ISLAMABAD: Oxfam in Pakistan on Tuesday launched a digital campaign to raise support against domestic violence, themed ‘Domestic Violence Hurts Us All’ to mark 16 Days of Activism.
Gender inequality is both the cause and the consequence of violence against women and girls, and the campaign aims to address one of the most prolific human rights violations. A third of women will experience violence at some point in their life. Violence against women and girls knows no boundaries of geography or culture – it is a global crisis.
The 16 days of activism campaign is an international campaign that lasts for 16 days between November 25th – International Day for Elimination of Violence against Women, and December 10th – Human Rights day. The campaign raises awareness about gender-based violence on local, national, and international levels. By speaking up to challenge the idea that domestic violence is a private issue, we can encourage victims to report, remind perpetrators of the consequences and ensure that bystanders take action.
Oxfam studies show that marginalized women, including poor women and girls, are the most vulnerable to violence. Speaking on the issue, Oxfam Country Director Mohammed Qazilbash said, “Despite recent successes in legislation aimed at protecting women against violence, millions of women continue to suffer in silence. In practice, laws often fail to protect women from the violence they experience inside the confines of their homes and at the hands of husbands and families,” he said.
Oxfam’s digital campaign aims to challenge the commonly held belief that that violence inside the home is a private matter and not a societal or public concern. This idea prevents victims and witnesses, including children, relatives, neighbours and others, from disclosing experiences of violence, promoting a culture of silence, allowing perpetrators to carry out violent acts with impunity. Oxfam is inviting supporters to join the campaign by using the hashtag domesticviolencehurtsusall, sharing the campaign messages, videos, photographs and social media posts.
In addition to the digital campaign, Oxfam in Pakistan will be organizing a public event on December 12 in which lawmakers, parliamentarians and civil society experts will discuss the current status of women protection laws. Oxfam will be supporting activities led by local partners Sindh Development Society (SDS) and Aurat Foundation for 16 Days of Activism across Punjab and Sindh thorough out the 16-day campaign.
Published in Daily Times, December 6th 2017.
