Monday November 4th 2013 9:00-18:00
Location: Duinse Polders in Blankenberge, Belgium
(This event occurs the day following the Midwifery Today Conference in Blankenberge, Belgium It is not necessary to register for the full Midwifery Today conference to register for the 1-day November 4 Conference.)
In 2010, the European Court of Human Rights declared that women have a human right to choose the circumstances in which they give birth. This event will explore the implications of that ruling for birth systems across Europe, and the spectrum of legal actions that have evoked their human rights in nations from the west to the east.
HRiC will convene consumers, birth professionals, & lawyers, from countries across Europe, who are engaged in lawsuits that evoke the 2010 case of Ternovszky v. Hungary. Conference participants will work toward the creation of a road map for political action capable of making human rights a reality for birthing women everywhere.
Program
9:00 Opening
Jan Tritten: Welcome from Midwifery Today
Hermine Hayes-Klein: Welcome from Human Rights in Childbirth
Key note Address:
Elizabeth Prochaska: Making Ternovszky Rights a Reality Across Europe
9:30 Panel: Ternovszky Defense
In the Ternovszky decision, the ECHR held that European states violate the rights of birthing women when they sanction birth professionals for supporting women in their birth choices/rights. This panel will consist of four midwives, from different European nations, who have faced legal sanction in association with out-of-hospital birth services. Each midwife will appear with her lawyer. Panelists will describe the individual and national circumstances giving rise to their case, and how the Ternovszky holding has been incorporated into the defense.
Moderator: Ernst van Bemmelen van Gent
Czech Republic v. Stromerova
Zuzana Stromerova
Zuzana Candigliota
Nursing and Midwifery Counsel v. Reed (England)
Rebecca Reed
Elizabeth Prochaska
Greece v. Avramidou
Irene Avramidou
Nursing and Midwifery Board v. Ann Ó Ceallaigh (Ann Kelly)
Ann Kelly
Krysia Lynch
Inspectie voor GezondheidsZorg v. Visser (Netherlands)
Rebekka Visser
Portugal v. Raposeira
Ana Raposeira
10:30 Break
11:00 Panel 2: Economics & Ethics
The implementation of the Ternovszky holding has the potential to cause a paradigm shift in maternity care systems across Europe. This panel will speak to the economic, financial, and ethical implications of the Ternovszky holding and of debates about women’s rights in childbirth. Speakers will unpack the financials of current obstetric maternity systems, assess the monopoly and antitrust issues underlying the relationship between midwifery and medicine, and illuminate the ethical assumptions at play in debates around safety, authority, and autonomy in childbirth.
Moderator: Simone Valk
Mylène Botbol-Baum, Philosopher and Bioethicist, Belgium
Elke Heckel, Independent Midwife, UK & Germany
Marian van Huis, Treasurer, International Confederation of Midwives
Kenneth Johnson, Epidemiologist, Canada
Elselijn Kingma, Philosopher and Bioethicist, UK and Netherlands
12:00 Panel: Ternovszky Offense
This panel will consist of mothers from across Europe who have brought lawsuits because their nation is failing to recognize and support their autonomy and authority in childbirth. Four mothers from different European nations will appear with their lawyers and describe the suits that they have brought, before both national courts and the ECHR, to claim rights ranging from the right to refuse an episiotomy, to the right to give birth in a birth center, to the right to give birth at home after a previous cesarean section. Each mother will describe her nation’s birth system and her personal motivation for bringing legal action. Lawyers will describe the incorporation of the Ternovszky holding into the complaint, and responses that these arguments have received.
Moderators: Anna Ternovszky and Stefania Kapronczay
Dubska v. Czech Republic
Sarka Dubska
Zuzana Candigliota
Teehan v. HSE and the Minister for Health (Ireland)
Aja Teehan
Rhuadhan MacAodhain
Torrisi v. Italy
Daniela Torrisi
Zenske Kruhy v. Department of Health of Slovak Republic
Iva Jancigova
Eden v. Department of Health of Sweden
Elin Eden
1:00 Lunch
2:00: “Developments in the Dutch Birth System since the Human Rights in Childbirth Conference in The Hague.” Joyce Hoek-Pula and Ernst van Bemmelen van Gent
2:30 Round-Tables:
These sessions will consist of hour-long small group discussions of 10-12 people. Each round table discussion will be led by an expert with experience and insight into the issue at stake. Attendees can choose which round tables they wish to join.
