The International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Women

As part of the International Youth Internship Program (IYIP), Humber International Development Institute and while doing my internship for Save the Children en Perú, I want to share that today, is the international day to eliminate violence against women and I had the honour to be part of the walk to stop violence against women, in Ica, Perú!

Violence against women is a human rights violation. Violence against women is a consequence of discrimination against women, in law and also in practice, and of persisting inequalities between men and women. Violence against women impacts on, and impedes, progress in many areas, including poverty eradication, combating HIV/AIDS, and peace and security. Violence against women and girls is not inevitable. Prevention is possible and essential. Violence against women continues to be a global pandemic. 35% of women and girls globally experience some form of physical and or sexual violence in their lifetime with up to seven in ten women facing this abuse in some countries. An estimated 133 million girls and women have experienced some form of female genital mutilation/cutting in the 29 countries in Africa and the Middle East where the harmful practice is most common. Worldwide, more than 700 million women alive today were married as children, 250 million of whom were married before the age of 15. Girls who marry before the age of 18 are less likely to complete their education and more likely to experience domestic violence and complications in childbirth. The costs and consequence of violence against women last for generations (United Nations, 2015).