial of anesthesia during gynecological procedures, illegal charges for prenatal examinations, and the shortage of gynecologists. Due to fears of rights violations in healthcare, women seek protection from associations, which, due to reduced capacity, are not adequately addressing these issues, leading to a lack of pressure on institutions and decision-makers. The project has strengthened the advocacy capacities of 8 organizations for the protection of women''s reproductive rights through activities such as: training NGOs to monitor violations of reproductive rights, compiling reports with case law in Croatia and international standards; initiating strategic litigation; researching adherence to professional guidelines; participatory workshops; organizing Edit-a-Thons; proposing documents on women’s health; preparing shadow reports on the state of women’s rights in healthcare; public campaigns; developing programs and trainer training on techniques to combat domination; and creating tools to combat domination.
The project aims to: strengthen the advocacy potential of NGOs to reposition women''s health from the medical sphere to the human rights sphere. Specific objectives include: enhancing the capacity of NGOs for strategic litigation in the area of women’s reproductive rights; empowering NGOs to advocate for women''s reproductive rights based on evidence; and developing mechanisms for a stronger role of NGOs in protecting women’s human rights. Target groups include: NGOs working with women, including women with disabilities, asylum seekers, Romani women, and prisoners, who will build capacity for protecting reproductive rights; the professional community and government institutions to be pressured; media to raise public awareness; and women as active citizens. Roda will coordinate activities, involving NGOs and partners, manage the project, and address risks. Women''s Counselling and O.M.G. are responsible for developing educational tools to combat domination over women, with Women''s Counselling responsible for developing programs and trainer training on techniques to combat domination, and O.M.G. responsible for implementing the public campaign.
Thanks to the database on violations of reproductive rights, women of reproductive age now have a place where they can seek legal support in the form of free consultations or initiation of legal proceedings. The existing database will be periodically promoted to remain visible to the target group. Organizations providing support to women have strengthened their capacities through multiple trainings (on legal mechanisms for protecting women, the e-course "Empowered in the Healthcare System"), which, combined with the engagement around supporting Mirela Čavajda, has strengthened the network of organizations advocating for women''s human rights. Through the initiative Dosta! and in collaboration with over 120 NGOs, we achieved for the first time that the Croatian Health Insurance Fund (HZZO) covered a significant portion of the costs of pregnancy termination in Slovenia, which had previously been impossible as women bore the entire cost of the procedure that should have been covered. We have exerted significant pressure through international mechanisms and supported several women in their fight for reproductive rights. These court rulings are still awaited as the review of case law we conducted through this project showed that legal proceedings in the area of women''s reproductive health generally take more than 9 years. Increasingly, women are approaching us regarding illegal charges for gynecological examinations by doctors contracted with HZZO, so we have already sent several letters to gynecological clinics in collaboration with attorney Mirjana Helebrant. Women remain anonymous and incur no costs. We will continue to promote the e-course and video "Empowered in the Healthcare System" as these materials will not become outdated anytime soon. We aim to promote these materials among our international partners and translate them into English for use internationally through future projects and collaborations. The Action Plan for Women''s Reproductive Health has successfully mobilized a large number of women during its implementation phase, and we plan to continue promoting it with other organizations as a document that serves as a solid foundation for implementing activities that would improve care for women''s reproductive health in Croatia.
A1.3. Strategic Litigation in the Area of Women’s Reproductive Rights
During this reporting period, three legal submissions were made concerning reproductive rights. All three submissions address the inability of couples/individuals to retrieve or dispose of their frozen embryos stored at KB Merkur. This issue affects thousands of couples and has the potential to change the current situation, which is not legally clear. State clinics involved in assisted reproductive technology exploit this situation by refusing to destroy embryos or ignoring patients'' requests due to subjective interpretations of the law, which might be influenced by conscientious objections. Frozen genetic material remains stored indefinitely, even after patients'' deaths, contrary to their wishes and legal regulations. Following the project’s completion, a hearing was held, and the issue of frozen embryos was discussed multiple times in public spaces (TV shows, roundtables). One significant achievement is the continued collaboration with lawyers after the project ended.
A2.3. Holding Edit-a-Thons
Another WikiOna workshop was held, which has the potential to continue even after the project''s completion. Participants edited and compiled texts on reproductive rights and women''s health, as well as other related areas, especially human rights. WikiOna, as part of this activity, was a "mini project" we are particularly proud of because it brought together a large number of women who edited over a hundred articles on the Croatian Wikipedia, where traditional values had previously dominated.
A2.4. Development of an Action Plan and Declaration for Women''s Reproductive Health
A proposal for an Action Plan and Declaration for Women''s Reproductive Health was drafted with input from numerous experts, and the presentation was attended by over 80 participants. After the project, a second edition of the document is planned to incorporate changes and improvements based on received comments. A new project by the Solidarna Foundation will fund the proofreading, graphic preparation, and design of the updated version, which will include additional comments received later. The Action Plan and Declaration will serve as an advocacy document for the long term. After the project’s completion, a thematic meeting was held at the Ministry of Health in June 2023 with various associations (Sve za nju, Hrvatski savez gluhih i nagluhih, Hrabre sestre, Medecins du Monde, CESI), discussing changes in healthcare in line with recommendations from this document. A new meeting is planned for early 2024 to further advocate for the implementation of the Action Plan for Women’s Reproductive Health developed through this project.
A3.2. Implementation of Public Campaigns via Social Media
During the public campaign, various texts were shared on social media about project activities: the e-course "Empowered in the Healthcare System," the Action Plan and Declaration for Women’s Reproductive Health, the issue of abortion access, and the case of Mirela Čavajda and the Croatian Government''s response to UN Special Rapporteurs'' letters. There were a total of 10 posts on Roda’s Facebook and Instagram pages during this reporting period.
A3.3. Development of a Program and Trainer Training on Techniques to Combat Domination, Master Suppression Techniques (MST)
An e-course titled "Empowered in the Healthcare System" was developed and promoted, detailing various techniques of domination commonly used by men against women. The program includes introductory information, three modules (domination techniques, reproductive health and women’s rights, and gynecological and obstetric violence), and additional materials. The e-course, focusing on the healthcare system, was presented to NGOs and healthcare professionals in an online session with over 80 participants. This is currently the only educational content related to domination techniques in the healthcare field globally. The content was created in collaboration with the Women’s Counselling organization from Iceland.
A3.4. Development of Educational Tools to Combat Domination Over Women
In partnership with the Open Media Group, a promotional video "Empowered in the Healthcare System" was created with translation into Croatian Sign Language, developed in collaboration with the Forum of Women of the Croatian Deaf and Hard of Hearing Union. The video was presented to NGOs and healthcare professionals in an online session with over 80 participants. The video, including the one with Croatian Sign Language translation, was uploaded to Roda’s YouTube channel and had 3,082 views at the time of this report, and 1,598 likes on Instagram.
Summary of bilateral results
With the help of the Icelandic partner, a program was developed and a train-the-trainer session was conducted on Master Suppression Techniques (MST). The resulting e-course, "Empowered in the Healthcare System," describes various domination techniques commonly used by men against women. The program consists of introductory information, three modules (domination techniques, reproductive health and women''s rights, and gynecological and obstetric violence), and additional materials. The e-course was designed with a focus on the healthcare system and was presented to NGOs and healthcare professionals in an online session attended by over 80 participants. To date, this is the only educational content globally related to domination techniques in the field of health. The content was developed in collaboration with the Icelandic partner organization, Women''s Counselling.