Greece: Engagement on Women's Issues

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 ATHENS 000018 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR EUR/PGI:JIM KUYKENDALL, EUR/SE, DEPT ALSO FOR S/GWI, DRL/AE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREF SMIG KWMN KTIP GR SUBJECT: Greece: Engagement on Women's Issues REF: 09 STATE 124579 ¶1. (U) This report is a response to reftel information request and is a joint cable with Consulate General Thessaloniki. ¶2. (SBU) SUMMARY: Mission Greece closely integrates women's issues into public diplomacy programming, human rights outreach, commercial outreach, and partnerships with civil society. Highlights from the past year at Embassy Athens include a multifaceted breast cancer awareness-raising program with Susan G. Komen for the Cure and local NGO partners, advocacy with the Greek government on behalf of women victims of trafficking in persons (TIP) and the women leaders of anti-TIP organizations, a speaker program with African-American women's advocate, journalist, and author Evelyn C. White, and a series of cross-sector mentoring events for women in business, government, and civil society led by the Deputy Chief of Mission. Consulate General Thessaloniki has consistently sought opportunities to highlight the role of women in modern societies, and advocate in particular for vulnerable and marginalized women. In this effort, Consulate staff have partnered with local government officials, NGOs, professional chambers, as well as representatives of international organizations. ¶3. (SBU) SUMMARY CONTINUED. While women's advocates in Greece report significant progress in women's rights over the last decade, women in Greece continue to face challenges such as a stigma against reporting domestic violence and rape, a lack of women's health awareness, and sexual harassment in the workplace. Muslim minority women in Thrace suffer discrimination in marriage, divorce, and inheritance issues under Shari'a law, while Roma women often lack access to basic services and education, and have high rates of teenage childbirth. Strong government support of female TIP victims and asylum seekers is lacking. Despite these challenges, we see valuable opportunities for increased U.S. engagement and awareness-raising on women's issues, particularly with women's health, Roma, immigrants, and victims of domestic violence or trafficking. Greece has an active, internationally focused, and committed women's rights community, and an increase in exchange program opportunities for women's advocates would be especially valuable. END SUMMARY. -------------- Women's Issues Outreach in Greece: Highlights -------------- ¶4. (SBU) The majority of our women's outreach initiatives during the past year has focused on the challenge areas outlined above. A list of activities follows: PUBLIC DIPLOMACY ACTIVITIES: -- Partnering with Susan G. Komen for the Cure to Raise Awareness for Breast Cancer: A lack of cancer awareness is a problem in Greece, and discussion of serious medical problems is traditionally considered taboo. As part of a multi-day PD initiative to raise awareness for the prevention and treatment of breast cancer in Greece, in September 2009 Ambassador Speckhard hosted a reception in honor of Susan G. Komen for the Cure and its local partners, Alma Zois (Pan-Hellenic Association of Women with Breast Cancer), which focuses on prevention, early detection, and counseling, and the Ormylia Foundation, which provides examinations and treatment to underprivileged women patients. The next day, these NGOs held Greece's first ever "Race for the Cure," drawing political and business leaders, diplomats, and health and community professionals (including a large group of Embassy participants). Consulate General Thessaloniki hosted a seminar for local businesspeople about the Ormylia Foundation's work, and presented an award to the NGO. RESULTS: This partnership highlighted U.S.-Greece cooperation on women's health issues, gave a strong boost to breast cancer awareness-raising efforts, and provided networking and mentoring opportunities for women's advocates in the medical, NGO, pharmaceutical, and entertainment sectors. ATHENS 00000018 002 OF 007 -- Consulate-Supported Group Organizes Seminar for Women Entrepreneurs: In January 2009, the Thessaloniki Consul General and staff attended a seminar on "Women's Entrepreneurship: Challenges and Realities", organized by the Consulate-supported Facebook group "Young Entrepreneurs of Thessaloniki." The event attracted a number of young women aspiring to be or thinking about becoming entrepreneurs. RESULTS: The event supported the educational and professional efforts of young Greek women in areas that highlight U.S. leadership, such as innovation and entrepreneurship. -- Seminar for Women Entrepreneurs: In March 2009, the Thessaloniki Consul General delivered remarks at a seminar entitled "Leaders of the New Economy" on Greek women's contributions to entrepreneurship and corporate social responsibility. The event was organized by a financial newspaper under the auspices of the Consulate. Approximately 200 women participants discussed issues of equality, social norms, and the need for programs to assist women entrepreneurs. RESULTS: The Consulate's support for the event highlighted the U.S. commitment