[women-rights] Women's GlobalNet #259: 2004 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence

IWTC Women's GlobalNet #259
Activities and Initiatives of Women Worldwide
By Vicki J. Semler

25 August 2004

16 DAYS OF ACTIVISM AGAINST GENDER VIOLENCE
November 25 - December 10, 2004

The 16 Days Campaign of Activism Against Gender Violence, now in its
fourteenth year, is an international campaign originating from the first
Women's Global Leadership Institute sponsored by the Center for Women's
Global Leadership in 1991. Participants chose the dates, November 25,
International Day Against Violence Against Women and December 10,
International Human Rights Day, in order to symbolically link violence
against women and human rights and to emphasize that such violence is a
violation of human rights. This sixteen-day period also highlights other
significant dates including December 1, which is World AIDS Day, and
December 6, which marks the Anniversary of the Montreal Massacre.

The 16 Days Campaign has been used as an organizing strategy by
individuals and groups around the world to call for the elimination of
all forms of violence against women by raising awareness about
gender-based violence as a human rights issue at the local, national,
regional and international levels, establishing a clear link between
local and international anti-violence work, providing a forum in which
organizers can develop and share strategies, demonstrating the
solidarity of women around the world organizing against gender-based
violence, and creating tools to pressure governments to implement
promises made to eliminate violence against women. Since 1991, the 16
Days Campaign has included the participation of over 1,700 organizations
in approximately 130 countries!

THEME FOR 2004:
FOR THE HEALTH OF WOMEN, FOR THE HEALTH OF THE WORLD:
NO MORE VIOLENCE

In order to emphasize the important intersection of violence against
women and women‚s health, and particularly that of violence against
women and the HIV/AIDS pandemic, the 2004 16 Days of Activism Against
Gender Violence theme is: For the Health of Women, For the Health of the
World: No More Violence.

The groundbreaking UN World Conference on Human Rights, held in Vienna
in 1993, formally recognized violence against women as a human rights
violation and called on governments and the United Nations to work
toward its elimination. Since 1993, many significant gains have been
made, including the increasing acknowledgment of gender-based violence
as a major global public health issue. According to the World Health
Organization, the consequences of abuse are profound, extending beyond
the health and happiness of individuals to affect the well-being of
entire communities. Beyond the immediate physical and emotional effects,
it has been shown that violence increases women's future risk of various
psychological, emotional, behavioral and physical ailments, and
negatively affects their ability to enjoy other human rights. Violence
inhibits women from reaching their full potential as active members of
their community, which impairs the well-being of society.

In 2005, the ten-year review of the Beijing Platform for Action which
resulted from the UN Fourth World Conference on Women (FWCW), Beijing
1995, and the five-year reviews of the Millennium Declaration (2000) and
the programme of action from the UN General Assembly Special Session on
HIV/AIDS (2000) present significant opportunities to highlight this
intersection.  For this year's 16 Days of Activism campaign,
participants are encouraged to plan events that emphasize the impact
that violence has on women's physical, reproductive, sexual, emotional
and social health.

Violence Against Women and HIV/AIDS
The 2004 16 Days of Activism theme is also intended to highlight the
intersection of violence against women and the HIV/AIDS pandemic.
Specific attention must be paid to the issue of gender-based violence in
order to effectively deal with the current HIV/AIDS crisis. Currently,
there is a growing body of research calling attention to the connection
between violence against women and HIV/AIDS. Violence, and the fear of
violence, hinders women's ability to prevent transmission of the virus
and compromises their access to a range of services, including testing
and treatment. Women also often experience further violence once they
are or are perceived to be infected.

A number of groups and initiatives are organizing around the issue of
violence against women and HIV/AIDS, including the Global Coalition on
Women and HIV/AIDS, the Amnesty International Stop Violence Against
Women Campaign, the Global Campaign for Microbicides, and the 2004
UNAIDS World AIDS Campaign, as well as countless organizations at the
grassroots level. When planning events for the 2004 16 Days of Activism
Campaign, which includes World AIDS Day (December 1), participants might
ask themselves: What are the gender dimensions of HIV/AIDS in my
community? What forms of violence do the women in my community face and
how does this violence affect their ability to adequately deal with
HIV/AIDS? What sort of research and activism is already happening around
this issue and how can I get involved?

Contact the Center for Women's Global Leadership at the address below
for more information and to access the 2004 Take Action Kit.

Sara Nordstrom, 16 Days Campaign Coordinator, Center for Women's Global
Leadership , 160 Ryders Lane, New Brunswick, NJ 08901. Tel: (1-732)
932-8782. Fax: (1-732) 932-1180. Web: <http://www.cwgl.rutgers.edu>.
Email: <cwgl@igc.org>

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