“Eastern Europe Strategy Session” (Two Hours, 2:30 – 4:30): Donal Kerry
SESSION 1: 2:30 – 3:30:
1. “Creating the Option for Physiological Breech Delivery”: Betty-Anne Daviss (Canada)
2. ”Human Rights in Medical Education”: Dr. Amali Lokugamage and Dr. Nicholas Rubashkin
3. ”Human Rights in Developing African Maternity Systems”: Jamilla Abdulle
4. ”Bringing Maternity System Stakeholders to the Table for Dialogue: Lessons from the Netherlands”: Claudia van Dijk and Simone Valk
5. ”Raising Consumer Awareness About Legal Rights in Childbirth“ Nadège Alexandre and Krista Dekens
6. ”The Right to Oxytocin” – Kerstin Uvnas-Moberg
7. ”Feminism and Birth Activism” Paola Hidalgo
3:30 – 4:30
1. ”Human Rights in Latin American Maternity Care”: Dr. Ricardo Herbert Jones and Aischa Schut
2. ”How to make a European campaign against obstetric violence” Jesusa Ricoy-Olariaga
3. “Economics and Financial Incentives in Maternity Care” : Jacob Hofdijk and Marian van Huis
4. ”HRiC: a Cross-Cultural Perspective” Robbie Davis-Floyd and Debra Pascali-Bonaro
5. ”Change Starts Within: Birth Into Being” Willow Proctor (Germany)
6. ”The Effect of Liability Insurance on Midwifery” Christine Demeyer and Amanda Garside
7. ””The Spectrum of Strategic Advocacy: Discussing Ways Lawyers and Activists Can Partner for Change” Indra Lusero and Cristen Pascucci
4:30 Break
4:50 Plenary Session
This time will be for reporting back from the round-table sessions on strategies, conclusions, and next steps.
5:45 Closing Session
Venue:
8370 Blankenberge Belgium
Duinse Polders
Ruzettelaan 195
See: www.duindepolders.be
Registration:
You can register for this event by using the form below. Send your questions to Conference@HumanRightsinChildbirth.com
Register Now:
Which payment method do you prefer?
Lodging
Limited rooms are available at the venue.
Price:
€60.00 per person per day, includes breakfast, hot lunch, cold dinner and overnight stay. Each room has a private bathroom with shower, washbasin and toilet. Cleaning service is not included; sheets and towels are changed weekly. There is an additional fee of €5.00 to have your bed made on arrival. Rooms and studios are available from 3:30 pm and check-out time is 9:30 am.
Booking:
You must mention that you are part of the Human Rights in Childbirth group when you book in order to get this price. Duinse Polders will send you the invoice within 14 days. You may book using the phone number or address below.
Venue:
Duinse Polders
Phone: +32 (050) 43 24 00
Address: Ruzettelaan 195
B-8370 Blankenberge
Belgium
info@duinsepolders.be
http://www.duinsepolders.be/nl/info/index.asp
How to reach Blankenberge
By air (http://www.brusselsairport.be/):
Belgium has one international airport (Brussels International Airport) and four regional airports (Antwerp-Deurne, Charleroi-Gosselies, Liège-Bierset and Ostend-Middelkerke). A train from Brussels International Airport to Blankenberge will be far less expensive than a taxi. The distance is approximately 120 km.
After arrival in Blankenberge, you can take the coast tram, following directions to Knokke. The tram is 1–2 km from the station.
By train (http://www.b-rail.be/main):
The ride from Brussels Airport (Zaventem) to Blankenberge lasts about 1.46 hour but you need to transfer in Brussels Midi. A one-way ticket (from Zaventem to Blankenberge) costs €14.
To reach Brussels Midi: From 6:00 am until nearly midnight, the Airport City Express links the airport with Brussels Midi (less than 20 minutes) four times per hour. The train station is located in the basement (Level -1) of the terminal building itself. Timetable information for the Airport City Express is available on the Belgian Railways (SNCB/NMBS) website; enter Zaventem Airport as the departure or destination station. International trains, including Thalys (Paris, Amsterdam and Köln) and urostar (London, Lille) bring you to Brussels Midi, where the same transfer is necessary. The train ride from Brussels Midi to Blankenberge takes approximately one hour and 13 minutes. This train leaves Brussels for Knokke-Blankenberge. In Bruges the train is separated into two parts: the front part goes to Knokke and the last carriages to Blankenberge. So, you need to sit in the last carriages. If any doubt, ask the ticket inspector.<
By coast tram (http://www.delijn.be/):
With the coast tram you can travel along the entire Belgian coast, from De Panne to Knokke. There is a tram every 20 minutes. The price depends on the number of “zones” you need to cross: one zone = €1; for one additional crossed zone = €0.40; maximum price = €3 (one-way ticket). You may also purchase “there and back” (round trip) tickets, to use on the same day.
By car:
Belgium has a highly developed motorway network, the densest in the world. High-capacity motorways are centered around Brussels or cut across the country. The motorways are supported by a network of expressways. Most of the motorways are part of European routes.
Some tips:
- Avoid Antwerpen, as the traffic may be jammed due to road maintenance.
