Africa: UN Campaign to End Violence Against Women

Shavon Pulley/ Feb 27, 2008/ Gender Issues
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has unveiled a global campaign bringing together the United Nations, governments and civil society to try and end violence against women. "At least one out of every three women is likely to be beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in her lifetime .Violence against women impedes economic and social growth which causes problems later in life. This is a campaign for the many sex slaves, rapes, and sexual violence done to females . It is a campaign for the women and girls who have the right to live free of violence, today and in the future. "It is a campaign to stop the untold cost that violence against women inflicts on all humankind. This campaign is part of the new goals of 2015, this is the same target year as the internationally agreed aims known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs ). As part the campaign's launch, Rachel N Mayanja, the Secretary-General's Special Adviser on Gender Issues and the Advancement of Women, held a press conference together with a number of other activists, both male and female, working to end violence against women and are slated to participate in other discussions on the subject at UN Headquarters. As this issue continues, it is noted that many women have been left out of development efforts because of the violence that is continually being inflicted on them. The Secretary-General's campaign would bring a new sense of urgency to bear on this tragic issue.
I think this is an excellent campaign that the UN has addressed. In the many blogs I have posted before, Africa is a main concern with women issues and inequality. Bringing awareness to this issue and ways to go towards solving this problem as a group is a huge step in fighting for women equality.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200802260599.html