Mental health and psychosocial support for conflict-related sexual violence: principles and interventions
This is a summary of the report from a meeting on Responding to the psychosocial and mental health needs of sexual violence survivors in conflict-affected settings, organized by the World Health Organization (WHO), with United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/75179/WHO?sequence=1
On the issues: Women, Conflict and Peacebuilding
Presentation of some programs and funds USIP is taking care of. The institute strives to encourage more practice and scholarly work on women, and seeks to deepen understanding of the role of women in conflict and Peace
http://www.usip.org/publications/the-issues-women-conflict-and-peacebuilding
Truth commissions and gender: A South African case study
South Africa´s gendered past was never substantially addressed by the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) despite attempts by women groups to ensure its inclusion
https://www.ajol.info/index.php/ajcr/article/view/52172/40798
Gender and Torture Conference report
The conference considered successes in advocacy and litigation under the legal framework on torture: the recognition of certain forms of harm inflicted by both state and non-state actors including rape, domestic violence, female genital mutilation and denial of reproductive rights as torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, and the practical effect this recognition has had in actual cases to hold states to account for their failure to prevent such violations, and to provide a remedy to victims.
http://www.redress.org/downloads/publications/GenderandTortureConferenceReport-191011.pdf
Handbook for Coordinating Gender Based Violence interventions in humanitarian settings
This handbook is meant to be a quick-reference tool that provides practical guidance on leadership roles, key responsibilities and specific actions to be taken when establishing and maintaining a GBV coordination mechanism in an emergency. The handbook is based on the Inter-agency Standing Committee’s (IASC) Guidelines for Gender-based Violence Interventions in Humanitarian Settings (2005) and also takes into account lessons learned, good practices and emerging resources related to GBV coordination within the cluster approach/humanitarian reform process as well as relatively recent global initiatives on GBV in emergencies, such as UN Action.
https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/52146d634.pdf
Counselling Afghanistan Torture and Trauma Survivors
The development of services to meet the needs of Afghan refugees, most of whom are traumatised by years of war and internecine violence, requires a sophisticated blend of counselling strategies and culturally-informed pragmatism. This article outlines the approach that Mehraby has found most useful in dealing with this extraordinary client population (10 pages).
http://www.startts.org.au/media/Research-Doc-Counselling-Afghan-Survivors-of-TT.pdf
Not for Service – Experiences of injustice and despair in mental health care in Australia
This report captures the persisting, distressing and daily experiences of inadequate mental health and community care. It details personal stories of people with mental illness, and their families and carers. Such stories are often excluded from other national reports.The report also includes the strong views of doctors, nurses, psychologists and other professionals who provide mental health services in Australia.
Attacking the Root Causes of Torture Poverty, Inequality and Violence
OMCT established a full programme to focus on the socio-economic dimensions of torture, arbitrary detentions, summary executions, enforced disappearances and other forms of illtreatment. OMCT has also established specific programmes addressing violence against women, violence against children and violence against human rights defenders.
http://www.omct.org/files/interdisciplinary-study/attacking_the_root_causes_of_torture.pdf
Disorders of Extreme Stress: The Empirical Foundation of a Complex Adaptation to Trauma.
Children and adults exposed to chronic interpersonal trauma consistently demonstrate psychological disturbances that are not captured in the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnosis.found that victims of prolonged interpersonal trauma, particularly trauma early in the life cycle, had a high incidence of problems with regulation of affect and impulses, memory and attention, self-perception, interpersonal relations, somatization, and systems of meaning. This raises important issues about the categorical versus the dimensional nature of posttraumatic stress, as well as the issue of comorbidity in PTSD.
https://complextrauma.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/CPTSD-2-Joseph-Spinazzola.pdf
Guidelines for prevention and response; Sexual and gender-based violence against refugees, returnees and internally displaced persons.
These Guidelines offer practical advice on how to design strategies and carry out activities aimed at preventing and responding to sexual and gender-based violence. They also contain information on basic health, legal, security and human rights issues relevant to those strategies and activities (168 pages).