The 16 Days against Gender-Based Violence campaign starts on November 25^th, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. The campaign will conclude on December 10^th, which is the International Day for Human Rights. This year also marks the 75^th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Statistics highlight why this campaign is necessary every single year. You may have heard before, that 1 in 3 women worldwide are affected by gender-based violence.

Think about it, 1 in 3.   The most common types of violence against women are intimate partner violence; sexual violence; femicide; human trafficking; female genital mutilation; child, early and forced marriage and cyber violence. The violence is present throughout the societies and no women or girls are immune regardless of their backgrounds.

When you now consider your family, your circle of friends, colleagues and neighbours, there are very likely survivors of violence against women around you. You may or may not be aware of their stories, but they are all among us. The risk for gender-based violence increases during humanitarian crisis or when the rights of women are restricted. That is the situation in Somalia, which is facing a humanitarian emergency and is a country under conflict.

Violence against women grows from inequality

There are so many misconceptions on why violence against women and girls occurs, but the reason is very simple. The root causes are gender inequality, the abuse of power and harmful norms. The good news is that these can be changed, if we all play our part and commit to the change. Some positive changes are taking place, but unfortunately the progress is very slow. Based on the latest study by UN Women, it will take us 286 more years until we reach gender equality. We have a long way to go, and we must keep pushing towards collectively reaching this goal.

The often-raised question is: What about the violence towards men? Men and boys can also be targeted by gender-based violence. However, women and girls are disproportionally affected, and this is why the focus is on women and girls in the 16 -Days campaign.

Violence against women is not an issue which women should discuss and debate. Our societies must come together as a whole to work and address the root causes.

During the upcoming 16 -Days, you will see posts not only from us, but from your government, other international organisations and civil society. Take the time to educate yourself, challenge others and most importantly make a commitment on how you will fight to end violence against women.

UNiTE! INVEST to PREVENT VIOLENCE against Women & Girls