November 25 has been marked as the International Day for Elimination of Violence against Women by women activists worldwide. This day is marked with the brutal assassination, in 1961, of the three Mirabal sisters who were political activists in the Dominican Republic. The Mirabal sisters were a symbol of resistance against the dictatorship in the Dominican Republic then. Since 1981 women's activists have celebrated this day as the International Day for Elimination of Violence against Women to gain momentum and solidarity in their struggle against violence against women.
The Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, 1993 asserts that violence against women is a manifestation of power relations and “is one of the crucial social mechanisms by which women are forced into a subordinate position compared with men.” Beijing Platform for Action (BPFA), which was adopted in 1995 reiterates the responsibility of all governments to “take integrated measures to prevent and eliminate violence against women.” The 189 nations that adopted the Platform for Action committed themselves to developing comprehensive programmes to end gender-based violence.
However, violence against women continues to be the reality of women’s lives even today. It is an endemic problem that knows no national boundaries, no cultural boundaries, no class or caste boundaries and no religious boundaries. Violence against women continues to be perpetrated by men, by women, by trans-national actors and by the state. It continues unabated in situations of armed conflict and in times of peace. It continues to takes place outside and inside the home.In identifying the remaining gaps and
challenges, the official communiqué of the tenth year review of BPFA for the Asia-Pacific, held in Bangkok in September this year, accepted this by noting “Several countries reported that violence against women in all its forms, including violence during internal strife and armed conflict and domestic violence, trafficking in women and girls, spousal abuse, harmful practices and sexual abuse, is a grave social problem.” The current climate of repression and criminalization of human rights work has increased violence against women and the threat of such violence. “Anti-terrorist legislation” is directly impacting on rights and liberties of people and is making the use of violence an acceptable culture, in the name of “national security.”
There has been a strong trend in Asia Pacific for States to adopt militarized responses to counter legitimate demands of the people. Within this context, women have become more vulnerable to violence, especially in militarized areas, and as displaced persons and asylum seekers. At the same time, in this era of neo-liberal economic globalization, private actors (including multinational and transnational corporations) are also becoming more unbridled in their war for profit, plundering natural resources and violating people’s rights in the process.
The other challenge comes from the notion that “culture trumps women's human rights”. Radhika Coomaraswamy has located "the greatest challenge to women's rights" in the doctrine of cultural relativism. Today, on 25 November 2004, the day for Eliminating Violence against Women, we are renewing our commitment to fight for our lives to be free from violence. We will continue to articulate zero tolerance to any form of violence, whether in the name of culture, by non-state actors or oppressively, by State actors. Today, we are calling for a world free of violence. We would like to commemorate all the women who have fought against this endemic violation of women’s human rights. We celebrate the survivors of violence against women and remember those who died as victims of VAW.
We call on women to join us in our struggle against violence and participate in our Campaigns. It will involve women and human rights activists in different fields and sectors, grassroots groups, NGOs, social movements and other members of the civil society. The Campaign will emphasize that women fighting for human rights are in fact human rights defenders and those working in human rights movement are gender-specific protection concerns. We need to be addressed under the slogan “Defending Women Defending Rights”.
Source: UNICEF
Biswajit
Member, ifop
The Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, 1993 asserts that violence against women is a manifestation of power relations and “is one of the crucial social mechanisms by which women are forced into a subordinate position compared with men.” Beijing Platform for Action (BPFA), which was adopted in 1995 reiterates the responsibility of all governments to “take integrated measures to prevent and eliminate violence against women.” The 189 nations that adopted the Platform for Action committed themselves to developing comprehensive programmes to end gender-based violence.
However, violence against women continues to be the reality of women’s lives even today. It is an endemic problem that knows no national boundaries, no cultural boundaries, no class or caste boundaries and no religious boundaries. Violence against women continues to be perpetrated by men, by women, by trans-national actors and by the state. It continues unabated in situations of armed conflict and in times of peace. It continues to takes place outside and inside the home.In identifying the remaining gaps and
challenges, the official communiqué of the tenth year review of BPFA for the Asia-Pacific, held in Bangkok in September this year, accepted this by noting “Several countries reported that violence against women in all its forms, including violence during internal strife and armed conflict and domestic violence, trafficking in women and girls, spousal abuse, harmful practices and sexual abuse, is a grave social problem.” The current climate of repression and criminalization of human rights work has increased violence against women and the threat of such violence. “Anti-terrorist legislation” is directly impacting on rights and liberties of people and is making the use of violence an acceptable culture, in the name of “national security.”There has been a strong trend in Asia Pacific for States to adopt militarized responses to counter legitimate demands of the people. Within this context, women have become more vulnerable to violence, especially in militarized areas, and as displaced persons and asylum seekers. At the same time, in this era of neo-liberal economic globalization, private actors (including multinational and transnational corporations) are also becoming more unbridled in their war for profit, plundering natural resources and violating people’s rights in the process.
The other challenge comes from the notion that “culture trumps women's human rights”. Radhika Coomaraswamy has located "the greatest challenge to women's rights" in the doctrine of cultural relativism. Today, on 25 November 2004, the day for Eliminating Violence against Women, we are renewing our commitment to fight for our lives to be free from violence. We will continue to articulate zero tolerance to any form of violence, whether in the name of culture, by non-state actors or oppressively, by State actors. Today, we are calling for a world free of violence. We would like to commemorate all the women who have fought against this endemic violation of women’s human rights. We celebrate the survivors of violence against women and remember those who died as victims of VAW.
We call on women to join us in our struggle against violence and participate in our Campaigns. It will involve women and human rights activists in different fields and sectors, grassroots groups, NGOs, social movements and other members of the civil society. The Campaign will emphasize that women fighting for human rights are in fact human rights defenders and those working in human rights movement are gender-specific protection concerns. We need to be addressed under the slogan “Defending Women Defending Rights”.
Source: UNICEF
Biswajit
Member, ifop
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