Gunnedah Shire will once again show its support for the call to end gender and sexual violence against women and girls with a candlelight vigil on Tuesday, 10 December.
The vigil, organised by Gunnedah Shire Council in partnership with the Gunnedah CommUNITY Action Team, is part of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence that runs from the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on November 25, to Human Rights Day on December 10.
Gunnedah Shire Council Community and Social Planner Debra Hilton said the event was a chance for people to unite in support of safety for women and girls.
“Australia is facing a national crisis of violence against women, with one woman killed in Australia every four days,” Ms Hilton said. “To date, the lives of 85 women and children have been taken in our country.
“Sadly, we know that number will rise before the year is out, just as we know that one in three women will experience violence in their lifetime and that any level of violence other than zero, is unacceptable.
“We invite everyone in our community to join us and stand together to be part of the 16 Days of Activism to show their support and to say no to violence. 16 Days of Activism is a global movement that reinforces that gender-based violence isn’t limited to intimate partner violence and family violence. It’s also about coercive control, depravation of liberty, online abuse, stalking and harassment.”
The theme for this year – “Towards Beijing +30: UNiTE to End Violence Against Women and Girls” -recognises that 2025 will mark the 30th anniversary review of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. The colour theme is orange.
“This year, we will also be providing a free community barbecue, with local support services and members of the Gunnedah CommUNITY Action Team in attendance. Battery-operated candles will be provided, and the vigil will include a reading of the names of each victim of domestic violence and intimate partner violence in 2024 followed by one minute’s silence.”
Council will display its “No Violence” banners in Conadilly Street and the Poetry Precinct from 23 November to 5 December.
Gunnedah Shire Council encourages community members and organisations to go orange, and to consider doing something of their own to show support, with resources available on the UN Women website https://www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/unite/16-days-of-activism
What: 16 Days of Activism Candlelight Vigil and Community Barbecue
When: 7pm – 9pm, Tuesday 10 December 2024
Where: Smithurst Theatre Courtyard, (Beside the Town Hall), Conadilly Street, Gunnedah