Les femmes au maroc travaillent ensemble pour combattre la violence

WLP partner Association Démocratique des Femmes du Maroc (ADFM) coordinates a much-needed national network of violence against women centers in Morocco called ANARUZ. The centers provide legal services to women victims of violence, gather data about the problem of violence against women in Morocco, raise awareness of gender-based violence, and advocate for policy and legal reforms to protect women and reduce violence.

In February and March 2006, WLP and ADFM worked together to strengthen the culture of participatory leadership within the network through two Leading to Choices participatory leaderships workshops with ANARUZ members from Tétouan and Fès.

In Tétouan, many of the participants came to the workshop thinking of themselves as leaders because of the challenges they faced in their day-to-day work at the ANARUZ centers. However, some of the participants did not recognize their own leadership abilities at first, in spite of their successes. One participant said, "Before this workshop, I didn't recognize myself as a leader, even though the members of my organization treated me as a leader. They frequently asked for my opinion and participation and gave me responsibility for several important projects. However, I still lacked self-confidence."

The workshop in Tétouan focused on conflict management, network building, and advocacy skills that participants could use to strengthen ANARUZ. "Networking, advocacy, and mobilization are terms which I already knew. The workshop made it possible for me to understand the different steps involved and feel confident in implementing them at the individual, professional, and associational levels," said one participant.

In Fès, the majority of participants had previously thought of leadership in traditional terms. One group of participants took a ‘qualification' approach to leadership, viewing those with the highest level of education and training as leaders. Another group took a ‘role-based' approach to leadership, viewing those with management responsibilities as leaders. Participants enjoyed learning about the participatory approach to leadership, in which each member of a group is both a follower and a leader. One participant described her experience, "This was my first exposure to participatory leadership. Everything I thought I knew about leadership went up in smoke. Now I know that being a leader does not inevitably mean exercising power over others. From now on, I will make more effort to make decisions in cooperation with my friends, family and colleagues."

Participants at the Fès workshop were based in scattered rural locations and made the most of this infrequent opportunity to network with one another. They shared common challenges and successful strategies they had employed in their work to end violence against women. The workshop also provided a chance to reflect on their motivation for continuing in their work. "During this workshop, I particularly related to the case studies we discussed that examined taboos as overwhelming obstacles to women's well being. I know that taboos can be broken down and so can the walls of silence which surround women's suffering," said one participant.

As coordinator of the ANARUZ network, ADFM will remain in close touch with the workshop participants and will continue to build the capacity of each center as their work to eliminate violence against women continues.