- Use the A10-E40, following directions to Gent, Oostende, but leave the motorway at the traffic interchange
Brugge, exit 8, and follow the N31/E403 express way, following directions to Blankenberge. Be careful as there are speed limits.
- A city map can be found here: www.blankenberge.be/02/stratenplan.pdf
- Duinse Polders has a free large private parking lot. However, please be aware that the closer you come to the sea, the more vehicles are banned from the streets. Moreover there are many one-way streets. Parking meters must be used on Saturday, Sunday and public holidays from 9 am until 7 pm (€1 / h). During the week parking is free.
Other hotels in Blanckenberge
Moeder Lambic
Jules de Troozlaan 93,
Blankenberge 8370, Belgium
76 Euros a night
2 Blocks to conference
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Hotel Avenue
J de Troozlaan 42
Blankenberge B-8370 , Belgium
69 Euros a night
5 Blocks to conference.
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Eurohotel
Descampstraat 44
Blankenberge 8370, Belgium
68 Euros a night
5 Blocks to conference.
__________________
Hotel Malecot
Langestraat 91
Blankenberge B-8370, Belgium
68 Euros a Night
4 Blocks to conference
__________________
Hotel Vivaldi
Koning Leopold III-plein 8
Blankenberge 8370, Belgium
71 Euros a night
5 Blocks to conference
Conference Experiences
The Hague, 2012
- A conference organized by mothers and activists! Although I am grateful for all the amazing work of health professionals, I am convinced that the most important changes will always come from the parents and the activists; they are the most passionate ones and they will not give up; they are not afraid, they can think outside boxes and are continuously motivated to look for new ways by their children and their children’s memories.
- Networking with people, meeting similar and different cultures, putting things under new perspectives, seeing the known which gives a sense of recognition and safety, and the unexpected, which gives rise to new ideas.
- I loved the multidisciplinary approach! In the end of the conference I had to restrain myself from totally immersing myself into intensive study of philosophy, bioethics, law, midwifery, economics, sociology, music and dance, and about 10 languages, all at the same time.
- I cannot express enough my admiration to the organizational team. Apart from the professionals, I am amazed by the young students who put their time and efforts into something that is probably not yet their reality (parenthood!). Lucky you!!!
- Since I came back home from the conference, I have been working on collecting data, writing bilingual reports, speaking with people and posting about it, almost on a full-time basis. I consider it one of the most important events on the world’s social and political arena and a beginning of an era!
- It is very hard to summarize such an important event. I would suggest whoever is drawn to the subject, to get on the webinar now! I would also be happy to share my reports. I have made another document with reports written in different languages on the conference, which are also available. And I am looking forward to the publication of the three-volume book on the conference!
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A Reflection on the HRiC Eugene Conference, 2013
From Kathi Valeii…
The Summit
The Summit day consisted of three panels – midwives, birthing mothers, and lawyers – all coming around the singular topic of The Persecution of Midwives. Over the next couple of weeks, I am sure I will be coming back with much more to say, but for now, I wanted to give you a brief account of my gut reaction to the summit.
The thing that struck me the hardest, was the midwives’ experiences. The sheer number of them who have encountered persecution – for things ranging from bad outcomes to the simple fact that they were practicing midwifery. Charges ran the gamut from practicing medicine (or midwifery) without a license to child abuse to manslaughter to murder.
Emotion that fuels an activist
The emotion I daily wear on my sleeve surrounding this topic is anger. I feel anger when I read articles promoting a non-evidence based medical model of care; I feel anger when I read women’s stories of rights violations; I feel anger when I hear about yet another midwife who has been arrested and charged, criminally, for a bad outcome. The injustice of it all makes me mad as hell.
I learned years ago, that anger is nearly always a mask covering a deeper emotion. In my experiences, I have found this to be true. It takes some willingness and exploration – or in this case, a bitch slap with the raw emotion of humanity. I’ve cried over the state of birthing women’s rights plenty of times. But I’ll tell you, every time I’ve cried those tears in the past, it has been from sheer exasperation.
Not this time. Sitting in this room, hearing the stories of so many midwives was different. The first midwife to speak was my roommate for the summit. She had been arrested nearly one year to the day, and on her wrist, she wore the handcuff that her bondsman had given her and had been hanging on her back door ever since. She talked of the resultant fear that one lives in following an unexpected arrest – how she hung thick curtains on all of her windows; the way she feared someone looking in at her; the way she felt like she needed to hide in her own home. When she spoke, she wept.
Her sobs poured as though through a funnel to my soul. I caught my breath in loud gulps, my grief, like a heavy quilt, smothered my anger. I shut my computer, which had been opened for continuous note-taking during this summit, and just listened. I listened to ten stories from ten different midwives on the panel. All of their stories unique in a way, but all of them holding similar strands.