It is a painful reality that all women will experience some kind of violence throughout their lives. And not because of the actions they take, the words they say or the way they dress, but simply because they are women.
1 in 3 women in the world suffers or will suffer physical and/or sexual violence at some point in her life (UN).
In our patriarchal societies the male is privileged over the female, creating inequalities and imbalances of power between men and women. This inequality is expressed in the form of violence.
There are different types of violence, some more visible than others: physical aggression (physical), words of disqualification (psychological), sexual relations without consent (sexual), denial of money (economic) or the visit of a loved one (social), or others.
The most extreme form of violence is femicide: the murder of a woman for gender-based reasons.
We spoke with Ana Inés Alvarez, Executive Director of Fundación Avon para la Mujer Argentina, an organisation that for 17 years has been carrying out actions and prevention campaigns to eradicate all forms of violence against women and girls. Ana tells us that the first listening is key. It is about letting them know that we are aware of their situation and that, above all, we respect their autonomy, their freedom to decide when and how to act.
It is always useful to ask: Are you OK? How can we help you? What do you need?
These questions build trust, laying the groundwork for when the woman is ready to come forward. The process is not easy. On average women take 8 years and 8 months to report abuse.
- Accompany her
It is important that she does not go to make a report alone. The reason being that, as violence is often institutionalised, women are often convinced not to make the report.
- Listen to what authorities say
The person making the complaint is going through intense emotions. That is why it is necessary that they find someone who can listen and help them to understand more clearly what is happening and the next steps.
- Seek comprehensive counselling
Approach a civil society or state organisation that can accompany her, either by informing her about the procedures, providing psychological and social support, or finding out who in her network of acquaintances can offer her support at this time.
- Find out where she can receive counselling
Find out which support organisation is closest to her, find out when and where it is open, and, above all, make sure that it is working before offering it. In Argentina, the hotline is 144.
“It is our support networks that can save us”
In most cases, Femicide is committed by partners and ex-partners, and more often than not their own homes (La Casa del Encuentro)
In a pandemic, compulsory social isolation has aggravated this situation – and continues to do so. For this reason, Fundación Avon para la Mujer created the project “Aisladas no solas” (Isolated, not alone), aimed at women, neighbours, and people close to them, with the objective of providing useful information to support them during this time.
The project includes a number of initiatives such as live conversations with people involved in the issue, the #TeMandoUnAudio campaign, a way of breaking the silence and the famous “don’t get involved”.
Another initiative is #recetas, videos that pretend to be cooking recipes, but in reality, hide information to help in situations of violence.
The subtitles of the video invite you to put on headphones and, while the images show a kitchen and mislead the aggressor who may be nearby, the woman receives a step-by-step guide on how to proceed if she is experiencing violence.
Fundación Avon para la Mujer invites us to break the silence with love and respect, to be activists for a more equal and, therefore, more peaceful society.
At Efecto Colibrí we support this cause, will you?
