Trigger Warning: Mentions of gender based violence
Honduras, one of the most dangerous countries globally, is a dream come true for women. Twelve-year-old women are forced to remain pregnant by rape, and hundreds of women are abused each year. But things can change.
The first president, Xiomara Castro, recently took office and could only be one sign for lifting a terrible ban on emergency contraception. This ban was imposed on injured and desperate women, including rape victims.
Honduras was the only Latin American country to ban the pill. However, the president promised to legalize it and needed public support to make the call. She’s under a lot of pressure, so let’s give her the power to give women rights. Register today and start a new era for women and girls throughout Honduras, and we will deliver directly to the President on International Women’s Day.
Banding With Women Of Honduras
Approximately 35% of women worldwide have experienced physical or sexual violence, intimate partner violence, and non-partner violence. It’s even worse in Honduras.
Violence against women can take many forms: assault, rape, domestic violence, psychological and verbal, murder of women disguised as honour killings, genital mutilation, sexual harassment or internet attacks, cyberbullying, hate social networks, and more.
In the worst cases, violence against women leads to death. It is estimated that 137 women worldwide are murdered by their closest partner or family member every day. In addition, approximately one in seven women has experienced physical and/or sexual violence by a close partner or husband in the last twelve months.
In 2017, more than 80% of pregnant women treated by Médecins Sans Frontières in Honduras reported that their pregnancies resulted from rape. But we can help end these violent pregnancies – and President Castro with just a signature.
That is why we need to participate and create opportunities to discuss the challenges we face, such as the policy of silence that dominates almost all female victims of violence. Reporting physical violence against a woman or girl is not an act of criticism but should contribute to developing strategies to overcome this recurring social phenomenon.
In this context, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, “All United in Ending Violence Against Women by 2030” (“All UNiTE” campaign), organized by UN Women, aims to prevent and eliminate violence against women and women in all parts of the world.
As the world celebrates International Women’s Day, we can be sure that President Castro understands that her most significant mandate is to prioritize women’s safety, protection, and dignity. It could start with the legalization of emergency contraception and then discuss several important issues to guarantee women’s rights.
The movement promotes women’s rights from Mexico to Afghanistan. Now is the time to end this ban definitively and support women’s groups from all over Honduras fighting day and night for a better future.