to equal opportunity in business and politics. The seminar, which received positive coverage in national media, encouraged women to pursue entrepreneurial efforts. -- Fulbright Alumni Lecture on Women's Immigration: On May 6, Thessaloniki DPO welcomed a group of 40 Fulbright scholars and a general audience to a Consulate-hosted lecture by Fulbright scholar Dr. Triantafillia Kourtoumi on "Contemporary immigration streams in the town of Thessaloniki: Voices from the archive of the "invisible" immigrant women." A lively discussion followed. RESULTS: The event supported Fulbright Alumni Association efforts to educate, raise awareness and inform local Greeks on current, interesting and important academic and cultural issues, in this case, the valuable contributions of immigrant women to local society. -- Lecture Series by Evelyn C. White, Biographer and Advocate for Minority Women's Issues: In February 2009, Embassy Athens and Consulate Thessaloniki hosted a series of speaking events featuring renowned journalist and author Evelyn C. White, whose articles and essays focus on African-American women. Ms. White spoke about her new book "The Universe Provides: The Biography of Alice Walker." Two of Ms. White's lectures were held in university settings and were introduced by key women members of Greece's academic community, and another event was introduced by Yvette Jarvis, a former Athens city council member, human trafficking and immigration activist, and the only African-American woman to serve public office in Greece. The Embassy also featured Ms. White's work on mosaiko.org, a website designed specifically to reach out to Greek youth. RESULTS: The lecture series highlighted and wove together two strands of U.S. leadership on human rights: minority rights and women's rights--two key areas that are not often linked in Greek public awareness campaigns. Ms. White's speaking events capitalized on strong interest in African-American issues in the wake of President Obama's election, and provided insight, perspective, and encouragement to Greek women on education and work issues. POLITICAL OUTREACH: ¶5. (SBU) Over the past several years, a key priority for U.S. Mission Greece has been to advance the efforts of Greek Roma women activists. Roma in Greece suffer from a lack of access to basic municipal and health services, poor educational support, and severe societal discrimination. Embassy Athens and Consulate General Thessaloniki have partnered with Roma educators, community activists, academics, government officials, and social workers, but with a special focus on Roma women leaders. Here are highlighted activities: -- U.S. Mission Recognition for Roma Nominee for Woman of Courage Award: On March 12, Consulate General Thessaloniki hosted a ATHENS 00000018 003 OF 007 ceremony to honor the Mission's 2009 nominee for the Secretary's International Women of Courage Award. Ambassador Speckhard congratulated the nominee, Roma activist Sabiha Suleiman, via live digital video conference. Thessaloniki DPO presented Ms. Suleiman with a certificate signed by the Ambassador, recognizing her efforts to improve pre-primary and after-school educational opportunities for Roma children in her community. RESULTS: The event was widely covered by national media, including interviews and presentations about the nominee and her long-standing commitment to advancing the cause of the Roma community in Thrace. DPO spoke to Athens International Radio about the State Department award for Women of Courage, raising awareness of Roma women's issues. A documentary filmmaker filmed the award ceremony in order to use footage in a documentary of Roma life in northern Greece. -- Roma Activist Nominated for Global Summit for World Leaders: On December 8-10, the Global Summit for World Leaders "The Courage to Lead" took place in Geneva, Switzerland. Consulate General Thessaloniki nominated for the Summit Thalia Kalogirou, Director of the local NGO Oikokoinonia ("Home Society"). The organization focuses on Roma supporting Roma communities and plays a leading role in shaping the government's National Strategy for the Roma in Greece. RESULTS: Ms. Kalogirou's nomination highlighted U.S. concern for and human rights leadership on Roma issues, strengthened the Mission's ties with NGOs active in the field, and provided a promising activist with additional mentoring and professional exposure. -- Consulate Support for Local Roma Women's Associations: In March and April 2009, Thessaloniki DPO visited two northern Greece Roma communities. DPO met with the Cultural Association of Women (an NGO combating illiteracy, poor health, poverty and unemployment with a special focus on women and children) and with representatives of the Women's Cultural and Educational Association, "Elpida" ("Hope"). The discussion focused on language preparation for young students and strategies for boosting school attendance among Roma children in the village. The discussion was followed by a tour of the village and visits to a preschool facility and reading center sponsored by the Association. RESULTS: The visits took place during the same time period as Consulate-sponsored events marking International Roma Day, and stressed USG interest in the Roma community and highlighted the role of Roma women's organizations struggling for change