On Nov. 25, tens of thousands of people marched around the world on the UN-designated International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. According to initial reports in the media, several thousand marched in Paris; some carried signs reading, “One rape every six minutes in France.” Over 1000 marched in Santiago, Chile; 500 in Istanbul, Turkey; and at least 50,000 in Rome. Following the murder of a young university student from Venice, Giulia Cecchettin, Italy has seen a growing outcry against male chauvinism and violence against women in the country. In Guatemala, protesters used candles to mark out the numeral 438—the number of women murdered in the country so far this year.
The following speech by Ukrainian trade unionist Natalia Shubenko was delivered in a video to mark the Nov. 25 day of protests. The video appears on the Spanish-language website of the International Workers League – Fourth International: https://litci.org/es/natalia-shubenko-un-grito-contra-la-violencia-hacia-las-mujeres-en-tiempos-de-guerra/.
Hello comrades, brothers and sisters of the working class. My name is Natalia Shubenko I am a member of the Independent Trade Union of Miners of Ukraine in Kryvyi Rih.
Violence against women during the war in Ukraine is a serious problem and a violation of our rights. Armed conflicts directly affect the lives and safety of women as well. Violence can include physical, sexual and psychological assaults, including rape and sexual abuse, forced marriages and torture.
Keeping women safe from violence, especially in times of war, is fundamental to protecting our rights. International “humanitarian” law prohibits violence, especially against vulnerable groups, including women and children. However, despite international norms and national legislation, violence against women during war continues.
Resolving this problem requires a joint effort between the government, law enforcement agencies, and the people. Effective strategies need to be developed that include early prevention of violence, providing assistance to women victims, punishing perpetrators and ensuring real justice for victims of violence.
A key aspect of addressing this problem is mass social awareness and education about gender-based violence and women’s rights. Women must be supported and protected, and violence must be rejected and condemned by society as a whole.
Human rights and women’s protection organizations play an important role in the fight against violence against women and more so during war. They offer support to battered women, educate the public and governments, collect data on violence and raise the issue at the international level.
In particular, I would like to point out the role of independent trade unions, whose ranks include many women leaders: THE UNION is obliged to protect women and children, in the face of deteriorating family relationships.
It is important to recognize that preventing violence against women, exacerbated during the war, is a long-term process that requires systemic changes in society. This is due to changing attitudes towards gender roles, education on the equality of women and men, as well as a relative strengthening of legislation and its effective implementation. Only by working together, women workers and men workers, can we take steps towards creating a world free of violence against women.
Women ! Let us reject violence!
Only mutual solidarity can save us. For a world full of peace and without war!
Thank you.
Photo: Women rally in Buenos Aires on Nov. 25. (Noelia Marcia / Reuters)