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From left to right: Jill Wiley, Dan Martin, Jennifer Redner, and Linda Bales Todd, speakers during the event, with a quilt from Operation Healing Hope.
DOCUMENTARY LEADS DEBATE ABOUT FISTULA AND CHILD MARRIAGE
In November 2009, women's health advocates and Capitol Hill staffers were among those who gathered at the United Methodist Church in Washington D.C. for a special screening of the documentary "A Walk to Beautiful" produced by Engel Entertainment with the support of UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund.
In addition to the UMC General Board of Church and Society and "Operation Healing Hope", a United Methodist Health initiative, co-sponsors of the event included the International Women's Health Coalition (IWHC), International Center for Research on Women (ICRW), UNFPA, and CARE, one of the world's largest private international humanitarian organizations.
Prior to the event, Senator Bob Corker from Tennessee, member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, dropped by for an informal briefing on how he can support initiatives to fight fistula. U.S. support for UNFPA, said the specialists, is one of the most important and effective ways the country can and does respond to the prevention and treatment needs of women and girls at risk for or suffering from an obstetric fistula.
The film was introduced by panel presentations focusing on the issue of obstetric fistula and the linkages between fistula and child marriage, emphasizing the importance of prevention and treatment initiatives to comprehensively address these issues.
The panel also discussed actions that participants could take, like calling for the United States to support stronger policies to combat the practice of child marriage.
“The U.S. has an opportunity to make a strong statement that women and girls have the right to determine when, if, and whom they marry by enacting the International Protecting Girls by Preventing Child Marriage Act,” said Jennifer Redner, a consultant to the International Women's Health Coalition.
According to Redner, “The Act will establish a multi-year strategy to prevent child marriage in developing countries and promote the empowerment of girls at risk of child marriage. It will also require the State Department to report on this harmful practice in its annual human rights report, and integrate child marriage prevention efforts into existing U.S. development programs with an emphasis on supporting community-based programs”.
“The U.S. can and therefore must play a leadership role in addressing the issue of child marriage and enactment of this legislation will be an important step in that direction,” emphasized Redner.
Following the viewing of a portion of the film, the panelists and event participants engaged in a lively discussion about fistula and child marriage and the holistic and comprehensive solutions to address these problems, which included the importance of comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services.