in a male-dominated environment. ¶6. (SBU) Combating trafficking in persons (TIP) is an important objective for U.S. Mission Greece. Embassy Athens and Consulate General Thessaloniki have focused efforts on NGO support and training, advocacy for policy improvements by the government, law enforcement training, awareness-raising, and support for victims of both sex and labor trafficking. Greece has approximately a dozen organizations with a focus on TIP issues and many of these NGOs are run by women activists--some of whom were leading members of Greece's women's rights movement a decade ago. Currently, law enforcement and NGO activities focus on sex trafficking, where the victims are predominately women and children. Mission Greece activities to support the fight against TIP, with a focus on women's issues, include the following: -- Ambassador's TIP NGO Roundtable, TIP NGO Engagement: In January 2009, Ambassador Speckhard hosted a dozen NGO representatives to discuss a strategy for combating TIP and, in particular, supporting victims of trafficking. The leaders of NGOs working most directly with victims were predominately women. Several weeks later, the Ambassador was the surprise guest of honor at the ten-year anniversary celebration of faith-based anti-TIP NGO Nea Zoi ("New Life"),an organization where predominately female volunteers reach out directly to sex workers and trafficking victims on the street. RESULT: The Ambassador's roundtable and follow-up meetings showed the U.S. commitment to supporting anti-trafficking NGOs and also provided a wealth of information about conditions for traffickers and their victims in Greece. The roundtable led to follow-up meetings with both NGOs and high-level government officials on improving counseling, legal support, and identification of women trafficking victims. Soon thereafter, then-Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyiannis committed publicly to making combating TIP a priority of Greece's human rights strategy during its 2009 chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). ATHENS 00000018 004 OF 007 -- Partnering with G/TIP on Anti-TIP Strategy for Greece: In October 2008, Embassy Athens and Consulate General Thessaloniki organized roundtable events with two representatives from the State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (G/TIP). The program included police representatives, prosecutors, NGO representatives, academics, and students and focused on the status of anti-TIP efforts in Greece and the United States. Following the Thessaloniki roundtable, participants viewed the State Department-sponsored video "Dreams Die Hard: Survivors of Slavery in America Tell their Stories." RESULTS: The anti-TIP roundtables raised public awareness about the need to fight trafficking and reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to assisting Greek authorities and NGOs. The G/TIP visitors provided valuable expertise on how Greece can improve its efforts to solve the problem of modern-day slavery. -- Support to Threatened TIP Victim during Court Trial: The Embassy Athens Human Rights Officer provided moral support and showed U.S. solidarity with threatened TIP victims during an appeals trial for a convicted sex trafficker--a notorious club owner who police, NGOs, and media insiders said had threatened the NGO women leaders and the female trafficking victim who were testifying against him. Over the course of several weeks and during the trial, TIP NGO contacts of the Embassy received constant telephone threats and other intimidation. RESULTS: An Embassy officer's mere presence at the court during a routine trial day provided a crucial emotional and psychological boost to the NGO and the trafficking victim, and displayed clear U.S. support of organizations seeking to combat human trafficking. -- Active U.S. Leadership in Anti-Trafficking Training Seminars: Officers from both Embassy Athens and Consulate General Thessaloniki attended, presented at, and helped lead over a dozen different anti-trafficking training events throughout the country during 2009. Embassy officers gave presentations at specialized training events for victim identification for health workers and NGOs, attended labor inspectorate and union conferences on labor trafficking, and supported novel training initiatives for prosecutors and judges to promote awareness about Greece's 2002 anti-trafficking law. Consulate General officers spoke at law enforcement conferences, including the November 2008 "Trans-border Crime in the Balkans" meeting, to urge law enforcement officials and prosecutors from neighboring states to work together more effectively to fight narcotics, human trafficking, illegal immigration and other forms of transnational crime. In April 2009, the Thessaloniki Consul General addressed over 300 Greek judges, prosecutors and government officials, including the Minister of Justice, at the "Trafficking in Human Beings and Electronic Crime" conference organized by the Hellenic Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Hellenic Association of Judges and Prosecutors and the Greek Mission of IOM in northern Greece. The CG stressed the importance of global cooperation against trafficking as well as the crucial role of judges, and also gave several press interviews after his address, including