Jakarta, 16 October 2020 – UN Women together with the Ministry of Women Empowerment and Child Protection (MOWECP) and the World Health Organization (WHO), with the support from the Government of Japan, is today launching a Comic and Illustration Competition highlighting experience of the COVID-19 pandemic from the perspective of women and girls in Indonesia. Harnessing art as a powerful tool to channel expression, raise awareness and to stimulate discussion in society, the competition will provide a unique platform to Indonesians to picture how women’s lives have been impacted during the pandemic. Participants will also have the opportunity to champion positive gender and social norm to change to promote equal sharing of care and domestic works, or demonstrate how women are playing a central role in preventing the spread of COVID-19 and keeping their families and communities safe and resilient.
Until 15 November 2020, every Indonesian national is invited to submit an original comic or illustration reflecting the theme of women and COVID-19. The competition will be divided into two categories: Category I for age 15-24 years and Category II for age 25 and above.
Around the world, the pandemic has disproportionately affected women and girls. Women are losing their livelihoods because they are overrepresented in sectors and jobs hardest hit by COVID-19. Many are burdened with increased household and unpaid care duties because of the school closures, employment changes and movement and service disruptions. Moreover, the pandemic has also exacerbated various forms of gender-based violence, including violence online and within the home.
Despite these challenges, we find women on the front lines everywhere, as healthcare workers, first response services, family managers, community leaders, and more. Women are also playing an important role in the communities where they share information about the virus, how it spreads, and take up COVID-19 prevention roles.
“Protecting women’s rights is not only beneficial for women, but also for the family, community they serve, and the country. The Ministry is committed to safeguarding women and children rights and wellbeing, especially during these challenging times. We are working jointly to ensure that women and girls are at the heart of the nation’s COVID-19 response. This includes our collaboration with UN Women and WHO for the comic and illustration competition to highlight the importance of gender equality including in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. We urge Indonesian art enthusiasts to participate in the competition to inform a more effective COVID-19 response that conveys the needs of women and girls,” said Ratna Susianawati, Spokesperson for the Ministry of Women Empowerment and Child Protection.
“The COVID-19 pandemic continues to hit women hard. With 70% of the frontline healthcare workers being women assisting those most affected, it is only logical to ensure that their valuable perspectives, experiences and leadership in the COVID-19 response and recovery is fully utilized and that they participate in critical decision-making in order to build back better,” said Jamshed Kazi, UN Women Indonesia Representative and Liaison to ASEAN. “This competition is a chance for Indonesian to capture the issues faced by women and girls in Indonesia up until today and illustrate the change we like to see.”
“Women have always had important roles in health emergencies. During the COVID-19 pandemic, they make up the majority of healthcare workers at the frontline of the response. As knowledge ambassadors for their family and community, they help spread and endorse important and accurate health messages. This competition is a good and creative opportunity to trigger discussion of women as part of the solution in this pandemic, celebrate the vital contributions they make and to advocate for gender equality,” said Dr. N. Paranietharan, WHO Representative to Indonesia.
The competition winners will be selected by a panel of judges, with 10 finalists from each category also competing for the People’s Favourite Award, chosen through a public voting on social media. The winners will be announced in December 2020 in a virtual award ceremony.
More information about the competition, and how to enter, can be found at: www.who.int/indonesia/news/events/detail/2020/10/15/default-calendar/women-and-covid-19-comic-and-illustration-competition
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About UN Women
UN Women is the United Nations organization dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. A global champion for women and girls, the organization was established in 2010 to accelerate progress on women’s rights worldwide. UN Women’s efforts are based on the fundamental belief that every woman has the right to live a life free from violence, poverty, and discrimination, and that gender equality is a prerequisite to achieving global development.
About WHO
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, across six regions and from more than 150 offices, to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and wellbeing. #HealthforAll
Media contact:
UN Women : Radhiska Anggiana, Advocacy and Communication Officer, radhiska.anggiana@unwomen.org
MOWECP : Irma, kerjasama@kemenpppa.go.id
WHO : Communication Team, seinocomm@who.int