Papua New Guinea Men Run to End Violence Against Women
Date:
Dozens of men wore orange “Meri” blouses, traditional Papua New Guinea (PNG) women dresses, and participated in a race to end violence against women. At the end of the race men and boys pledged an oath to fight against violence against women and added their handprints to a big canvas.
The event took place at Gerehu Market in Port Moresby and was organized by the UN Women’s Safe Cities Project in partnership with the National Capital District Commission (NCDC) Gender Equity and Youth Desks to support the United Nations Secretary-General's UNiTE to End Violence against Women campaign. The activity encouraged boys and men to join the fight to stop violence against women in the Gerehu community.
”Abuse of women and girls concerns everyone – it is not just the concern of women. It is everyone’s problem and everyone is responsible for stopping it. That’s why men are stepping forward in spreading the message that violence against women and girls is never acceptable, never excusable and never tolerable”, says Ian Lapu, NCDC Male Advocate.
The event was attended by a range of different partners working with the Safe Cities Project to create safe spaces for women and girls in the markets including the Family Support Centre, Médecins Sans Frontières, the Family and Sexual Violence Unit, the NCDC Welfare Services, the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary as well as the Australian Federal Police and Community Male Champions, who raised awareness about services available for family and sexual violence survivors.
”Only when we work together in partnership with other agencies and the community can we challenge perceptions, attitudes and behaviours that perpetuate violence against women and girls” said UN Women Safe Cities Community Mobilization Officer Jurgita Sereikaite.
For further information, please contact:
Jurgita Sereikaite
UN Women Community Moblization Officer
Email: Jurgita.Sereikaite@unwomen.org
Telephone: 321 9855 and 703 09435