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Gender Equality Committee of the Parliament of Montenegro and NGO NOVA Centre for Feminist Culture, with partners from the media, are implementing campaign “MEN’S LEAGUE AGAINST VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN”.
According to the United Nations data, one in three women gets beaten, raped or psychologically abused in her lifetime. These statistics lead to a devastating knowledge that over a billion women in the world are exposed to daily psychological or physical violence. According to the World Bank data, women aged 15 to 44 are more at risk from rape and domestic violence than from cancer, traffic accidents or war.
In order to change this situation, changes are needed in the approach to this problem, there needs to be raising of awareness, and more decisive and creative action that could ensure decrease or end of violence against women.
Men, as leaders, decision makers, fathers, and friends, have a significant role in fighting violence against women and with their engagement they point out that this problem affects not only women, but society as a whole. They are positive role models to other men and boys.
Montenegrin campaign “16 days of activism against violence against women” in 2008 was supported by sports worker Mr Petar Porobić and Mr Igor Kolaković, as well as Water Polo Swimming Association of Montenegro, Basketball Association of Montenegro, and Football Association of Montenegro. This campaign invited all men to get involved in the solving of this problem by teaching the future generations that violence is not the right path, with a message “Being strong does not mean being a bully”.
Within the 2012 campaign, organised by the UN system in Montenegro, European Union Delegation, Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe Mission to Montenegro, Ministry of Justice and Human Rights and Gender Equality Committee of the Parliament of Montenegro, establishment of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen was initiated as an aid mechanism for supporting the efforts on reducing domestic violence, while 19 students from the Grammar School “Petar I Petrović Njegoš” from Danilovgrad during the campaign “16 days of activism against violence against women” in 2014, recorded a video message: “I am a real man because I will never hit a woman” and posted it on Facebook.
However, both in the Balkans and here, the behaviour model of men is such that men need to demonstrate that they are strong and it is necessary to remind them that real men are not bullies, they are not afraid to loudly voice their opinion, they are role models, tolerant, respectful of women and advocate gender equality.
“Men’s League against Violence against Women” is a campaign with a basic goal of greater and more engaged involvement of men in the fight against violence against women. This campaign wants to send a message to men in Montenegro that violence against women is not “a women’s matter”, that men have an important role in suppressing violence against women; that male role models that imply violence cannot be tolerated and that public advocating for end of violence and using the available instruments for that by influential men is an important element of this fight.
Basic elements of the campaign are production and broadcasting of five video messages in which men from various spheres of public life: Mr Nikola Janović, Mr Vladimir Dobričanin, Mr Vladimir Maraš, Mr Danilo Marunović, and Mr Petar Komnenić address the public and primarily other men, with clear messages on necessity of greater and more committed involvement of men in fighting violence against women.
The campaign is being implemented by the Gender Equality Committee of the Parliament of Montenegro and NGO NOVA Centre for Feminist Culture,with support of the US Embassy in Podgorica. Agency for Electronic Media helped in media implementation of the campaign and with the TV stations: TVCG, TV VIJESTI, PRVA TV, TV 777, PINK M, TV ATLAS, RTV NIKŠIĆ, TV BUDVA, RTV PLJEVLJA, TV CORONA, TV SUN, which accepted the proposal to broadcast the video clips, and thus it became a media partner in the campaign “Men’s League against Violence”.
For a certain while, at the global level, the awareness is being raised that gender equality is not possible if this political goal is being treated as exclusively “women’s issue”. Involvement of men fosters the hope in the successful outcome of fighting both violence against women and domestic violence. The actors of the fight against the gender-based violence increasingly recognise the significance of men’s involvement, sharing the position that violence against women cannot end unless men start to publicly advocate non-violence and unless they publicly stand against the aggressive models of masculinity.
Founding the “Network of Men Leaders” to combat Violence against Women, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said:” These men will add their voices to the growing global chorus for action. I call on men and boys everywhere to join us. Break the silence. When you witness violence against women and girls, do not sit back. Act. Advocate. Unite to change the practices and attitudes that condone this violence. Violence against women and girls will not be eradicated until all of us – men and boys – refuse to tolerate it.”
The voices of Mr Vladimir Dobričanin, Mr Vladimir Maraš, Mr Danilo Marunović, Mr Petar Komnenić, and Mr Nikola Janović are added to the global chorus for action.
Video material for the campaign was produced by the following: Ms Nataša Nelević, initiator of the campaign and co-author of the script; Mr Duško Miljanić, co-author of the script and directing; Ms Vjera Nikolić, author of the music; Mr Danilo Papić, camera man, and Mr Jovo Kljajić, audio processing associate.
See more:
https://www.sendspace.com/file/v7iriv
https://www.sendspace.com/file/rv8o2d
