International Human Rights Days

In 1993, the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 48/104 for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, which was followed a few years later, in 1999, by the proclamation of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Since then, this date is celebrated annually on November 25.

According to the definition enshrined in the UN resolution, violence is understood as "any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life." According to UN Women data, about 736 million women worldwide have experienced physical and/or sexual violence to one degree or another. What is even more horrifying is that according to data for 2023, every 10 minutes a woman became a victim of intentional homicide, with the killers being their partners or family members.

In addition, women around the world face such forms of gender-based violence as forced and child marriage, human trafficking, psychological abuse, stalking, street harassment and female genital mutilation. Also, an increasing number of women are becoming victims of so-called technology-facilitated violence – according to the Institute of Development Studies, from 16 to 58 percent of women have been subjected to it, with millennials and representatives of Generation Z most often. This type of violence includes cyber harassment, hacking and stalking, misinformation and defamation, violent threats, unwanted images or sexually explicit content and others.

In some countries, authorities continue to restrict women's rights and pass laws that deprive them of the opportunity to manage their own lives and bodies, freely develop, receive an education and realize their potential in a career and other areas of life. We continue to witness such shocking examples of violence against women as the ban on education for girls and women in Afghanistan, the ban on abortion in several US states or the ban on the so-called "propaganda" of childlessness in Russia. At the same time, it is often the most vulnerable groups of women who suffer the most from violence and discrimination – underage girls, representatives of the LGBTQ+ community and indigenous peoples, as well as women living in conflict zones.

The International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women is intended to draw the attention of the public and authorities of different countries to the problems, discrimination and threats that women continue to face solely because of their gender. Violence against girls and women must be overcome in order to achieve peace, prosperity and sustainable development throughout the world.

Sources

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women 25 November

On International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, UN Women draws attention to femicides

FAQs: Afghan women three years after the Taliban takeover

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women

16 Days of Activism: #NoExcuse. UNiTE to End Violence against Women

Written by Olga Pynenkova for Yonsei GSIS Human Rights Hub