By Haruna Gimba
The UN Women has called for a galvanized global attention and action to end violence against women and girls, under the ‘Orange the World’ umbrella.
According to statement from the UN women, starting this week, a host of public events will draw attention to the pandemic that impacts one in three women worldwide.
From marches in Uganda, Serbia and Timor-Leste, to a public rally on motorbikes in Pakistan, people will take to the streets to say no to violence.
“Despite growing recognition that the pandemic of violence against women is a gross human rights violation and a serious obstacle to development, concrete efforts on preventing and ending violence against women and girls continue to be a low priority on the international development agenda, with inadequate funding.
“Achieving the ambitious targets set by the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, which emphasize ending violence against women and girls as a core objective, demands innovative solutions and the forging of new partnerships to mobilize funds from all available sources; including national governments, overseas development agencies, private sector, philanthropic bodies and individuals.”
Urging governments and international actors to back up agreed international commitments, this year’s “Orange the World” initiative, will focus on raising money to end violence against women and girls.
Activities will be carried out during the civil society-driven 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, which runs from 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, until 10 December, Human Rights Day.
“Women and girls who experience violence have their rights trampled on, they live in fear and pain, and in the worst cases they pay with their lives. Yet, still in many countries, the laws and services are inadequate, or unavailable, and the criminal justice system is remote, expensive and biased in favour of the male perpetrators”, said UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka.
“Change to these elements has a cost, yet the price of no change is unacceptable. Even relatively small-scale investments that are timely and well-targeted can bring enormous benefits to women and girls and to their wider communities,” she reiterated.
“Of all women who were victims of homicide globally in 2012, almost half were killed by intimate partners or family members. Not only does violence against women and girls have negative consequences for those who suffer it, but also their families, the community and society at large,” the statement said.
Available evidence shows the immense cost of violence against women and girls on many levels, with significant threats to the household’s economic welfare both in the short and longer term.
Health Reporters gathered that a recent study estimated that the cost of intimate-partner violence accounting in 2013 could be as high as 5.2 per cent of the global economy.
