Stop violence against women
By María Josefina Arce
Gender violence continues to hit the world in the 21st century. Women and girls are daily targets of all types of attacks that put their physical and mental health at risk and prevent them from participating fully and equally in society.
It is estimated that throughout the planet more than 700 million women, one in every 3, have been victims of physical or sexual violence, or both, by their partner, at least once in their lives.
The COVID 19 pandemic deepened this problem, by increasing risk factors such as poverty, the burden of domestic work and unpaid care.
The situation in Latin America could be classified as alarming. ECLAC, the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, has pointed out the persistence of this problem in the area.
In a single year, in 2022, 4,050 femicides were recorded in the area, according to the regional organization, which described these murders as the extreme expression of inequality, discrimination and multiple forms of violence against women and girls.
ECLAC warned that in this scenario, 88 million women over 15 years of age in Latin America and the Caribbean are threatened, while in those over 65 years of age, violence is "commonly normalized and made invisible."
In fact, the WHO, the World Health Organization, has called for more attention throughout the world to violence against older women and those with disabilities, who are not included, he noted, in global and national data. about gender violence.
The WHO has described these attacks as a public health problem, since women get sick and die, in addition to being a scourge, it increases the expenses of nations.
Over the decades, other forms of violence have become visible and in many nations feminicide has been recognized as a crime; However, there is still a lot of progress to be made in favor of this population segment.
It is necessary and urgent to generate more actions with a gender focus, which guarantee the rights of women, who are an inexhaustible source of talent that can contribute a lot to the advancement of society.
