Historical Background
Rifka Annisa, which means "Women's Friend" is a Non Governmental Organization established in August 26, 1993. Previously Rifka Annisa was well known as Rifka Annisa Women’s Crisis Center. From 20 May 2005 Rifka Annisa became an association.
This organization was established through the courage of several women
activist in Jogjakarta Indonesia, among others, Suwarni Angesti Rahayu, Sri Kusyuniati, Latifah Iskandar, Sitoresmi, and Desti Murdijana. These women activists wanted to provide support for women survivors of violence.
The idea to establish this organization emerged from a deep concern about the tendencies of patriarchal culture, which empowers men and weakens the position of women. As the result, women are becoming more and more vulnerable to abuse such as rape, sexual harassment, domestic violence, and so on.
Many women survivors of violence have come to Rifka Annisa since the beginning of their establishment.
In addition to providing services for women survivorS of violence (women’s crisis center), Rifka Annisa has recently also become a center for human resource development in the elimination of violence against women in Indonesia
Mission
To organize women (in particular) and community (in general) to eliminate violence against women, and creating a gender just society through the empowerment of abused women, including children, the elderly, and diffables; to increase community’s awareness and participation through critical education, and strengthening the network.
Goals
· Provide counseling service to the women and children survivor of violence
· Organize people in the community in order to be able to handle violence against women cases in their own community.
· Conduct a strategic movement to achieve a significant change in some policies whether at national level or provincial level.
· Strengthening a network with other service providers for women and children victims of violence and also with people in organizations.
· Strengthening internal and external capacity
· Economic empowering for survivor
Services
As a women’s crisis center and center for human resource development, Rifka Annisa provides the following services:
· Counseling
and psychological consultation that can be carried out in several ways:
face-to-face, hotline phone number, mail, and home visits for the
survivor.
· Legal assistance, which covers legal consultations and assistance throughout legal prosecution if the survivor chooses to bring their case to court.
· Shelter house for survivors who feel threatened, or do not get support from their family and community.
· Outreach
This program is usually known as proactive action and is a method which
can be used by a counselor to do the counseling process for the
survivor.
· Counseling for men. Since 1997 Rifka Annisa has considered men as potential counterparts in eliminating violence against women. Rifka Annisa invites men to get involved in the work of eliminating violence against women. This program is called the “Men Involvement program”. In term of rising gender awareness among men Rifka Annisa Published a Book on “Being a Gender Sensitive Husband”. As a follow up of men involvement program, Rifka Annisa has started to provide services for men (abusive partner) since 2006. This service was established based on the data that 90% of women who are abused by their partner return to their partner (abuser) and there is not any treatment for the abusive partner.
· Capacity building for external partner. This service is carried out through several ways such as conducting training program whether regular or non-regular training, conducting internship program and short courses.
· Consultancy services for various project such as assessment, research, evaluation or capacity building. Rifka Annisa has a group of experts in various fields or issues especially gender, women and child issues, violence against women, advocacy and community organizing. Through this service Rifka annisa is able to share expertise with other organizations and communities.
Programs
As well as providing services for women and children survivors of violence and providing capacity building services for external counterpart, Rifka Annisa also run programs in term of advocacy about the violence against women issue in Indonesia. The programs that are run by Rifka Annisa are:
· Campaigns on anti violence against women through various media. Among others, publishing books, photo exhibition on violence against women, producing short film on Violence against women, conducting movie screening and discussion and story telling for children on anti violence against women and children.
· Establishing integrated response for women survivors of violence by involving multi sectors or stakeholders such as hospital or health care providers, the police department, legal aid institutions and other social support institutions.
· Initiating community based crisis centers through a community organizing strategy. This program aims to build community independence to provide services for women and children survivor of violence. This program also aims to strengthen the capacity of the community to become actively involved in the anti violence against women movement.
· Persuading gender responsive policy at local level. Regarding this program by 2006 Rifka Annisa has already achieved significant change in local policy. The Initiative of establishing integrated response on handling women and children survivor of violence has been adopted by local authorities.
· Conducting research on violence against women and conducting various training such as gender sensitivity training, gender sensitive counseling training, etc.
· Organizing Business Development Services, including economic empowering for survivor within types training and business support, scholarship program for children who has been subject of domestic violence, providing autonomy fund rising for autonomy financial.
