Violence against women most widespread Human Rights Violation – UN

A new study by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and United Nation Women publicized that on the average, more than five women or girls were killed every hour by someone in their own family in 2021.

The UN report was released ahead of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women last Nov. 25. It’s a horrific reminder that violence against women and girls is one of the most pervasive human rights violations worldwide.

Of all the women and girls intentionally killed last year, the reports said that some 56% were killed by intimate partners or other family members or 45,000 out of 81,000. This goes to show that home is not a safe place for many women and girls.

Meanwhile, Some 11% of all male homicides are perpetrated in the private sphere.

The executive director of UN Women Sima Bahous said that “Behind every femicide statistic is the story of an individual woman or girl who has been failed. These deaths are preventable, the tools and the knowledge to do so already exist”

“Women’s rights organizations are already monitoring data and advocating for policy change and accountability. Now, we need concerted action across society that will fulfill women’s and girls’ right to feel and to be safe, at home, on the streets and everywhere,” Bahous added.

The UN report said that there are too many victims still go unaccounted for, it revealed that for roughly four in 10 women and girls killed intentionally in 2021, insufficient information exists to identify their deaths as femicide.

UNODC executive director Ghada Waly said. “No woman or girl should fear for her life because of who she is,”

“To stop all forms of gender-related killings of women and girls, we need to count every victim, everywhere, and improve understanding of the risks and drivers of femicide so we can design better and more effective prevention and criminal justice responses,” Waly added.

The UN said existing forms of gender-based violence have grown online as anti-rights movements have flourished.

These have resulted in “shrinking space for civil society, a backlash against women’s rights organizations, and a rise in attacks against women human rights defenders and activists,” according to the UN entities.