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Campaign

Actions

Campaign

No to Violence Against Women and Children

Date: Nov 25, 2015

#16 DaysofActivism

The 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children is an international awareness-raising campaign. It takes place every year from 25 November (International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women) to 10 December (International Human Rights Day).

South Africa adopted the campaign in 1998 as one of the intervention strategies towards creating a society free of violence. The campaign continues to raise awareness amongst South Africans about the negative impact of violence against women and children (VAW&C) on all members of the community.

The objectives of the 16 Days Campaign are to:

Attract all South Africans to be active participants in the fight to eradicate violence against women and children, hence the theme: Count me in.

Expand accountability beyond the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security (JCPS) cluster to include all government clusters and provinces.

Combine technology, social media, the arts, journalism, religion, culture and customs, business and activism to draw attention to the many ways violence against women and children affects the lives of all people in all communities around the world.

Ensure mass mobilization of all communities to promote collective responsibility in the fight to eradicate violence against women and children.

Encourage society to acknowledge that violence against women and children is NOT a government or criminal justice system problem, but a societal problem, and that failure to view it as such results in all efforts failing to eradicate this scourge in our communities.

What is violence against women and children?

Physical violence in the form of domestic violence, terrible violent crime such as murder, robbery, rape and assault.
Emotional violence and trauma at many levels caused by many factors. Women and children in their homes, at work, at schools, on our streets, in our communities suffer this form of violence for various reasons.
Another terrible blight of our democracy is the violence of poverty, starvation, humiliation and degradation, especially against women and children. Poverty, inequality and unemployment are conditions under which violence thrives.
What can you do?
Together, let us take actions to support the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children campaign.
Support the campaign by wearing the white ribbon during the 16-day period: A white ribbon is a symbol of peace and symbolises the commitment of the wearer to never commit or condone violence against women and children.
Encourage silent female victims to talk about abuse and ensure that they get help.
Report child abuse to the police.
Encourage children to report bully behaviour to school authorities.
Men and boys are encouraged to talk about abuse and actively discourage abusive behaviour.
Seek help if you are emotionally, physically or sexually abusive to your partner and/or children. Call the Stop Gender Based Violence helpline (0800 150 150).
Talk to friends, relatives and colleagues to take a stand against abuse of women and children.
Try and understand how your own attitudes and actions might perpetuate sexism and violence.
Spread the message on social media using #16Days2014
Participate in the various 16 Days of Activism events and activities taking place around the country over the period of the 16 days.
Speak out against woman and child abuse.