Международный день девочек, 11 октября.
International Day of the Girl Child, October 11.
All over the world, an alarming number of adolescent girls are
assaulted, beaten, raped, mutilated and even murdered. ;The threat of
violence at the hands of family members, partners, teachers and peers
grossly violates their rights, diminishes their power and suppresses
their potential.
This violence is exacerbated and reinforced by the multiple deprivations adolescent girls face, including unequal access to education, skills, information, sexual and reproductive health services, and
social and economic resources. Girls are subjected to discriminatory
social norms and harmful practices – such as female genital mutilation
-- that perpetuate a cycle of violence. A culture of impunity allows
violence against adolescent girls to continue unabated; Conflict and
humanitarian crises dramatically increase the risk of violence, abuse
and exploitation.
My UNiTE to End Violence against Women campaign is engaging governments, international organizations, civil society
groups, the media and citizens everywhere to raise awareness and
increase political will and resources for preventing and ending
violence against women and girls. A parallel campaign – HeForShe –
emphasizes that gender equality is not just a women’s issue by
enrolling males to act against all forms of violence and discrimination
against women and girls. As we define the post-2015 development framework
and review progress achieved under the Beijing Declaration and
Platform for Action, ending gender violence and promoting the
empowerment of girls and women must be at the heart of our global
agenda.
To end the cycle of violence against adolescent girls we must go beyond
and take action to equip girls with knowledge, skills, resources and
power to determine their own path in life. We must provide them with
safe transport,
and access to sources of energy and water, quality health services and
supportive environments that will allow them to thrive.
On this International Day of the Girl Child,
I call on all governments to take action to end all forms of violence
against girls in all parts of the world. Together, we must create a
world where violence against women and girls is never tolerated and
girls are always empowered to reach their full potential.
Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary General.
Message of Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, UNFPA Executive Director, on the occasion of the International Day of the Girl Chil 2014.
Today on the International Day of the Girl Child, I join every person around the world who believes that adolescent girls should live free of violence and discrimination.
We are guided by the international human rights to which every human being is rightfully entitled.
Every girl, no matter where she is born, should have a chance to reach her potential.
Every girl deserves to be welcomed to this world with the same joy and celebration as a boy. Every girl has the right to life and dignity.
Every girl has the right to education, including comprehensive sexuality education, and to learn and be as smart as she can be.
Every girl has the right to be a girl, and not a child bride.
Every girl has the right to live free of female genital mutilation.
Every girl has the right to health, including sexual and reproductive health.
Yet these rights continue to be violated worldwide on a massive and systematic scale.
Today on the International Day of the Girl Child, and every day, we say no to violence against girls.
We say yes to education, empowerment and equality. Now is the time for action!
We must take action when nearly one quarter of adolescent girls have been victims of physical violence since the age of 15.
We must take action when one in three adolescent girls has suffered violence committed by her husband or her partner.
We must take action when some 70 million young women aged 20-24 in developing countries were married before the age of 18. Early, forced and child marriage deprives girls of their autonomy, their education and their health. It steals their hopes and dreams away from them before their very eyes.
We must take action when three million girls, the majority of whom are younger than 15 years of age, undergo female genital mutilation, FGM, each and every year. This can increase their vulnerability to HIV and to complications during pregnancy and childbirth, and in the worst cases result in maternal and newborn death.
UNFPA is taking action to protect the health and rights of adolescent girls.
Through comprehensive sexuality education; through sexual and reproductive health counselling, information and services; and through youth participation, UNFPA works to protect the human rights of adolescent girls. We also work with boys so they will become the first male generation to neither perpetrate nor tolerate violence against women and girls.
Through a UNFPA-UNICEF joint programme, more than 12,700 communities in Africa have abandoned FGM and an estimated three million girls will now grow up free of this harmful practice.
Development is not sustainable when adolescent girls live with the fear and the reality of violence.
Today on the International Day of the Girl Child, and every day, UNFPA will continue to work with governments, the United Nations system and civil society so that adolescent girls are empowered to claim their rights and are protected from violence.
We will not stop until the world upholds the inherent rights of every girl child.
If you change her life, you can change the world.
Babatunde Osotimehin, UNFPA Executive Director
Message by UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka on the occasion of the International Day of the Girl Child, 11 October 2014.
On this International Day of the Girl Child let us commit to creating a world where girls can live free of violence and achieve their full potential.
Violence against girls, in all its forms, is a grave human rights violation rooted in gender inequality. Up to one-third of adolescent girls report their first sexual experience as being forced.
At least 133 million girls and women have experienced female genital mutilation.
When an adolescent girl experiences violence, often perpetrated by those closest to her, she has limited choices and opportunities. Without redress, the effects of such violence will last throughout her lifetime and may extend to future generations.
Every day, 39,000 girls are married before they turn 18 and, if current trends continue, there will be 140 million child brides by 2020. Girls married young are more vulnerable to intimate partner violence and sexual abuse than those who marry later. They suffer complications during pregnancy and childbirth, with these complications being a leading cause of death in young women aged 15-19. This is a catastrophic loss of human potential.
Eradicating violence against the girl child is a critical area of concern of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, a landmark international agreement reached almost 20 years ago.
The promise made to girls at the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing must be delivered. Protecting girls from all forms of violence and promoting girls’ empowerment must be at the heart of the global development agenda.
It is in our hands to make this possible, through provision of adequate services and comprehensive prevention efforts.
By providing girls and women with access to education, by ensuring their sexual and reproductive health and rights, as well as engaging men and boys in the promotion of gender equality, we can protect and empower girls.
By improving justice mechanisms and supportive services, we can crush impunity and mitigate the impact of violence on survivors.
Girls themselves are part of the solution. They are a powerhouse of talent, creativity and potential.
This year, UN Women is rolling out a global youth-led programme, “Voices against Violence,” to prevent violence against girls and young women. In partnership with the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, and using non-formal education as a tool, the programme will reach some 800,000 young people aged 5 to 25, in 12 countries. In many more countries, we are partnering with young people to challenge gender stereotypes and norms that perpetuate violence.
With Together for Girls, a unique public-private partnership, UN Women is supporting data collection and country-driven efforts to address sexual violence against children, especially girls. In the Asia-Pacific region, a joint programme — “Partners for Prevention” — supported by UN Women, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and United Nations Volunteers, is focusing on prevention of violence against women and girls through research, capacity development and communications for social change. As part of the Joint Programme on Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting with UNICEF and UNFPA, UN Women is also working to address harmful traditional practices that impact millions of girls worldwide.
The International Day of the Girl Child is an opportunity to step up collective action to break the cycle of violence against girls and women. Empowering girls today makes for a safer, healthier, more prosperous and sustainable tomorrow.
UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka
Forum :
International Day of the Girl Child - October 11
Events : This year, the theme is "Empowering adolescent girls: Ending the cycle
of violence". UN Women Executive Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka will speak at an
event at UNICEF House co-sponsored by UNICEF, UN Women, UNFPA and Plan
International, from 12.30-2 p.m. [
Invitation].
Watch the livestream here.
Check out our special In Focus compilation on the Girl Child, one of the
12 critical areas of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.
This year, the theme is "Empowering adolescent girls: Ending the cycle of violence".
UN Women
Executive Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka will speak at an event at UNICEF House
co-sponsored by UNICEF, UN Women, UNFPA and Plan International, from
12.30-2 p.m.
[Invitation].
Watch the livestream here.
Check out our special
In Focus compilation on the Girl Child, one of the 12 critical areas of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.
- See more at: http://www.unwomen.org/en/news/in-focus/girl-child#sthash.XOMFm74z.dpuf
