Silence Is NOT Acceptance, a regional campaign to support women survivors of violence:

                                                                6 in every 10 women survivors of violence globally stay silent rather than seek protection or assistance. The remaining four who do speak up look to family and friends for support. In many Arab communities, women survivors of violence are stigmatized for reporting certain forms or certain perpetrators of violence (spouses and family members).

In this context, even when shelters are available for the protection of women and when laws are in place to punish perpetrators of violence against them, silence and fear continue to cripple efforts to combat the pandemic in the region. A third of the world’s women have experienced physical or sexual violence- some countries in the Arab region are believed to have a rate that is even higher than that. Globally, nearly four in every ten women victims of homicide are murdered by their intimate partners. The percentage seems to increase when factoring in homicide by other family members. For example, in 2012, half of all the world’s women victims of homicide were killed by family members or intimate partners.

Whether an Arab woman is raped, harassed, beaten, molested, married off as a child or circumcised, more often than not, she does not have enough support from her immediate community to seek protection or support or to report perpetrators. The public in its broadest terms- men, women, families, friends and the media- is the first line of defense against gender-based violence. Instead of passing judgment and blaming victims, communities can choose to show women survivors of violence the support they need to speak up and get justice.

Listening and protecting the women in our lives is this year’s theme for the UNiTe to End Violence against Women campaign at UN Women’s Regional Office for Arab States. The theory is simple, by publicly showing support to the women in one’s family or community, those women will have an ally if and when they experience violence and if they choose to speak up.

16 days to “listen and protect”:

From 25 November through 10 December, the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence aim to raise public awareness and mobilizing people everywhere to bring about change. This year, UN Women’s Regional Office for Arab States invites you to join its “Silence is not Acceptance” Campaign and show your support for women survivors of violence in your communities and make it visible.

You can simply have a conversation with the women in your life to let them know you would not judge or blame them and that you would support and help protect them. You can also express your support by organizing an “orange” event at the level of your community such as a run, a concert, a street festival or even a march. Orange is the color selected by the UN Secretary General’s UNiTe campaign to signify a brighter, violence-free future for women. You can use your creativity for writing a song, designing a poster, taking a photo or playing music. Mark your support and make it visible so women in your community can see that you are an ally. Send us pictures and videos at [ Click to reveal ] or our Facebook page and we will publish your work to help more survivors see they have supporters.

One in three women worldwide have experienced physical or sexual violence in her lifetime. This means that if you are not one, you probably know a woman survivor of violence. It could be anyone. Gender-based violence affects women from all races, ages, religions and socio-economic classes.

At the country level, UN Women is holding events and advocacy initiatives. Across the region, historic buildings will be lit in orange to mark the beginning of the campaign on November 25, the International Day to Eliminate Violence against Women. These buildings include: the pharaonic temple of Abu Simbel in Egypt, Petra archeological site in Jordan and the National Museum of Arts in Morocco.

Joint events and activities between UN Women and its national partners will also be taking place throughout the 16 days. The use of creativity to raise awareness and announce support will be evident with an artistic performance by volunteers in Aswan, Egypt, a poetry and theatre festival in Jordan and a theatre performance in Morocco. 

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