The new President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), Dr. Theo-Ben Gurirab, added his voice to those of other parliamentarians at the 119th IPU Assembly in Geneva as they pledged to make ending violence against women a national and international priority by signing up to UNIFEM’s Say NO to Violence against Women campaign.
“Violence against women remains a major issue on the international human rights and parliamentary agenda. We all have to be committed and mobilized against this unacceptable reality which needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency by the political leaders of the world. Together - men and women - we can make sure that putting an end to this tragedy becomes a priority“, said President Gurirab, who is also the Speaker of the National Assembly of Namibia.
More than 200 members of parliament from over 70 countries signed the campaign, including Mr. Pier Ferdinando Casini, the outgoing President of the IPU, and Speakers of parliament from several countries, including Indonesia, Lesotho, New Zealand, the Philippines and South Africa.
The initiative received a boost from the IPU when all the members of its Coordinating Committee of Women Parliamentarians signed the campaign and agreed to champion the cause within the IPU, in their respective national parliaments and in their public advocacy efforts.
The IPU has pledged to step up action in this field and launched a three-year programme aimed at supporting parliaments in making an end to violence against women a national priority. This undertaking serves to complement, from the parliamentary perspective, the United Nations Secretary-General’s Campaign to End Violence Against Women, launched in February 2008. UNIFEM’s Say NO to Violence against Women campaign is supported by a number of well-known figures, including actress Nicole Kidman.
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