Today is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. This day recognizes the massive levels of violence against women worldwide, the advances that women's human rights advocates have made over generations to counter this threat and the work that remains to be done.
Today is also the first day of the annual 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence. Every year since 1991, activists from across the globe have used this moment as an opportunity to organize, share strategies and take action to combat gender violence. Originating from the Center for Women's Global Leadership, over 2,000 organizations have taken part over the past nineteen years. The 16 Days of Activism will continue through December 10, Human Rights Day, recognizing the inextricable connection of gender violence as a human rights violation.
Earlier this month, we highlighted on our website that the UN Secretary General's campaign, titled UNiTE to End Violence Against Women, will be moving forward with a particular focus on Latin America and the Caribbean. Guatemala will serve as a focus point for the coming campaign activities, a fact that will come as no surprise to anyone familiar with the dramatic escalation in violence against women in that country. Today, MADRE Executive Director Vivian Stromberg released a statement on this, saying:
We at MADRE, an organization demanding women’s rights worldwide, are outraged and angered by the violence against women in Guatemala and the apparent lack of repercussions perpetrators of women’s violence face.
The fact that we must use terms such as femicide to describe the atrocities being committed points to the epidemic nature of this problem. Just in the first half of this year there have been 265 femicide cases, and this figure does not include the cases that go unrecorded. Women in Guatemala have for too long been ignored in both domestic and international justice processes. MADRE applauds the United Nations efforts in conjunction with the women of Guatemala to bring this historically invisible issue to light.
Here is also a great opportunity for you to take part in these days of activism: Take Back the Tech is posting an action every day for 16 days. Organized by the Association for Progressive Communications, Take Back the Tech spotlights the use of technology to raise awareness of gender violence and to combat it. Today, they invite us to post on Twitter, Facebook and our other communications networks and take a stand against gender violence. Keep checking back on their site for new actions in the coming days.
*Image credit: Take Back the Tech
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