30 th of May, 2008

"Harmony" hit by tropical storm

Just one day after setting sail for Ecuador the ship was caught in a severe storm and stranded ashore. Fortunately the crew Chiel and Dolf survived and are unharmed.
It is still unknown what the damage to the ship is but it is almost sure it will not be able to arrive in Ecuador for the planned campaign.

Story of the crewmembers

I never thought that that would have happened to me at this old age, a shipwreck!. The weather was not very good the last weeks. If there was any wind it came from the South, which is normal this time of year according to the people here. There is a constant development of heavy rainfall, sometimes more than fifteen showers a day! They are accompanied by string winds in which it is impossible to sail. This is also what happened during our fist day at sea. In between the showers there is no wind at all but the sea is very rough and difficult to motor against the waves.
Yesterday night the shower suddenly developed in a heavy storm. It was hellish! The ships cover blew in pieces. We were 30 miles out of the coats and the wind blow us back in the Golf of Nicoya. There we tried to find shelter in a small bay but is was difficult we did not see anything in the dark and the heavy rainfall. And it went wrong. Happily we ended on a beach and not on the rocks. We are both ok except for a bruised rib and a cut in my too. Tomorrow we will try to find help to get the Harmony back in the water. Than we will return to Puntarenas. "

Chiel an Dolf

  • ALMA in newspaper 2

    ALMA in newspaper 2

  • How can I do an abortion?

    The best and safest way a woman can do an abortion herself until the 9th week of pregnancy is with the use of two medicines called Mifepristone (also known as the abortion pill, RU 486, Mifegyn, Mifeprex), and Misoprostol (also known as Cytotec, Arthrotec, Oxaprost , Cyprostol, Mibetec, Prostokos or Misotrol).
    A medical abortion done this way has a success rate of more than 97%. If you live in a country where there is no access to safe abortion services and you would like to obtain a medical abortion with Mifepristone and Misoprostol, please go to Women on Web. This is a online medical abortion help service that refers to a doctor who can provide you with a medical abortion.
    A woman can also do an abortion herself until the 9th week of pregnancy with only the use of Misoprostol.

  • october 16 th, 2008: 

    Wrestling on the water

    After the ship arrived, two small boats tried to pull it away from the quay. The women on shore took the other ropes and pulled as hard as they could. But unfortunately the engines of the small boat had more horsepower than the women.
    After a short struggle, the small boat withdrew and the Women on waves ship could dock again.
    Women's right to autonomy has triumphed!!

  • Diary: 

    Ecuador Diary

    June 14 th 2008, Women on Waves arrived in Ecuador. Here is a day by day account of the campaign, the action, the activists, the progress of the hotline, the reactions on the local level to this initiative and the personal impressions of the people involved.

  • Spain, October 2008

    Women on Waves has visited Spain from October 16 till 21 at the invitation of 33 Spanish organisations (please click here for list) concerned with a better abortion law.

    If you need help with abortion in Spain now, click here

  • Abortion on our ship

    You can make an appointment with us by telephone, email or by visiting the ship. We will inform you about when and where to board the ship. You will be treated according to Dutch professional medical standards, which include full confidentiality about counselling and/or treatment. Here you can read more about counselling, the treatment and what to expect afterwards.

  • The Portuguese Diary

    In this day-to-day diary, read what happened during the Women on Waves campaign in Portugal.

  • Media Portugal

    The best way to get an impression of the discussion in Portuguese society is to look at the overwhealming press coverage. From august 23 on, we have collected more than 700 newspaper articles. Next to the continuous TV coverage on all channels public and commercial. It shows how our trip has helped to put legal abortion on the agenda again in Portugal.

  • BBC Correspondent

    Link More about the BBC documentary "Abortionship" from the Poland campaign]