‘When you’ve been raped, beaten, humiliated and lost everything, it’s hard to have hope.’
Rather than limit the campaign to clever slogans, glossy photos, and high-level events, this year there must be a rallying cry to do better to ensure Haiti’s women and girls have adequate support and resources, and to lift their voices and expertise in shaping policies and practices to address the causes of GBV in the first place. Their experience must be part of the conversation – and action.
Written By Pascale Solages. Interview by Stephanie Boucher
Survivors rarely get invited to the policy meetings dedicated to confronting GBV. Bearing witness to their pain and to their exhausting struggle to survive – and committing to take responsive action – should be a true imperative of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on 25 November and of the subsequent 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence.