A call to action: It’s time to eradicate all violence against women

The recent outpouring of women bravely coming out of the shadows to identify their sexual assaulters and harassers has begun to highlight the pervasiveness of abuse that has been subjugating far too many women around the world for far too long. Gender-based violence can lead to lifelong disfigurement, such as from horrific attacks with acid or axes, but it does not always leave a visible mark. Whether it is violence in the home, the streets or the workplace, psychological scars can long outlast the physical ones. And experience dictates that domestic violence correlates to violent societies — indeed, violence begets violence.

This past Saturday, Nov. 25, served as the 17th anniversary of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women — a day to highlight the extreme discrimination and gender inequality that are both a cause and effect of violence against women. This annual event also marks the first of 16 days of activism to combat gender-based violence, which runs each year until December 10: Human Rights Day.

{mosads}If this current moment is shining a spotlight on the challenges women face in the workplace in particular, these 16 days recognize that violence against women can happen anywhere, most frequently in conflict zones.

For instance, the gender inequality, domestic violence and discrimination that skyrocketed throughout decades of conflict and Taliban rule has led to Afghanistan consistently being ranked as one of the worst places in the world to be a woman. A staggering 90 percent of Afghan girls and women are subject to violence during the course of their lives — often at a very young age. Furthermore, in countries experiencing conflict, women and girls often experience gender-based violence, sexual assault and rape as instruments of war, as well as kidnapping, torture, exploitation, slavery, forced prostitution, forced marriage, displacement, starvation and murder, by all parties to hostilities, including state and non-state actors.

While conflicts breed permissive cultural attitudes toward violence against women, another indicator of the practice within a country is its rate of child marriage. Worldwide, around 15 million girls endure child marriage every year — often forced or coerced — which qualifies as a form of child abuse. That’s one in three girls around the globe. Fifty-seven percent of Afghan girls are married before they turn 19, with over 40 percent married between ages 10 and 13. Married minors are more likely to experience domestic violence, sexual abuse, poverty, lack of access to education, mental and physical health challenges, and premature death. 

All too often, this violence leaves profound wounds on both the individual survivors and society as a whole. These traumas impact every aspect of a state’s social fabric and must be paid deference in any initiatives undertaken and institutions created to eradicate the roots of insecurity. Empowered women are an integral part of a country’s social and economic health. Violence and harassment in the home and workplace inhibit women and girls from realizing their full potential, and give rise to gender disparity in educational, economic, social, political and leadership spheres.

To create societies that promote gender equality and eradicate discrimination and violence, the U.S. and international community must support organizations working to transform patriarchal societies, such as Afghanistan, by fostering a shift in entrenched cultural attitudes. Whether we are talking about women attempting to participate in the peacebuilding process, or those in the U.S. seeking to climb the corporate ladder, women must continue to raise their voices, call out inappropriate and downright aggressive behavior, and advocate for themselves and their sisters in order to shape social norms. Across the globe, the narrative around violent homes and societies can change if women and girls are empowered and the existence of safe and secure homes and societies becomes the rule and not the exception.

While it is vital to take pause and mark these 16 days of activism to end gender-based violence, particularly during this momentous occasion in which survivors have found the courage to condemn their abusers, to truly end violence against women, we must mobilize 365 days a year. Rather than maintaining the status quo, which requires women to constantly be on guard, a collective offensive must be waged in the systemic cultural battle that has endured for far too long.

Whether a woman is subject to an inappropriate comment at work or an acid attack in the home, both are egregious violations of personhood and human rights. Let this moment mark the beginning of the end of the vicious cycles of violence against women.

Manizha Naderi is the executive director of Women for Afghan Women, the largest women’s nongovernmental organization in Afghanistan. The organization provides vital protection and services to victims of gender-based violence, including pro bono legal, vocational, educational, mediation, healthcare, childcare, counseling, and housing assistance.

Megan E. Corrado is a human right attorney and serves as Women for Afghan Women’s advocacy director. She leads WAW’s advocacy efforts in New York and Washington to promote and expand women’s rights around the world.