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

Femicide (or feminicide) refers to gender-related killings. It is a universal problem, and the most brutal, visible, and extreme manifestation of the continuum of gender-based violence that women and girls endure.

Femicide is the ultimate proof that the systems and structures meant to protect women and girls are failing. The normalization of violence—from domestic abuse to harassment at work and in public spaces, and digital violence—leads to a cultural climate where women are being abused and intentionally killed, often with impunity.

Women and girls are at a greater risk of being killed at home—55 per cent of all female homicides were committed by intimate partners or family members in 2022, while only 12 per cent of all male homicides were perpetrated by family members.

Women are not safe outside their homes either. Women in the public eye, including those in politics, women human rights defenders and journalists are often targets of intentional acts of violence, both online and offline, with some leading to fatal outcomes and intentional killings.

Studies show that 16 to 58 per cent of women globally experience technology-facilitated gender-based violence, and younger women are especially affected, with Generation Z and Millennials the most affected.

Women in conflict, war, and humanitarian crisis are even more vulnerable—70 per cent of them experience gender-based violence.

What we know about femicide/feminicide is that often it is a culmination of repeated and escalating episodes of gender-based violence, which means it can be prevented if the early signs of violence are addressed effectively.

Without ending violence against women and girls, the world cannot reach the Sustainable Development Goals. This violence remains a major barrier towards gender equality, a commitment made at the Fourth World Conference on Women, with the adoption of the visionary Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action in 1995. The Beijing Platform for Action included specific measures that countries could take to end all forms of violence against women and girls.

#NoExcuse: Take action to stop violence against women

• End impunity by advocating for and establishing laws and policies that hold perpetrators accountable.
• Adopt, implement and fund National Action Plans to end violence against women and girls. These plans define policy and investment decisions that governments make.
• Invest in prevention and women’s rights organizations to ensure rights and access to essential services for survivors.

Everyone has a role to play to end the abuse and killing of women.

• Governments can pass and enforce laws and National Action Plans to prevent violence against women, to protect women and girls, and invest in women’s movements, prevention programmes and services that support survivors. The countries that have passed laws to stop domestic violence have on average lower rates of intimate partner violence (9.5 per cent compared to 16.1 per cent).
• Companies and institutions can implement policies that have zero tolerance towards all forms of violence against women and that actively support survivors. Now is the time to raise awareness and organize events using the colour orange and speak out, both online and offline, using #NoExcuse #16Days.
• Individuals can use their creativity to promote a message of zero tolerance to violence against women and girls, advocate with leaders to adopt and implement laws and policies, support and donate to local women’s organizations, and raise awareness using the #NoExcuse campaign materials in homes, schools, communities, and in digital spaces.