As we have seen above, there are many organisations that are dedicated to helping women in Oceania and East Asia have healthy and safe lives. While their work is admirable, there is much more that could be done. For example, in the Solomon Islands I think that there should be more services that provide safe spaces for women who are facing abuse to go to, so that they are kept safe and out of harm's way. If there were more programs like this implemented, the rate of abuse would see a dramatic decline and women may feel more safe in seeking help for them and their children. Liike we have seen in South Korea, there is a stigma attached to women and this makes them feel ashamed and leads them to not seek the help that they desperately need. There is definitely a lot more that the government could do, and this will be discussed in my further reports.

 

Pressing issues also exist in East Asia. Places like Cambodia and South Korea suffer due to lack of financial investments in and a social stigma around mental health. Women around the world, including countries like South Korea, should feel that they are able to discuss what is happening to them with a trusted GP or Counsellor on a regular basis, without fear of judgement. One way that this could be achieved is by the Government setting up a dedicated program that offers a free and confidential service in addition to letting them know that it is not a shame to talk about and get help for mental health, that society cares about them and that they do not have to walk alone.

 

With regards to Cambodia, places like the village of Ratanakiri that are isolated and difficult to reach could benefit from services such as fly-in-fly-out medical personnel who are able to do health and wellbeing checks on the mothers and babies. In addition to this a training program could be put in place to ensure that new mothers are equipped with the tools to raise happy and healthy children as well as ensuring that as mothers they also have tools and resources that they can use to help them cope with problems such as postnatal depression.

 

With these tools in place, we will be one step closer to empowering women and girls to feel that they are valued, cared for and hold a privileged place in society.

 

In my future reports I will be examining these countries as well as other ones in the region in more detail to highlight other target areas and bring to light stories that otherwise would go unheard.