Campaign Kicks Off UN-led Efforts to End Violence Against Women

November 24, 2014

Tonight, for the first time ever, both the iconic United Nations Headquarters complex and the Empire State Building in New York are bathed in orange light to kick off the “Orange YOUR Neighbourhood” campaign ahead of the International Day to End Violence Against Women, as reported by the UN News Centre.

“Together, we must end this global disgrace,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said at a special pre-lighting ceremony at the Empire State Building this morning where he “flipped the switch” ahead of the Building's illumination tonight.

“It is up to everyone to play their part; women's rights are not only women's business. Men and boys are finally taking their place as partners in this battle,” Mr. Ban explained in midtown New York where he was joined by American actress Teri Hatcher, Mrs. Yoo Soon-taek, and Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director of the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women).

Orange YOUR Neighbourhood is part of Mr. Ban's campaign UNiTE to End Violence against Women. The theme will carry through related events during the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, which run between 25 November and 10 December (Human Rights Day).

The hashtags #Orangeurhood and #16days are being used to raise awareness on social media.

Despite recent progress, violence continues to plague one billion women worldwide. That means that one in three women experiences physical or sexual violence at some point in her life – mostly by an intimate partner.

According to UN-Women, among all women killed in 2012, nearly half died at the hands of a partner or family member. And far too often, crimes go unpunished and perpetrators walk free.

This year alone, more than 200 girls have been kidnapped in Nigeria, and we have seen graphic testimony from Iraqi women of rape and sexual slavery during the conflict there, Mr. Ban said.

And here in the United States, there have been high-profile cases of sexual violence involving sports teams and on university campuses. But we know that many other cases go unreported and unpunished, he added.

“This is outrageous, and it must stop,” the Secretary-General declared, calling for an end to the “mindsets and traditions that encourage, ignore or tolerate violence.”

The campaign to end violence against women calls on everyone around the world to display the colour orange to symbolize their commitment and hope for a safe future for all women. People will tie orange ribbons on landmarks. Marchers dressed in orange will raise awareness and discuss community-wide solutions.

“We need this eye-catching colour everywhere so that the message is loud and clear: we all need to work together to stop violence against women and girls right now,” said Ms. Mlambo-Ngcuka in an earlier press release.

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Read the full article on UN News Centre. 

Photo courtesy of UN Women.