(Monday, August 28, 2017) Attended by 180 people from 18 countries and over 60 shelter organizations in Asia and Europe, the Asian Conference of Women’s Shelters started in Taipei today. You can follow the proceeding on our live web-stream.

(L-R) Uma Shah, Sujana Ximenes, Reijke Kok, Bandana Rana, Ruby Wong, Najla Areeb, Chi Hui-Jung, Chang Hsiu-Yuan, Oyunbileg Baasanjav

The conference started with welcome speeches from Chi Hui-Jung, CEO of the Garden of Hope and Chairperson of ANWS, Bandana Rana, Chairperson of GNWS and CEDAW committee member, and Taiwanese government representatives.

Chi said it was time for the government to release more social housing to give survivors of violence more options during the post-crisis period. Bandana noted how GNWS, ANWS and other shelter networks had helped raise the visibility of shelters around the world. She also called for more data collection on shelter resources to effectively lobby governments.

The conference continues through August 28-29, with panel discussions on economic empowerment, networking, legal structures, and alternative forms of shelter services.

Links:

• Agenda
• Logistical information
• About the organizations
• About the speakers
• Presentations (coming soon)