Activists come together to end violence against women

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, February 11

Scores of activists today vowed support to the uprising to end routinsed violence against women in almost all spheres of life during an event organised to celebrate the sixth anniversary of the “One Billion Rising” (OBR) campaign here.

It is a global action plan to raise voice against exploitation of women and ensure dignity for women. The campaign champions the cause of women rights and stop violence in all forms due to an entrenched patriarchy at a time when women safety is still a concern in homes, workplaces or public spaces.

Regional coordinator of the OBR Kamla Bhasin said, “We all need to rise to the occasion and rise until violence stops, patriarchy disappears, the values of our constitutions become a reality because this war against gender-based violence is no longer just a women’s or girls’ issue.”

The OBR campaign was doing exactly what a commercial film like “PadMan” is striving to do, which is making people more thoughtful and engaged about gender, Kamla added.

“The time had come for both men and women to do their bit to stop the oppression and subjugation that menstruating and violence-afflicted women and girls face due to patriarchal structures and mindset; and bring together all gender-sensitive people in a common celebration of the human spirit,” she asserted.

A representative of the Menengage Network spoke of the urgent need for the rank and file of men from every walk of life to speak up, get in touch with their feminine side and fight shoulder to shoulder with women and girls against gender subordination.