16 Days of Activism: Egyptians Take Part in the Global Campaign Against Gender-Based Violence
On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, the National Council for Women, together with Assault Police, UN Women, and Enty El Aham (You’re more important), took part in the annual global campaign called 16-days of activism against gender-based violence. In Egypt, the campaign kicked off with a 5-minute video of a few Egyptian women speaking of the first time they were sexually harassed.
Following this video, Assault Police began sharing posts about marital rape in Egypt, with statistics that stated that Egypt is one of 36 countries where marital rape is legal. “According to Egypt’s Family Court, 60% of women who filed cases in 2019 had experienced marital rape,” the post stated.
The campaign also aims to share resources to address the issue of violence against women, in addition to shedding light on the different forms of gender-based violence.
Apart from the organizations and entities supporting the cause, there are individual efforts that also deserve to be applauded. A young Egyptian woman called Farah Basma, who has been singing for over 10 years, released a song called “Hatefre’e”, which translates to “you matter”. The song supports survivors of sexual harassment and encourages them to speak up against it.
The annual campaign runs annually from 25 November, International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, to December 10, Human Rights Day.
