CROSS-SCALE AND WHOLE OF SOCIETY RESPONSES TO GENDER BASED VIOLENCE

Gender Based Violence, GBV, in all its forms, is perhaps the most staggering symptom of societal dysfunctions and transectional inequalities. Manifestations of GBV span from the household to practices such as female genital mutilation and child marriage, to conflict and war related violence and violence against indigenous women and women with disabilities and political and violence against women in politics. This means that countering GBV should encompass a wide range of combined policy and transformative actions, including changing societal norms, conflict prevention, peacebuilding, and disarmament efforts.

Peaceful and equitable societies will only be possible if women and girls enjoy the same rights and opportunities and live in safe and violence-free environments. Evidence shows that empowering women and girls and countering gender based inequalities and discrimination is not only a moral imperative and a human rights essential, but is also the foundation for more peaceful and humane societies.

We have learned that to build societies that are more successful in countering GBV bring the voices and agency of victims, grassroots, feminists and all sectors to the places where decisions are taken. And we need to use multilateral spaces to work on norms, standards and policy to create enabling institutional and normative environments. In short, there is a need to work across scales and to reconcile international law and policy with local struggles and needs. And inversely, we need to use global norms to transform and boost national and local decisions and action against GBV.

The United Nations is a critical platform to ensure that this cross-scale and cross-sector efforts happen. There is a vibrant process of retooling and rejuvenating the UN deriving from Our Common Agenda, that includes a call for a New Agenda for Peace where GBV must play a central role. The shaping of this New Agenda is certainly a window of opportunity to address the structural causes of GBV and to reassert the vital role that women and youth play as enablers of peaceful societies.

Against this backdrop, the proposed dialogue will aim at contributing to shape more granular yet holistic policy and normative responses to GBV. During the dialogue panelists will highlight good practices and experiences from civil society, government,indigenous women’s organizations and the international community in addressing this issue and provide insights on how to boost action on GBV at all levels.

It is time for action, it is time for deeds not words!

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