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16 Days Of Action For The Elimination Of Violence Against Women
The 16 Days of Action for the Elimination of Violence is an international campaign that was started by the Centre for Women's Global Leadership (CWGL) in 1991. The 16 Days runs from November 25th - International Day Against Violence Against Women to December 10th - International Human Rights Day to symbolically link violence against women and human rights and to emphasise that such violence is a violation of human rights.
'Wearing the white ribbon is about challenging the acceptability of violence by getting men involved, helping women to break the silence, and encouraging everyone to come together to build a better world for all.' (www.womankind.org.uk)
and is a symbol of hope for a world where women and children can live free from the fear of violence.
This 16 day period also highlights other significant dates, including December 1st, which is World AIDS Day, and December 6th, which marks the anniversary of the Montreal Massacre in 1989, when 14 women students were massacred by a lone gun-man opposed to the affirmative action policies promoted by feminists at the University of Montreal.
The 16 Days of Activism has been used as an organising strategy by women’s groups to call for the elimination of violence against women by:
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Raising awareness about gender based violence as a human rights issue at the local, national, regional and international levels.
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Strengthening local work around violence against women.
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Establishing a clear link between local and international work to end violence against women.
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Providing a forum in which organisers can develop and share effective strategies.
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Demonstrating the solidarity of women around the world organising against violence against women.
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Creating tools to pressure governments to implement promises made to eliminate violence against women.
The campaign has been gaining momentum over the years and in 2004 over 1,000 organisations in approximately 130 countries participated in the campaign!
