INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR ELIMINATION
OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN, OBSERVED
OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN, OBSERVED
Agencies - Yesterday was the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. In countries across the world, 15 to 76 per cent of women suffer physical or sexual violence from men at some point in their lives. Most countries fall into the 30-60 per cent range. In 1999, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly voted November 25th as a day of observance for the women who have suffered from violence and to advocate for the eradication of this injustice. Women’s groups, however, have been marking the date since 1981 in remembrance of the three Mirabel sisters who were murdered in the Dominican Republic because of their political activism. The good news is that many countries have made progress in protecting girls and women. In 2006, the UN Secretary-General’s In-Depth Study on All Forms of Violence against Women found that 89 countries enacted legislation on domestic violence and 90 countries enacted legislation on sexual harassment. Governments are adopting national plans of action to attack the issue. Marital rape is prosecutable in 104 countries. 
Still, there are major hurdles to clear, with protection gaps existing in a number of countries. In some places, rape poses a greater threat to girls and women that cancer, traffic accidents or malaria. The scale of the violence is at times unimaginable. As many as half a million women were raped in the 1994 Rwandan genocide. In South Africa, a woman is killed every six hours by an intimate partner. Meanwhile, in India, 22 women lose their lives to dowry-related murders daily. On the occasion of the day, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon said: “I urge governments and partners around the world to harness the energy, ideas and leadership of young people to help us to end this pandemic of violence. Only then will we have a more just, peaceful and equitable world.” Canada’s own throne speech included a promise to “address the problem of violence against women and girls.” 100,000 women and children in Canada leave their homes for emergency women’s shelters every year.
The International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women was observed yesterday all around the the world. In some countries, only a third of women or less will not experience physical or sexual violence. It can happen anywhere – at work, home, the street or school. Violence against girls and women crosses borders, socioeconomic class lines and strikes during peacetime or war. It can take a number of forms, from female genital mutilation, to rape as a weapon of war to domestic violence and honour killings. Mothers are the symbol of the religion; they are the Laksmi Devi in the home and worth adoration.
WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?
When in a society one loses respect, tenderness and gratitude for the mothers, society is condemned to degradation. This is notable nowadays where they talk a lot about women's liberty, but where the woman is openly the symbol of instinctive exploitation among men. The patience that mothers have with their children, and their practical function of protecting the family and connecting them with Mother Earth, Mother Nature, is a great gift from her for everybody. ... Mothers are in general more religious, more honest; they do not act irresponsibly or get intoxicated, etc. The balance between men and women, the aspect of complementing each other with the blessings of the Vaisnavas, is what is fundamental in a sane family and society. All kinds of sentiments about men being superior to women, is born from a mind of competition and from an inferiority complex. It is really very far from Krishna consciousness.Śrīla Bhakti Aloka Paramadvaiti Mahārāja :
"Mother’s Day every day"
From the Hotline chat 11th of May, 2003
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