{{Short description|Vanuatuan women's rights activist (born 1950)}} {{Infobox person | name = Merilyn Tahi | image = AusAID.jpg | caption = Coordinator, Vanuatu Women's Centre. The centre provides legal support, counselling, and temporary shelter for women who have been abused and carries out advocacy and awareness raising. Vanuatu 2009 | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1950|06|26}} | birth_place = Ambae | citizenship = Vanuatu | employer = Vanuatu Women's Centre | awards = Commonwealth Point of Light }}
'''Merilyn Tahi''' (born 26 June 1950) is a campaigner against domestic violence from Vanuatu, who co-founded Vanuatu Women's Centre and was the first woman from the country to become a municipal councillor. She was recognised as the fortieth Commonwealth Point of Light in 2018.
== Early life and education == Tahi was born on 26 June 1950 on Ambae.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|last=Matas|first=Tatavola|title=Winner of the Australian High Commission 2020 International Women's Day 40th Anniversary Gender Equality Advocate Award|url=https://vanuatu.embassy.gov.au/files/pvla/Merilyn%20Tahi%20winner%20of%20the%20Australian%20~%20Women%20s%20Day%2040th%20anniversary%20Gender%20Equality%20Advocate%20Award.pdf|website=Australian Embassy of Vanuatu}}</ref> The eldest of seven siblings, her parents worked for the Anglican Mission on the island.<ref name=":0" /> She was one of the first students to attend Malapoa College, where she studied from 1966-70, coerced into leaving the school early to marry.<ref name=":0" /> She worked for the Vanuatu government for twenty years, before and after independence.<ref name=":0" /> In 2003 she graduated from Revans University with a BA in Management.<ref name=":0" />
== Women's rights == In 1975 she was elected Vanuatu's first woman to be a municipal councillor.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=The Australian High Commission recognises three outstanding women – Vila Times|url=https://www.vilatimes.com/2020/03/04/the-australian-high-commission-recognises-three-outstanding-women/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200924181641/http://www.vilatimes.com/2020/03/04/the-australian-high-commission-recognises-three-outstanding-women/|url-status=usurped|archive-date=September 24, 2020|access-date=2021-02-17|language=en-US}}</ref> In the 1980s she volunteered of several committees relating to women's issues, as well as the operation of non-governmental organisations in Vanuatu.<ref name=":0" />
In 1992 Tahi co-founded the Vanuatu Women's Centre, which was created to support survivors of domestic violence.<ref name=":0" /> In the 1990s gender equality was not a priority for the government and it took courage to hold them to account by establishing the VWC.<ref name=":0" /> Women face many barriers to accessing land in the country and in 2004 Tahi used her personal experience to draw attention to homelessness that many Pacific women face.<ref name=":2">{{Citation|last=Naupa|first=Anna|title=Making the Invisible Seen: Putting Women's Rights on Vanuatu's Land Reform Agenda|date=2017-03-22|url=http://press-files.anu.edu.au/downloads/press/n2414/pdf/ch10.pdf|work=Kastom, property and ideology|pages=305–326|editor-last=McDonnell|editor-first=Siobhan|edition=1st|publisher=ANU Press|doi=10.22459/kpi.03.2017.10|isbn=978-1-76046-105-8|access-date=2021-02-17|editor2-last=Allen|editor2-first=Matthew|editor3-last=Filer|editor3-first=Colin|doi-access=free}}</ref> At a regional meeting she recalled how after her death of her husband in 1997, she was thrown out of her matrimonial house.<ref name=":2" /> She advocates for home-grown initiatives which are culturally sensitive have the greatest impact on gender-based violence.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2018-12-12|title='Home-grown initiatives to end violence against women show better results'|url=https://www.pasifikarising.org/home-grown-initiatives-to-end-violence-against-women-show-better-results/|access-date=2021-02-17|website=Pasifika Rising|language=en}}</ref>
Tahi worked as an Election Observer for Nauru in 2016, alongside Anote Tong and Lorna Simon.<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=2016-07-01|title=Commonwealth election observers head to Nauru, led by former President of Kiribati|url=https://thecommonwealth.org/media/news/commonwealth-election-observers-head-nauru-led-former-president-kiribati|access-date=2021-02-17|website=The Commonwealth|language=en}}</ref>
During 2018, whilst Vanuatu celebrated thirty-six years of independence and government that it was one of the happiest countries in the world, Tahi challenged this narrative by openly discussing the high levels of domestic violence that women in the country were subjected to.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2016-08-04|title=Vanuatu justice system fails women|url=https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/programmes/datelinepacific/audio/201810921/vanuatu-justice-system-fails-women|access-date=2021-02-17|website=RNZ |language=en-nz}}</ref> In 2020 Tahi worked with the Vanuatu Women's Centre to mitigate the double impact of Cyclone Harold and COVID-19.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Across the Pacific, crisis centres respond to COVID-19 amid natural disasters|url=https://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2020/6/feature-pacific-crisis-centres-respond-to-covid-19-amid-natural-disasters|access-date=2021-02-17|website=UN Women|date=10 June 2020 |language=en}}</ref>
== Awards == thumb|6th Pacific Regional Meeting on Eliminatig Violence Against Women and Girls In 2018 Tahi was honoured as the 40th Commonwealth Point of Light, a series of award recognising the contributions of volunteers in the Commonwealth of Nations.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Tahi – A Point of Light for Vanuatu|url=https://pacificwomen.org/news/tahi-point-light-vanuatu/|access-date=2021-02-17|website=Pacific Women Shaping Pacific Development|language=en-US}}</ref> In her acceptance speech, Tahi stated that she was accepting it on behalf of the Vanuatu Women's Centre.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2018-03-28|title=Vanuatu|url=https://www.pointsoflight.gov.uk/vanuatu/|access-date=2021-02-17|website=Points of Light|language=en-GB}}</ref>
In 2020 the Australian High Commission recognised Tahi with the 40th Anniversary Gender Equality Advocate Award, a one-off award celebrating her lifetime's work toward gender equality.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web|last=Massing|first=Adorina|title=Celebrating Women Leaders|url=https://dailypost.vu/news/celebrating-women-leaders/article_48cf8de0-5e66-11ea-bb48-cb9acdf31750.html|access-date=2021-02-17|website=Vanuatu Daily Post|date=5 March 2020 |language=en}}</ref>
== References == <references />
== External links == * [https://www.pasifikarising.org/women-in-the-pacific-video/ Women in the Pacific] * Praxis Discussion Series: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySsYlzT8HyM Violence against Women]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Tahi, Merilyn}} Category:Living people Category:1950 births Category:Vanuatuan women's rights activists Category:Vanuatuan women activists Category:People from Penama Province