with national television station ET-3. RESULTS: The presence and leadership of Mission Greece officers at multiple anti-TIP events demonstrated the strong U.S. interest in cooperating with Greek government and civil society in combating TIP. In addition, the remarks reached key audiences and high-level officials, including the Deputy Minister of the Interior, Supreme Court justices, the Deputy Prosecutor of the Supreme Court, as well as police and legal officials from over six different Balkans countries. In these training sessions, women judges and prosecutors often played the lead role in raising awareness about TIP issues. -- 2009 Trafficking in Persons Hero Reception: In July 2009, Ambassador Speckhard hosted an award reception for Major George Vanikiotis, a 2009 G/TIP Trafficking in Persons Report Hero. The Embassy designed the event to address an important need for Greek anti-TIP NGOs and members of civil society to meet high-level law enforcement officers and government policymakers face to face. RESULTS: The reception offered predominately male law enforcement and government leaders the opportunity to interface with NGO and academic representatives, who were predominately female. We noted many lively discussions on anti-TIP strategy and policy during the event. The event also cemented the U.S. position as a leader on anti-trafficking advocacy, and provided an opportunity to instill ATHENS 00000018 005 OF 007 TIP awareness into mid- and high-level police officers. Just months after the reception, one of the police leaders who helped preside over the event was named the new Chief of Police for all of Greece. -- Consulate Honors Anti-TIP Activist Woman of Courage: In March 2008, Consulate General Thessaloniki honored Prosecutor Irene Chrysogianni as U.S. Mission Greece's nominee for the Secretary's 2008 International Women of Courage Award. The Consul General presented the Prosecutor with a certificate signed by Ambassador Speckhard and spoke about the importance of recognizing women around the world fighting for equality and human rights. A local university professor gave a lecture on the problem of violence against women and detailed Chrysogianni's contributions to the fight against human trafficking in northern Greece. RESULTS: The event highlighted International Women's History Month and the Secretary's Women of Courage Award. It received positive media coverage, including on national TV, and strengthened ties between the Consulate General and local judicial authorities, who seldom receive public recognition for their work. MENTORING INITIATIVES: ¶6. (SBU) Throughout the year, the Deputy Chief of Mission hosted and participated in a series of mentoring and networking events for women professionals from a variety of fields--business, government, the Embassy community, and the diplomatic corps. Several events were held in partnership with key local organizations, such as the Hellenic-American Chamber of Commerce, while other "in-house" mentoring initiatives focused on women in the Embassy community and female diplomats stationed in Greece. RESULTS: These initiatives provided professional women living in Greece an important opportunity to network and collaborate on women's issues in the workplace. -------------- Best Practices -------------- ¶7. (U) In general, we found that events that a) targeted a specific gap area for women's issues here in-country, and b) brought together participants from a variety of fields and sectors, were the most successful. In particular, we found that initiatives that brought together entities not naturally inclined to work together or see eye-to-eye all the time--such as Greek law enforcement and NGOs for TIP victims, or Roma women's organizations and government officials--provided valuable opportunities for dialogue and coalition-building. ¶8. (U) One key factor to success in tackling women's issues as disparate as trafficking in persons, Roma discrimination, and women's health issues, is the importance of patient and consistent relationship-building. With Roma women's groups, Consulate General Thessaloniki spent significant time and energy forging and maintaining relationships with women's organizations spread across far-flung Roma camps in northern Greece. Embassy Athens officials met anti-TIP NGOs over 25 times in 2009 and as a result enjoy a strong relationship of trust with NGO representatives across the board. These relationships, in turn, allow us to plan robust public awareness events and campaigns and facilitate our efforts to strengthen bridges between civil society and government. -------------- -------------- Women's Issues in Greece: Challenges and Opportunities -------------- -------------- ATHENS 00000018 006 OF 007 ¶9. (SBU) A change of government in October 2009 brought to power PASOK (Pan-Hellenic Socialist Movement),a party traditionally considered to be a strong advocate for women's rights and civil society initiatives. Embassy Athens and Consulate General Thessaloniki plan to harness this new momentum and political climate to tackle gap/challenge areas for women's issues in Greece. In general, we want to continue to take advantage of U.S. exchange programs for civil society representatives, as well as fully utilize public diplomacy resources for women's issues in our upcoming programming. The