Powered By Blogger

Τετάρτη 24 Νοεμβρίου 2010

INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR THE ELIMINATION OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN



Women activists have marked November 25 as a day to fight violence against women,since 1981.On December 17, 1999 the United Nations General Assembly designed 25 November as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

Violence against women is identified as an outcome of the social structure and ideology of gender domination.Its very definition is problematic and political ,related to changes of women's place in male dominated society.Specific crimes against women, such as the outlawing of birth control and abortion,rape,witch hunting and wife battering,are grouped and analysed as originating in female subordination in the gender-specific arenas of reproduction, sexuality and nurturance.

Because of the sensitivity of the subject,violence is almost universally under-reported.Shame of reprisal, lack of information about legal rights,fear of confidence in,or fear of,the legal system and the legal costs involved make women reluctant to report incidens of violence.In some cases perpetrators conciously use physical abuse,sexual abuse and rape,psychological and emotional abuse as a mechanism for subordination.
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against women (CEDAW)adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly,is often described as an international bill of rights for women.Consisting of a preamble and 30 articles it defines what constitutes discrimination against women and sets up an agenda for national action to end such discrimination.

The theme for the day is"Commit.Act.Demand".We can end violence against women because a life free from violence is a basic human right.


Woman's Voice