From the Federation of Municipalities of the Region of Murcia, I am attaching the institutional declaration of the FEMP on the "International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women."
Text of the Declaration in PDF
Today, November 25, we commemorate the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. We would like to remember with emotion and affection each and every one of the women victims, their sons and daughters, who are victims just like them, and their families.
We remember the more than 1.236 women who have been murdered in Spain since 2003 as a result of this terrible violence, the ultimate expression of machismo, and the 428 children who have been orphaned since 2013.
So far this year, 51 women have been murdered by their partners or ex-partners, a number of victims higher than in each of the previous three years. A harsh reality that anyone who has had contact with gender-based violence, directly or through the work of others, knows well.
Today, and every day of the year, we also express our absolute condemnation of gender violence, because abusers have no place in our society.
We reaffirm the commitment of local governments to eradicate gender violence. We will only end this type of violence by working together: all administrations, the legislative and judicial branches and the Attorney General's Office, the security forces and bodies, social organizations specializing in gender violence, the media and society as a whole. It is a State problem that must have a State response.
Education and training are two fundamental pillars for ending inequalities between men and women and eradicating gender-based violence. We are particularly concerned about how this type of violence, instead of receding, is becoming more prevalent among young people. Teenage girls are highly exposed to new forms of violence, such as control on social networks, and young people have very powerful mechanisms at their disposal to exercise this control: the current situation requires a greater effort to tackle these behaviours as soon as possible. In addition, social networks and irresponsible use of the Internet expose young people to serious forms of vulnerability and violence such as sexual exploitation or consumption of pornography.
For years, Spain has been taking important steps to combat gender-based violence in a firm manner and with State policies. This made possible the ratification of the Istanbul Convention in 2014 and the major agreement that was the State Pact against Gender Violence in 2017.
Experience confirms that the closer the Administration is, the more effective are the awareness-raising, education or early detection measures, and the better is the emergency response or follow-up of the services. Aware of this, Local Entities play a fundamental role in the development and implementation of the measures of the State Pact against Gender Violence.
Therefore, Local Governments, gathered in the FEMP:
- We invite all local authorities to join this Declaration and support all initiatives aimed at a future free of violence against women.
- We reiterate zero tolerance for any violent action against women, regardless of its intensity. There are no degrees of inequality and gender violence.
- We reaffirm our commitment to the State Pact against Gender Violence and highlight the importance of the City Councils in its development. Furthermore, and once the application of the State Pact has been evaluated, we urge its renewal in parliamentary headquarters in accordance with the commitment reached in the XIV Legislature.
- We encourage local authorities to continue developing awareness and education programmes in schools to prevent gender violence, as well as in senior centres.
- We recognize the importance of coordination among all actors involved in the fight against gender violence in order to provide a comprehensive response to victims.
- We demand the implementation of local projects and programs that promote the labor insertion of victims of gender violence.
- We are committed to evaluating the effectiveness of the measures implemented, in a process of continuous improvement to ensure their adaptation to the increased care and recovery of women.
