RSS endorses UN’s Orange the World Campaign, Datta Hosabale says “Eliminating violence against women should be everyone’s Dharma”

1. Background:

The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence is an international campaign which takes place each year and runs from 25 November (International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day), also encompassing other important key dates. Widely known as the ‘16 Days Campaign’, it is used as an organizing strategy by individuals and organizations around the world to call for the prevention and elimination of violence against women and girls.

It was originated by the first Women’s Global Leadership Institute in 1991 and is coordinated by the Center for Women’s Global Leadership. In support of this civil society initiative, each year, the United Nations Secretary-General’s campaign UNiTE to End Violence against Women calls for global action to increase worldwide awareness and create opportunities for discussion about challenges and solutions. In 2014, the UNiTE campaign called on governments, UN entities, civil society organizations and individuals across the world to ‘orange their neighbourhoods’ to raise public awareness about the issue of violence against women and girls. As one of the official colours of the UNiTE campaign symbolizing a brighter future and a world free from violence against women and girls, the colour orange was once again a uniting theme throughout all events. The initiative called on all people in all parts of world to take action in their communities, play their part and stand up against violence against women and girls.

2. 2015 Call to Action:

“Orange the World: End Violence against Women and Girls” This year is a critical juncture for global efforts to prevent and end violence against women and girls. It marks the 20th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (BDPfA), the most progressive blueprint ever for advancing women’s rights. Also, as a new global development framework, the Sustainable Development Goals, comes into force in September, now is a crucial time to advocate to ensure that violence against women and girls is high on political and public agendas, prominently placed within the new global development framework, and prioritized in its implementation.

In 1995, violence against women was highlighted as one of twelve critical areas of concern in the BDPfA but the UN Secretary-General’s report on Beijing Implementation presented twenty years later and relevant national reviews show that despite progress, levels of violence against women and girls remain unacceptably high worldwide. Slow and uneven implementation of national and legal frameworks, the insufficient attention paid to the prevention of the occurrence of violence, and persistent discrimination, gender inequality, discriminatory norms and gender stereotypes remain major obstacles to eliminating violence against women and girls.

3. Campaign outreach ideas:

Last year, as part of the initiative ‘Orange Your Neighbourhood: End Violence against Women’, ‘orange’ activities were organized in more than 70 countries around the world and more than 100 million people were reached through social media sparking a global conversation, new commitments and initiatives. To raise global awareness, we oranged iconic buildings around the world including the Empire State Building and the United Nations Headquarters Building in New York City, the administration building of the Panama Canal and the Sphinx and Pyramids at Giza in Egypt. This year, we want the initiative to be even bigger and much, much brighter, bringing the message of zero tolerance for violence against women and girls to new communities, spaces and audiences. JOIN US – keep the world orange throughout the 16 Days! Please find below some ideas and guidance to assist your planning: 1. Engage your government!

•  Reach out to governmental leaders to join you in making possible the lighting and oranging of iconic buildings in your communities, town and cities.
• Encourage your government to orange its various departments and embassies around the world.  Invite parliamentarians to organize a public discussion and issue messages to mark the occasion.
• Invite government representatives to show their support for the campaign by wearing something orange every day during the 16 Days of Activism.
• Find out what activities your government is planning for the 16 Days of Activism and use this as an opportunity for discussion on the issue, to review progress in preventing and ending violence against women and girls, and to announce new ACTIONS and allocation of RESOURCES. 2. Make it visible, make it ORANGE!
• Light and decorate in orange your country, city, or communities’ iconic buildings, landmarks and statues.
• Make orange advertising spaces on billboards, screens or in magazines to spread the message.
• Organize an orange march through the centre of your city, town or village and declare the space an ‘orange zone’.
• Organize orange marathons, flash mobs, dance parties, or bicycle rides. Find out from your local authorities whether there is a space you could arrange to be decorated with orange graffiti and messages!
• Find out what relevant meetings or conferences are taking place in your country during the 16 Days of Activism and invite the organizers to orange the meeting spaces and dedicate an item in the agenda to a discussion about violence against women and girls.
• For more inspiration, look back at how we oranged our neighbourhoods last year: https://www.flickr.com/photos/unwomen/sets/72157649322853638/ 3. Work in partnership and think creatively about how to reach new audiences and spaces  Reach out to partner organizations TODAY to start planning! Invite groups including UN agencies, women’s groups, youth and men’s groups working to prevent and end violence against women, local elected officials, trade unions, research institutions, universities, schools and all interested individuals, to participate.
• Consider organizing events outside ‘usual’ spaces for activism! Explore the possibility of organizing activities outside capitals in smaller towns or rural areas and reaching out to new audiences by organizing activities in spaces such as nightclubs, sports clubs, places of worship, shopping malls, banks, police stations, hospitals, market places and bus stations. Make them orange!
• Invite local businesses to sponsor the initiative. 4. Inspire discussion!
• Inform communicators, such as local and national journalists, media icons, bloggers, and television presenters about the initiative “Orange the World: End Violence against Women and Girls”. Invite them to produce articles, radio shows, documentaries and news features on particular issues of local or national relevance relating to violence against women and girls, including showcasing the results of innovative organizations working to end violence against women and girls, or particular obstacles to its eradication. 5. Orange cyber space! 5
• Orange your social media accounts and websites during 16 Days of Activism and invite partner organization to do the same!
• Invite influencers and high profile personalities to show their support for the campaign by wearing orange and reaching out to their followers with campaign messages and sharing pledges of their own personal actions.
• Consider partnering with mobile phone networks to send out text messages in recognition of the occasion.
• Join the conversation online and watch out for content shared through the hashtags #orangetheworld and #16days on the topic.

“Violence against women and girls remains one of the most serious –- and the most tolerated -– human rights violations,” said UN Under Secretary-General and UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka in a statement.

“It is both a cause and a consequence of gender inequality and discrimination. Its continued presence is one of the clearest markers of societies out of balance and we are determined to change that,” she said.

Violence against women and girls affects one in three worldwide. The call to action is part of the UN Secretary-General’s’ Unite to end violence against women’ campaign, led by UN Women, the UN’s agency for gender equality.

The colour orange, which has come to symbolise a bright and optimistic future free from violence against = women and girls, will help unify the large-scale social mobilisation.

It will be carried out during the civil society-driven ’16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence’, which will run from today commemorated as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women until Human Rights Day on 10 December.

This year’s ‘Orange the World’ initiative will focus on the theme of preventing violence against women and girls, in the specific context of the adoption of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, which includes targets on ending violence against women and girls.

Globally, during the fortnight under the ‘Orange the world’ call, over 450 events are planned in more than 70 countries throughout the 16 days. They include the lighting of major monuments and numerous activities involving civil society such as dialogue sessions with faith-based leaders, film screenings, theatre and dance performances, rallies, marches, marathons and digital activism via social media platforms.

Events will include the orange lighting of major landmarks including the Niagara Falls (Canada/USA), the European Commission building (Belgium) and Council of Europe building (France), the Little Mermaid statue in Copenhagen (Denmark), the archaeological ruins at Petra (Jordan), and the Palais de Justice (Democratic Republic of the Congo).