Demonstrations taking place to open 16 days of action against femicide, rape and other violence towards women and girls

~ Cristina Sykes, Mateo Sgambati ~

The international day against patriarchial violence is being marked today (25 November), with numerous actions and demonstrations having already taken place over the weekend.

From Asia through Europe to the Americas, demonstrations will continue today and into the next 16 days, culminating on International Human Rights Day. In the UK, a large Reclaim the Night march is being organised in Brighton on Friday 29 November.

Violence against women and girls remains one of the most prevalent and pervasive human rights violations in the world. According to the United Nations, almost one in three women globally have been subjected to physical and/or sexual violence at least once in their life. In 2023, at least 51,100 women were murdered by partners and family members. This means a woman was killed every 10 minutes.

In France, demonstrations are set to take place in Paris, Grenoble and Strasbourg, among other locations. “Our struggles do not stop at the borders imposed by nation states”, stated the call-out for the Strasbourg demo, “the anti-patriarchal struggle is international and cannot be dissociated from the struggles against all forms of racism, fascism, imperialism and colonialism”.

In Madrid, the workers of the Gender Violence Network of the city council and regional authority will go on a 24-hour strike, highlighting insufficient funding and the outsourcing of practically all the network’s resources to external companies who compete for providing them at the lowest price. This contributes to “precarious services and a general deterioration in the working conditions of the workers and in the quality of the care directed to women, their daughters and sons, and their environment”, said the workers.

In Mexico, feminist collectives and organisations including the madres buscadoras are highlighting the need to reclaim the autonomy and independence of the feminist movement from the state’s agenda. “Women are the most vulnerable to the escalation of femicidal violence, disappearances, trafficking, forced displacement, impoverishment, labor inequality, the devastation of natural resources and militarization”, said the groups in a declaration, ahead of today’s mass rally in Mexico City.

The day was designated in 1981, during the First Latin American and Caribbean Feminist Encounter. It commemorates the murder on 25 November, 1960 of the three Mirabal sisters—María Teresa, Minerva and Patricia—who opposed Trujillo’s dictatorial regime in the Dominican Republic. It was officially adopted by the United Nations in 2000.