16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence

November 25 - December 10, 2005

 

 

 

Violence against women is traumatic to the body, mind, and spirit and can prevent women from being fully active participants at home and in the world.  This year’s 16 Days campaign theme, as a continuation from 2004, emphasizes the connections between women’s human rights, violence against women and women’s health, and the detrimental consequences violence against women has on the well-being of the world as a whole. 

 

Thousands of activists globally commemorated the 14th annual 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence campaign last year.  The 2004 16 Days International Calendar of Activities bears testimony to the depth and breadth of their work underscoring violence against women as a pervasive human rights violation, a public health crisis, and an obstacle to equality, development, security, and peace.  In 2005, the movement to end violence against women has seen further victories.  At Beijing +10 in March, the Beijing Platform for Action was unequivocally reaffirmed and United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan emphasized the critical importance of combating violence against girls and women to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.  In addition, activists worldwide have been working to ensure that gender concerns, including violence against women, are featured prominently in the outcome document of the 2005 World Summit this September.

 

There remain many opportunities in the coming year to continue this momentum, particularly with regard to the link between violence and women’s physical, sexual, reproductive, psychological and social health.  Research soon to be released, including a World Health Organization multi-country study on women’s health and domestic violence and a UN Secretary General’s worldwide study on violence against women called for by the UN General Assembly, will provide activists with new advocacy tools.  Several events through 2006, including the release of the Secretary General’s study at the GA next September, will place the spotlight squarely on governments to uphold commitments made to work toward eliminating violence against women.  NGOs are also exploring these links.  For instance, the Women Human Rights Defenders Campaign will host a consultation in December 2005 focusing on violations against women human rights defenders, many of whom face violence because of the work they do to promote women’s rights, especially sexual and reproductive rights. 

 

Addressing the connections between violence against women and the HIV/AIDS pandemic remains imperative.  Violence limits women’s ability to protect against infection and can compromise access to a range of critical health information and services, including testing and treatment.  This year, the theme of the UNAIDS World AIDS Campaign is “Stop AIDS.  Keep the Promise.”  The campaign demands governments keep their policy commitments related to HIV/AIDS.  World AIDS Day (1 December) falls during the 16 Days campaign, which provides an ideal opportunity to remind governments that in order to keep their promises on HIV/AIDS they need to fulfill commitments on violence against women as well.  Other international venues in the coming year, such as the five-year review of the UN General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS in mid-2006 and in August, the XVI International AIDS Conference in Toronto, Canada can be targets for focused advocacy on violence against women and HIV/AIDS.  16 Days activities in 2005 can link to and build on vibrant women’s leadership in these fields such as that offered by many NGO networks and organizations, as well as the UNAIDS Global Coalition on Women and AIDS, to call for increased public awareness, more comprehensive healthcare services, stronger national policies and greater government accountability to end violence against women and fight HIV/AIDS.

 

For the health of women: physically, psychologically, emotionally, socially, at home, at school, at work, at worship, in their communities and in their nations.  For the health of the world: its peoples, its cultures, its environments, in protecting human rights, in fostering sustainable development and creating peace:  NO MORE VIOLENCE. 

 

Look for more resources in the 2005 Take Action Kit, available in September!

 

Contact the Center for Women’s Global Leadership for a 2005 Take Action Kit:

160 Ryders Lane, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ 08901-8555 USA; Phone (1-732) 932-8782; Fax: (1-732) 932-1180;

E-mail: cwgl@igc.org; Or to access the kit online, go to: http://www.cwgl.rutgers.edu/16days/home.html

 

 

16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence

November 25 - December 10, 2005

 

 

 

Join the 16 Days movement!

Become part of an already existing student, community, national or international activity for the 16 Days or take action on your own.  Use past International Calendars of Activities (available online) or contact the Center for Women’s Global Leadership if you would like more information about activities in your area.  Submit your planned activity to us for posting to the 2005 International Calendar of Activities and become part of the growing global 16 Days movement. 

 

Request a Take Action Kit!

Contact the Center for Women’s Global Leadership to receive a free copy of the Take Action Kit for the 16 Days campaign.  The Take Action Kit will be available in September and includes:

 

• a current campaign announcement
• a campaign profile and a description of dates
• a list of participating organizations and countries
• a bibliography and resource list

·         a list of suggested actions

• supplemental information relevant to this year’s theme       

 

The entire contents of the Take Action Kit will also be posted online.

 

Join the 16 Days electronic discussion!

We invite you to join the 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence electronic discussion taking place in the form of a listserve.  The discussion allows activists to collaboratively develop themes and strategies for the annual 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence campaign.  In addition, it can be used to discuss how groups are raising awareness about gender-based violence as a human rights issue at the local, national, regional and international levels, to uncover and learn from the ways in which activists have strengthened local work around violence against women, to continually resurface the link between local and international work to end violence against women, to share and develop new and effective strategies, to show the solidarity of women around the world organizing against violence against women, and to help develop further tools to pressure governments to implement promises made to eliminate violence against women.  If you are interested in joining the discussion or if you have any questions, please contact the Center for Women’s Global Leadership at the address below.

 

Get Involved - On-line!

The Center will post information about the Campaign online at http://www.cwgl.rutgers.edu/16days/home.html.

 

Submit your materials!

Participants in the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence Campaign have been instrumental in bringing issues of violence against women to the forefront in local, national, regional and global arenas.  The strategies employed by groups and the activities organized during the 16 Days Campaign period continue to be unique and innovative.  The Center for Women’s Global Leadership asks that all participants of the 16 Days Campaign - past as well as present - send documentation of their events, i.e. posters, pictures, t-shirts, video footage, poems, songs, statements, reports, etc., to the Global Center for the campaign archives.  If you have photographs, documents, or other examples of your work that you can send in an electronic version, please do so and we will post it on the website.  Your submissions will also enable the Center to refer other individuals and organizations that are interested in your activities to you.  Please send your description of planned activities for the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence to the address below.

 

 

Center for Women’s Global Leadership

160 Ryders Lane, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ 08901-8555, USA

Phone (1-732) 932-8782  Fax: (1-732) 932-1180

E-mail: cwgl@igc.org