The Philippine Embassy in Phnom Penh joins the 2018 18-Day Campaign To End VAW
Theme:
VAW-free community starts with me
Sunday, November 25, 2018 to Wednesday, December 12, 2018
Campaign Background
The 18-Day Campaign to End Violence Against Women (VAW) is observed annually from November 25 to December 12 to raise awareness among all stakeholders that VAW is a public issue of national concern. It supports the Philippine Government’s goal to protect the human rights of women and its commitment to address all forms of gender-based violence. The following issuances provide the national legal mandates for the annual campaign:
- Proclamation 1172 s. 2006 – Declaring 25 November to 12 December as the 18-Day Campaign to End Violence Against Women (VAW)
- Republic Act 10398 (2013) – Declaring November 25 of Every Year as National Consciousness Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and Children In Support of the Worldwide Campaign to End VAW
The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence begun in 1991, linking November 25 (International Day Against VAW) and December 10 (International Human Rights Day) to emphasize that VAW is a human rights violation. It is further strengthened with the launching in 2008 of the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General’s UNiTE to End VAW Campaign which envisions a world free from all forms of violence against women and girls. For the UN, this vision can only be realized through meaningful actions and ongoing political commitments of national governments, backed by adequate resources.
The Philippine Campaign to End VAW
The Philippine government has participated in this worldwide campaign to eliminate VAW since 2002. Recognizing that human trafficking is a form of VAW, Presidential Proclamation 1172 s. 2006 extended the national campaign to 18 days, to include December 12, a historic date that marked the start of opening for signature in year 2000 of the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, supplementing the UN Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime.
The 2018 18-Day Campaign to End VAW
The National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS), which is conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) every five years, provides a picture of the alarming incidence of VAW in the Philippines.
Results from the preliminary NDHS conducted in 2017 show that out of the 11,558 ever-married Filipino women aged 15 to 49 surveyed, one in 4 or 26% has experienced physical, sexual, or emotional violence committed by their husband or partner. These survey results are more indicative of the prevalence of violence in the country, since the administrative data on number of clients served by service providers like the police, social workers, and health workers only capture cases reported to these offices.
Considering such prevalence, the 2018 Campaign will continue to emphasize the role of all individuals in combating violence against women and girls within various institutions. To do this, the 2018 18-Day Campaign to End VAW shall focus on Primary Prevention to reduce incidents of VAW across the country. This can be achieved by letting people understand VAW from the point of view of victim-survivors. It is hoped that such deeper understanding would ignite compassion from stakeholders, so that they would not commit, condone, or remain silent about VAW. For service providers, such compassion towards victim-survivors would encourage them to provide better services to their clients.
Campaign Theme
The Inter-Agency Council on Violence Against Women (IACVAWC) adopted the theme “VAW-free community starts with Me” for the annual 18-Day Campaign to End VAW, from year 2016 to 2021. The theme elevates the campaign to positive advocacy as it enjoins everyone to pursue the common vision of a community free from violence against women and girls, and highlights what can be done to achieve such.
Campaign Objectives
The 2018 18-Day Campaign to End VAW aims to:
- Give the public a glimpse of a VAW victim-survivor's ordeal to later develop in them the virtue of compassion or malasakit;
- Promote awareness on the forms of violence women and girls experience, provide information on the laws protecting women and girls, and feature VAW-related services that people can access and avail; and
- Gather public support for the Campaign.
Link: https://www.pcw.gov.ph/VAWfreePH2018
