Tell us about your personal and professional life?
I was not an activist before I came to Ethiopia. You did not see me marching in the streets for women’s rights in Brazil. In my country the problem was not so striking as here. Of course I was conscious about being a woman. I come from a working class family and had to work since very young to obtain an education. About 16 years ago I was a single mother, and I had four teaching-jobs at the same time to care for my two sons, after a disastrous divorce.
I did not know much about Ethiopia before I came here. Like many people in the outside world, the information I had on this country was only related to famine. Other issues, like female genital mutilation were very strange for someone who came from a country where even men are not circumcised.

What is your impression of the situation of women in Ethiopia?
As the students started to explain their research work to me, I realized that I lacked more information, and I began to ask for more details about the society, history and culture. They lent me books, some gave me journals and I started to read the local newspapers. However, it was through their reports, essays and research projects that I faced the hidden side of Ethiopian society. The stories came like an avalanche. In one of the reports, a woman is beaten by her husband because she wanted to go to church. Another student told about her neighbor, who died after being severely beaten by the husband. Many of the students relate stories of wife beatings as something normal in Ethiopia. One day, during a class discussion, another student told how his sister had been killed by her husband because she came home late from the market. A blind young lady was offered a lift by a man who raped her. Now, she is HIV-positive. Another student returned from fieldwork in the rural areas, describing how baby girls and adult women are infibulated and re-infibulated. As a result of this their sexual life is followed by pain. The same study brings the case of women who were "opened" with a knife by the husband, during their “honeymoon” or as they went into labor, by the midwife. Among the problems resulting from this are: fistula, infection, and death. A different problem deals with women imprisoned, and their situation inside prison, together with the reasons behind their crimes reflect the low status of Ethiopian women and the violence they face since infancy on a daily bases.
Some stories were told as secrets, such as the cases of domestic violence faced by the students themselves, homosexuality, doubts about sexuality and the social taboos in Ethiopia.

What aspects of culture/religion can explain the situation in Ethiopia?
The statistics of domestic violence are alarming. Yet, the stories you hear or read are just the tip of the iceberg. Not every person is keen on telling about his or her private lives, not every victim goes to the police stations to denounce the abuser. What about the rest? What about the children that are spanked every day as part of the discipline?
Ethiopian gender issues are very much rooted in the fact that the country is still living under a patriarchal system. Poverty is also an important factor, it adds to the whole problem. The definition of patriarchy simply as a system where men dominate women is incomplete. A patriarchal society is based on hierarchy. The ones from above have economic, social and political power, dominating everyone at the bottom. However, the system reproduces itself as those that are below always find somebody that is lower to dominate. This domination is imposed by violence and humiliation. It is also an important factor in reproducing poverty and discrimination. At the bottom line of the pyramid of power, we find women and children, the poorer they are, the lower is their status and the more violence they face in their lives.
Everyone is "kicking down", while a man beats his wife, children are beaten up by both parents and other relatives; even maids are included in the domestic cycle of violence. These domestic workers are beaten, under nourished, under paid, and exposed to sexual violence as well. The idea of serfdom is a conception deeply rooted in some Ethiopian minds. That means not just that they can abuse others, but also that it is the right of their "superiors" to abuse them.
This is a contradiction, because Ethiopians are a very proud people. And they have good reasons for that. I can tell you that I found in Addis Ababa lots of generosity. People can literally go out of their way to help you, even if they don’t know you. My car broke down in one of the least safe streets of Addis and strangers helped me a lot, even keeping me company while I was waiting for mechanical help. I have seen many people helping those visually disabled to cross streets. People that you can see that are working class, giving away some money to street beggars. This is not a common sight elsewhere.
How can men be educated?
Your government has done a lot in creating ministries and government departments with emphasis on gender. Your laws are brilliant! And women are getting equal opportunities at top level. There are more than a hundred female members in your parliament, more than they have in the United States! And women ministers. You have radio and TV programs promoting the idea of gender equality and women’s rights. You have special sections in the newspapers dedicated to discuss the status of Ethiopian women and their rights. You even have a master’s degree course in Gender Studies, which is quite new in many countries. I think this is terrific!
I believe that the change in Ethiopia has already started. I sense that more and more people are willing to break the vicious cycle of poverty and violence that this country is in. A student of mine told me what she wanted for her girl children in the future: ‘They should get a good career, to become professionals, but they do not have to get married if they don’t want to.’ Another – describing the ideal man – said that ‘he should be gentle, and gender sensitive.’

To your mind, what needs to be done?
Ethiopian society is looking for something new. This country has been closed for so long, and right now, the future is very much present, but so is the past. But there will be a change. It happened in my country, in South America, where the "Macho-culture" was so strong. In the 1970s, there was a series of incidents in which adultery, divorce and marital disputes led to killings of women by their spouses, so called "honour killings". People decided to take action, to demand this to stop. We had TV shows specially designed for women, dealing with women’s issues, killing old myths and taboos. Women were told that they also had the right to enjoy sex, they were informed about their legal rights, they were told that they were allowed to be satisfied with their own looks, they did not have to be perfect! In 1985, we got women’s police stations, entirely staffed with women, but working in partnership with policemen, to deal with gender based violence - An experience that might be useful here in Ethiopia.
Money changes everything. Fighting domestic violence is a part of development. People will have access to more information and will be forced to change their attitudes. Ethiopia is opening many job opportunities, there are many NGO’s and projects, there is a boom in construction of hotels, restaurants, office buildings, and a demand for more services. We must not forget that most of the development projects have a gender focus. Men and women are learning about gender sensitive projects and companies in order to get better job-opportunities.
This development is also building a stronger middle class. They value education, watch films from abroad, they start to dream of another life, they imitate other cultures. They want something new or, as we say in Brazil, they “hunger for beauty” – which means that everybody wants to feel good, to be seen as a good/modern man or woman! Domestic violence is something people are ashamed of, in a country where you have so much to be proud of. Think about it, this is one of the few countries in the world where Christians and Muslims live together in peace! Moreover, many different ethnic groups share the land without war, respecting each other. In this regard, Ethiopia can teach tolerance to other nations.
Now is time to tell the abusers: "Stop it! You are hurting somebody, this is not right." There are a lot of people in this society planning for a better future! Lots of Ethiopians are coming back home to help their country’s development. Many people have given up better salaries and lives, to be here, because they believe that Ethiopia will change. In fact they are already changing. I see young women demanding respect and seeking professional jobs, I see young men looking for women as equal partners, instead of somebody to serve them. There are young people engaged in voluntary work in social projects. You can feel that they love their country, and they want it to be developed, with democracy and human rights for all.

Are you optimistic about the future of gender relations?
I must say that I came here as a teacher, but I am the one who has learned a lot here. In this past months I have come across many brave men and women who are building the new Ethiopia. They are from different fields, some are very young, and others are more mature. But they share this dream, and they work hard for it. In five years, we will see a different society, where people look at domestic violence as a strange thing from the past.