following are areas where we see specific gaps in women's rights in Greece, but also where we see opportunities for additional U.S. engagement and resources: -- Law Enforcement, Rape and Domestic Violence Cases: While women's rights activists report improvement in police procedures, counseling, and NGO referrals systems in rape and domestic abuse cases (particularly in urban areas) over the last decade, many police stations, especially smaller units in rural areas, lack personnel trained to handle such cases sensitively. We continue to receive reports of pressure on rape and domestic abuse victims not to report or press charges--pressure from both the police, as well as from Greek society at large. According to a 2006 academic study, approximately 4,500 rapes occurred in Greece, while during that year only 270--or 6 percent of the academic estimate--were reported to the police. The government estimates that only 6 to 10 percent of domestic violence cases are reported to the police. OPPORTUNITY: Training, exchange program resources, and/or an expert speaker program for government, academic, and civil society stakeholders on these issues would be invaluable. Many experts from local anti-trafficking organizations also specialize in domestic violence issues, and we plan to partner with them more closely on issues of domestic abuse. -- Thrace Muslim Minority Women and Shari'a Law: The government recognizes Shari'a (Islamic religious law) as the law regulating family and civic issues of the Muslim minority in Thrace. Members of the Muslim minority can choose whether to marry under Greek civil law or by a government-appointed mufti; in the latter case, their marriage is subject to Shari'a family law. Many NGOs and media reports characterized Shari'a law as discriminatory against women, especially in child custody, divorce, or inheritance cases, where women do not receive the equal consideration or benefits that men do. In the last two years, several women from the Muslim minority have appealed Shari'a decisions to Greek appeals courts and won their cases, but some members of the Muslim minority report strong social pressure to adhere to Shari'a family law and mufti decisions. OPPORTUNITY: Women's issues for the established Muslim minority in Thrace are of particular interest not only from a human rights perspective, but also because Greece is the only western country to have institutionalized Shari'a family law. Minority issues in Thrace are very sensitive politically, and we will engage carefully and more closely with Muslim women and women's rights organizations to facilitate exchange program candidates and opportunities for women's education. -- Muslim Migrant Women's Issues: Immigrant Muslim women are a completely separate population from the Muslim minority in Thrace, and face a different set of challenges. While the majority of recent migrants (many of them illegal) from Muslim-majority countries to Greece are men, an increasing number of families are coming to Greece. Refugee NGOs report anecdotally that Afghan and Iraqi women, in particular, are accompanying their husbands to Greece in increasing numbers. While Embassy Athens and Consulate General Thessaloniki have good relationships with immigrant associations, many of these organizations tend to be dominated by men. Reports from other western European countries experiencing similar immigration trends suggest that new Muslim women migrants face challenges in social integration, education, language learning, freedom to work, and in balancing religious/cultural traditions and the norms of their new host country. OPPORTUNITY: As Greece's Muslim migrant community is relatively new, we plan to coordinate more closely with other posts in Europe that have more longstanding Muslim communities to learn from their experiences with women's issues outreach. Embassy Athens has established new relationships with government agencies and NGOs working on migrant integration, and the new PASOK government is particularly active on this issue. We would particularly appreciate any resources or best practices from Washington or other posts on strategies to engage Muslim migrant women. ATHENS 00000018 007 OF 007 -- Law Enforcement Training on Identifying TIP Victims: Embassy Athens and Consulate General Thessaloniki have been actively involved in hosting and participating in anti-trafficking training for a variety of Greek government and civil society partners. U.S. agencies such as DHS/ICE regularly conduct training for Greek police on trafficking issues. However, Greece's front-line law enforcement corps, especially the Border Police and Coast Guard, continue to face challenges in properly identifying and processing potential women victims of sex trafficking. OPPORTUNITY: Mission Greece will be seeking additional law enforcement training related to TIP victim identification. The new, state-of-the-art police training center in Veria (Northern Greece) may provide opportunities to offer anti-trafficking training for law enforcement officers from throughout the southern Balkans. ¶10. (U) Points of Contact for Women's Issues in Mission Greece: David Muehlke, POL/Human Rights, U.S. Embassy Athens muehlkedv@state.gov +30-210-720-2551 Robert King, DPO, U.S. Consulate General Thessaloniki kingrd@state.gov +30-231-024-2905 McCarthy