Heroic Voices, by Clara

 

“God is the creator of life” Clemence Bideri, the head of Economic Empowerment program for Women for Women in Rwanda, explained with a mischievous smile, “but women… women are the nurturers of life.” I came to Rwanda with the expectation of seeing a significance placed on women higher up within society.  However, I was deeply skeptical about how this fact would relate to females in the more general Rwandan society.  The genocide gave women the ability to prove themselves in the process of rebuilding a country, but it also led to extreme brutality inflicted upon them.  Rape as a weapon of war was seen throughout the country, and the scars from that and other violence inflected upon women become deeply engrained.  Women easily become victims in places of post-conflict poverty, and Mrs. Bideri in no way ignored this reality.  One of the first statements she made to our group was that Women for Women strives to take women that are thought of, and think of themselves as victims, and empower them to a place of self-sufficiency.  The organization enables females to have a voice in a society that they can take pride in. Clemence Bideri led our group around the center, to the classrooms of women been educated on vocational trainings.  In one classroom, where a small group was learning about financial skills, a woman sat with her tiny baby.   And all of the sudden it hit me: how could I ever see this woman as a victim?  Yes, she could be struggling to provide for her family, and yes she could have had problems that I could not truly understand, but she had taken control of her life.  Even with her baby, she came to the center to provide for herself, and her family.  The way that that child looked her mother in her eyes, with so much love, really made me realize how strong this mother truly was.  She was in no way a victim.  She was a hero.  
It was not until I remembered seeing this women and her baby that I truly understood what Clemence Bideri said.  She believed so deeply in Rwandan women, and their standing in society. These women are entirely central, whether we always see it or not.  Towards the end of my time sitting with Mrs. Bideri, she told me the story of meeting a Congolese king.  She said that he had explained to her how he never made any judgment lightly, and that he always took at least one night to think over a decision.  When Mrs. Bideri asked why, the king responded that he always must ask his wife for advice first.  She explained that sometimes, women can find a way to have a voice through another, and through original ways.   Women for Women enables women to find this voice or significance in society.  Whether it is through joining the work-force, or bringing food home to her family.  For women in all places of Rwandan society, their influence over a quickly developing country, their significance, and their strength should never be undermined.  --Clara