Lest We Forget

Seems that some blogger who shall remain nameless was asleep at the switch and forgot to notify anybody who cares to read that "In December 1999, the 54th session of the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 54/134 declaring November 25th the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women."

Nevertheless, we are in the throes of 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence. And the December 6 anniversary of the Montreal Massacre is coming up fast as well. So here's a little statistical info to keep you going...

Violence against women and girls is a universal problem of epidemic proportions. Perhaps the most pervasive human rights violation that we know today, it devastates lives, fractures communities, and stalls development.

Statistics paint a horrifying picture of the social and health consequences of violence against women. Violence against women is a major cause of death and disability for women 16 to 44 years of age. It is as serious a cause of death and incapacity among women of reproductive age as cancer, and a greater cause of ill-health than traffic accidents and malaria combined.

Several studies have revealed increasing links between violence against women and HIV/AIDS. Women who have experienced violence are at a higher risk of HIV infection: a survey among 1,366 South African women showed that women who were beaten by their partners were 48 per cent more likely to be infected with HIV than those who were not.