Around one in four women in the UK experience violence in their lifetime, often at the hands of someone they know, trust and love. Calls for increased and sustained funding for the organisations working on the ground to end violence against women and girls are at the heart of this year’s 16 days of activism against gender-based abuse.
UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, at the UN’s official launch of the annual campaign, said governments need to step up their support of women’s movements and civil society groups. He announced to the attendees dressed in vibrant orange scarves – the colour the UN has chosen to mark the action we must take against violence – that it is vital to address what is a human rights violation, a health concern and a major obstacle to development.
A specific goal for the UN regarding gender equality includes a target to end all forms of violence against women, including trafficking, other forms of sexual violence and harmful practices.
Funding work against such violence is pivotal, as is overturning the deep-rooted inequality that is visible in every corner of the globe, such as the difference in the rights and opportunities of men and women, and reversing the attitudes and social norms that condone or normalize such behaviour.
When world leaders adopted the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015, they recognized that ending violence against women and girls is at the top of their list for encouraging worldwide social development. But the action that has followed from the respective governments has been minimal in terms of both supporting the organisations that are trying to enact change and engaging with the ones that have been doing so for years already.
From what we have seen throughout our endeavours, there exists an active community with the fervour to push forward laws to protect women, advance services to rebuild women’s lives and implement comprehensive prevention of violence. During our #16Days of activism, we’re hoping to increase awareness of this issue, raise vital funds for our own work and support the UN initiative.
We must do all we can in these 16 Days to make the world aware of the problems that remain. Support us in any way you can – see how to get involved here.