16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence Campaign
25 November 10 December
The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence is an international campaign that was started by the Center for Women's Global Leadership (CWGL) in 1991. The 16 Days runs from November 25, International Day Against Violence Against Women to December 10, International Human Rights Day to symbolically link violence against women and human rights and to emphasise that such violence is a violation of human rights.
This 16-day period also highlights other significant dates including December 1, which is World AIDS Day, and December 6, which marks the Anniversary of the Montreal Massacre in 1989, when 14 women students were massacred by a lone gun-man opposed to the affirmative action policies promoted by feminists at the University of Montreal.
Since it began, the 16 Days of Activism has been used as an organising strategy by womens groups to call for the elimination of violence against women by:
- Raising awareness about gender based violence as a human rights issue at the local, national, regional and international levels
- Strengthening local work around violence against women
- Establishing a clear link between local and international work to end violence against women
- Providing a forum in which organisers can develop and share effective strategies
- Demonstrating the solidarity of women around the world organising against violence against women
- Creating tools to pressure governments to implement promises made to eliminate violence against women
WOMANKINDs involvement in the 16 Days of Activism
A central and ongoing priority for WOMANKIND Worldwide is working towards the elimination of violence against women, both nationally within the UK and internationally through partnerships with womens groups across the world.
WOMANKIND became involved with the 16 Days campaign in 2000. Since then we have provided annual funding and support for a number of womens groups across Africa to participate in the 16 Days of Activism.
In 2005, WOMANKIND is again providing small grants to African womens organisations working to eliminate violence against women. This years theme - For the Health of Women, For the Health of the World: No More Violence - is a continuation of the 2004 theme, in order to once again emphasise the important intersection of violence against women and womens health, and particularly that of violence against women and the HIV/AIDS pandemic.
The maximum grant size is $1000 and the deadline is Sunday 11th September.
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