Joining forces with partners to mark this year’s 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, the UNFPA Western Balkans cluster integrated a spotlight on our global Bodyright campaign. As a comprehensive program to protect women from abuse of their online images, Bodyright was a perfect fit for the 16 Days and UNFPA teams throughout the region were delighted to conduct activities that point out how it all works and broaden public awareness of the issues women face online.
In Pristina - at the 'United against Violence - Enough' regional conference organized by the Kosovo Ministry of Justice and Office of the President during the 16 Days of Activism, Visare Mujko Nimani, UNFPA Kosovo Head of Office, outlined the perils of digital violence and what UNFPA is doing to address them, in particular through Bodyright and comprehensive dialogue to confront the challenges faced by women and girls.
In Tirana - On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (25 November), United Nations Agencies asked for more long-term, sustainable investment from government, private sector, foundations, and other donors, to prevent violence against women and girls, under the framework of the advocacy platform "UNITE! Invest to prevent violence against women and girls."
In Sarajevo - in a collaborative effort to address digital violence against women and girls and to promote Bodyright – the right to own your body online – UNFPA partnered with the Parliament of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina to organize a forum for over 50 representatives from key institutions at the State and entity levels, including ministries, members of both federal Houses of Parliament, policy-makers, academia, media, and civil society. The objective was to catalyze legislative changes towards the Bodyright Legislative Roadmap, raise social awareness, and encourage critical thinking regarding digital violence.
In Belgrade, the beginning of the 16 Days was marked with a joint UN social media campaign and related joint event "Imagine Life without Violence." The focus of this year's event was on youth as drivers of change, their activism, and their role in creating a society with zero tolerance for violence against women and girls. At the same time, UNFPA launched a new phase of the Bodyright campaign via social media to raise awareness on the issue of bodily autonomy online. A highlight was a youth-oriented Instagram quiz on online bodily autonomy, covering issues such as consent, privacy, and security.
In Skopje – The 16 Days began with the performance of a UNFPA-supported theater play "Things We Don't Talk About" by Wonderland Theatre, directed by Nela Vitosevic. This year's campaign was themed "Encouraged and Protected," whereby UN agencies joined forces with the Delegation of the European Union in Skopje and the OSCE Mission to Skopje to raise awareness of the long-term societal impact caused by gender-based violence, including that conducted digitally. The events featured theater plays, community discussions, concerts, exhibitions, and panel discussions.
