International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women
International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women has been celebrated every year on November 25 since a UN resolution was passed in 1999. It serves as a reminder that the human rights and fundamental freedoms of women all over the world are being restricted through violence - often by men in their immediate environment. This fact has again become painfully evident in the coronavirus pandemic.
The shadow pandemic
The coronavirus pandemic has made this day especially important, the deputy editor of Corriere della Sera, Barbara Stefanelli, comments:
“It is being called the 'shadow pandemic'. And the numbers are very clear: between March and May/June 2020 as the mobility curve dropped because all of Italy was in lockdown, the curve representing threats and violence against women rose steeply. What happened behind the doors closed by the virus? Men - husbands, partners, sometimes brothers - took out their lack of orientation and anger at the economic, social and psychological uncertainty on their wives, partners and sisters. ... All age groups have been affected, from young girls right through to older people whom we often forget.”
United we stand
Human rights activist and lawyer Violeta Assiego appeals to all women in eldiario.es:
“It is more necessary than ever that we fight against violence together. We don't have to love each other, we just have to realize that we are mutually dependent, that we are interconnected. ... As Judith Butler says in her latest book: 'Part of the violence that we know about is a reaction to the progress we have made, and that means that we need to move forward and accept that this is an ongoing struggle'. ... So let us make a hegemony of our diversity and differences, a collective power that puts an end to macho violence.”