Mercy Global Concern - 2005

World Aids Day… December 1, 2005

The UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) said violence against women is both a cause and consequence of rising rates of HIV infection: a cause because rape and sexual assault pose a major risk factor for HIV transmission, and a consequence because HIV-positive status makes women more likely to be targeted for abuse.

“Violence against women is the most pervasive violation of human rights, occurring every day, in every country and every region, regardless of income or level of development,” UNIFEM Executive Director Noeleen Heyzer said, citing a UN World Health Organization (WHO) estimate that nearly one in four women will be raped, beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in her lifetime, sometimes with fatal consequences.

She called for three major actions to break “this vicious cycle” of violence: countries must pass and enforce laws to deter acts of violence against women and reduce the spread of HIV; women who have suffered abuse must speak out to break the culture of shame and stigma; and awareness must be raised on the links between violence against women and HIV/AIDS, especially by the media.

“Together we must prevent and punish violence against women,” UN Population Fund (UNFPA) Executive Director Thoraya Ahmed Obaid said. “Social norms and attitudes that condone discrimination and violence against women and girls can be changed. This is the first step, which requires awareness raising, behaviour change and social mobilization.”

She, too, called for strengthened legal protections as well as the
provision of health information and services.

Urging stronger efforts to fight violence against women, UN High
Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour also called for a change of
mindset.

“We urge States to challenge societal values that support discrimination
against women and legitimize violence against them, adopt specific
legislation addressing domestic violence and end impunity for crimes
committed against women,” she said in a message co-signed by the Special
Rapporteur of the UN Commission on Human Rights on violence against women,
its causes and consequences, Yakin Ertürk.

The first-ever WHO study on domestic violence, released yesterday, shows
that intimate partner violence is the most common form of violence in
women’s lives - much more so than assault or rape by strangers or
acquaintances. The study reports on the enormous toll physical and sexual
violence by husbands and partners has on the health and well-being of
women around the world and the extent to which partner violence is still
largely hidden.

“This study shows that women are more at risk from violence at home than
in the street and this has serious repercussions for women's health,” WHO
Director-General Lee Jong-wook said. “The study also shows how important
it is to shine a spotlight on domestic violence globally and treat it as a
major public health issue.”

The Women's Health and Domestic Violence Against Women study, based on
interviews with more than 24,000 women from rural and urban areas in 10
countries: Bangladesh, Brazil, Ethiopia, Japan, Namibia, Peru, Samoa,
Serbia and Montenegro, Thailand and Tanzania, calls for action by policy
makers and the public health sector, including integrating violence
prevention into a range of social programmes.