This was the slogan of this year’s international campaign “16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence” in Ukraine. Every year, from 25 November to 10 December, the world unites to remind itself of the importance of combating this type of violence.
One of the messages of this campaign is to encourage people to be more open and overcome their fear of reporting to law enforcement. According to Iryna Shurkhno, Head of the Department for Combating Domestic Violence at the Prosecutor General’s Office, since the beginning of 2024, 8,185 criminal proceedings related to domestic violence have been initiated in Ukraine, an 80% increase compared to 2023.
Our foundation actively participated in the “16 Days of Activism”: we held thematic lectures with open discussions and trainings for internally displaced women and men in 24 regions. The purpose of these events is to raise awareness of the problem of gender-based violence in Ukraine and to tell about the system of assistance to victims.
Oleksii Baltak, regional lawyer of the project in Vinnytsia region: “The participants of the events received answers to problematic questions during the discussion of practical situations on combating gender-based violence. Given the large number of questions, I believe that this topic is very relevant.”
In Khmelnytskyi, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, we held presentations for internally displaced persons and representatives of IDP Councils. During these meetings, we spoke about combating domestic and gender-based violence and the dangers of human trafficking in times of war.
Natalia Denysenko, head of the IDP Council at Novooleksandrivka Village Council: “I really liked the presentation: it was concise, informative, and the statistics were impressive. I had no idea that so many people are suffering from domestic violence now, during the war. We received contacts of organisations where victims can turn to, and we will definitely pass them on to our community.”
In Ternopil, in addition to the information meeting, we conducted a tour of the Day Centre for Social and Psychological Assistance to Victims of Domestic Violence and/or Gender-based Violence.
In Poltava, we organised a meeting called “Warm Circle”, where participants had the opportunity to discuss the topic of combating violence and gender stereotypes with a psychologist, as well as to join a masterclass on making jewellery and painting dishes.
In Oleksandriia, we held a training session on “Equal Rights and Opportunities for Men and Women”. The participants did exercises, analysed facts and stereotypes about gender issues. All of this helped to develop basic gender culture skills and helped to correct behaviour aimed at gender equality.
In Mykolaiv and Dobropillia, we initiated discussions on how to recognise and overcome violence and presented the board game “Being a Woman”. This is an anti-discrimination game that draws attention to the problems of gender stereotypes and discrimination against women. Participants in the game choose a role – a heroine with certain characteristics and resources – and move around the field, collecting resources that help them achieve their individual goals. On their way to success, they have to overcome obstacles in the form of various stereotypes that make it difficult to achieve their goals. All the characters in the game are fictional, but the content is based on real stories and life experiences. The game is available for purchase in our official Facebook store and on Instagram.
As part of the “16 Days of Activism” campaign, we held 24 meetings dedicated to combating gender-based violence. We aim not only to reveal the problem of gender inequality, but also to enable the participants of the events to better understand the impact of stereotypes on their everyday lives. Awareness of the problems helps to be more confident in their actions and creates a culture of trust and support, which is an important step towards eradicating violence in society.
We conduct awareness-raising activities within the scope of the “Supporting the Capacity of the Social Protection System to Register Internally Displaced People” project funded by the United Nations Refugee Agency in Ukraine (UNHCR).
