Gaining more praise and marginalising women’s voices 7/9

Although men have only recently been significantly involved in violence prevention, they gain more credit and receive more praise when they do this work (Pease 2008; Linder and Johnson 2015). This is particularly problematical when women have done most of the work in organising an event and men get most of the credit for being involved. It is apparent that in most of the local White Ribbon events, women...

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Excluding women 6/9

Although there is a place for men organising separately against men’s violence and all male groups can be sites of progressive personal and social change, such all-male groups need to be transparent and responsive to feminist concerns. When I first began running workshops with men and invited women as observers, I was criticised by many men in the violence prevention sector who argued that men needed a...

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Using traditional masculinity to challenge men’s violence against women 5/9

In the violence prevention field, the concepts of ‘real men’ not being violent and ‘being man enough’ to stand up against men’s violence have been used to engage men in anti-violence work. It has thus been a focus in some anti-violence campaigns to use traditional masculinity as a way of getting men involved. (Messner et al. 2015; Pease 2015; Salter 2016).  Although the aim is to redefine traditional...

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Depoliticising anti-violence work 4/9

One of the ongoing debates about violence prevention more generally and engaging men in this work specifically, is how explicitly feminist specific campaigns should be. The level of commitment to feminist analyses and the particular form of feminism adopted will shape the ways in which accountability is understood and operationalised. I have noted previously that one of the dangers of men’s increased involvement...

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Setting up a dichotomy between male allies and other men 3/9

Men often feel defensive or blamed when violence against women is addressed. Thus one of the tensions in violence prevention work that engages men is to ensure that men in general do not feel blamed for the violence that is perpetrated by some men against women (Piccigallo et al. 2012). Attempts to broaden the problem of men’s violence to include the responsibility of all men invites defensive responses...

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Why accountability is necessary 2/9

The concern about accountability arises from the potential harm that aspiring allies can cause. Thus it is necessary to revisit some of the dangers of engaging men in violence prevention. It is evident from research on social movements that the involvement of dominant group members can reproduce inequalities within movement organisations, such as in this case, violence prevention movements (Messner et al....

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Men as Allies in Preventing Violence against Women: Principles and Practices for Promoting Accountability 1/9

This paper explores the implications of the increasing role of men in violence prevention work for the women’s services sector. There are many different ways for men to work with women in violence against women prevention campaigns. The language of male-led campaigns, partners in violence prevention, bystanders, male champions, male allies, aspiring allies and solidarity activists are but a few of the...

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What actions are partner countries taking to end violence against women and girls?

There has been a growing momentum to eliminate and prevent all forms of violence against women and girls. Governments have adopted international and regional policy and legal agreements, such as the Beijing Platform for Action in 1995 and the Sustainable Development Goals. At least 119 countries have passed laws on domestic violence, 125 have laws on sexual harassment and 52 have laws on marital rape. The...

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What is needed to end and prevent violence against women and girls?

A comprehensive approach is needed, involving a wide range of stakeholders. It must cover the development of laws and policies, prevention of violence before it happens and access to essential services for survivors, as well as include data collection and research. Social mobilisation is also necessary to change social norms and behaviours, including men and boys, traditional and religious leaders, private...

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What has the EU achieved?

The EU is working together with UNFPA and UNICEF to fight Female genital mutilation/ cutting (FGM/C) and child marriage in 16 African countries. This is done through an innovative approach aimed at changing social norms and attitudes. The EU  provided support to organise large-scale community discussion sessions based on human rights, collective decision-making in communities and extended social networks,...

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What is the EU doing to end and prevent violence against women and girls?

The EU’s Gender Action Plan 2016-2020 has set an ambitious target to mainstream gender actions across 85% of all new EU initiatives by 2020. Progress is undeniable: 92% of all new initiatives adopted in area of the EU’s foreign policy and 60% of all new initiatives adopted in the EU’s International cooperation and development work have been marked as mainly or significantly aiming at promoting gender...

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What is the UN doing to end and prevent violence against women and girls?

UN entities continue to support the Member States of the UN to further advance the global legal and policy framework in addressing violence against women and girls. The UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women, which is managed UN Women on behalf of the UN System, provides support to innovative approaches to stem and prevent the pandemic of violence. Since its inception, the fund has provided grants...

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8 March: International Woman’s Day

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Are there reliable data to show the prevalence of violence against women and girls?

Understanding the extent, the nature, and the consequences of violence against women and girls is important to inform legislation, policies and programmes. To that end, the EU and UN Member States have made efforts to collect data and compile statistics related to the prevalence of different forms of violence against women and girls, especially domestic and intimate partner violence. The availability of...

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STANDING UP FOR THE EQUALITY IN INHERITANCE IN TUNISIA

TUNISIAN MARCH FOR EQUALITY IN INHERITANCE BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN We live in a country whose constitution guarantees total equality between men and women in all fields (articles 21 and 46) in addition to engaging the State in promoting women’s rights and enforcing such equality in practice. We live in a country who signed, ratified and officially removed all reservations to the International “Convention...

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What are the root causes of violence against women and girls?

Violence against women and girls is a complex issue that is rooted in gender inequality and discrimination, as well as unequal power relations between men and women which exist in varying degrees across all communities in the world. Low economic and social status of women increases the risk of violence that women face. Increasing economic independence is important to help survivors leave abusive relationships....

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What are the consequences of violence against women and girls?

The impact of violence ranges from immediate to long term physical, sexual and mental health consequences for women and girls, including death. It also has tremendous personal, societal and economic costs all around the globe: from greater health care and legal expenses to productivity losses. http://www.un.org/en/spotlight-initiative/assets/pdf/spotlight.faq.letter.02.p...

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