Campaigns to End Violence against Women and Girls - Virtual ...

1.6 WHAT CAN ONE EXPECT FROM A CAMPAIGN ON VAW?
With a clear strategy, frequent consultation with stakeholders and careful planning, it is
possible to make change happen. Existing evaluations and evidence show that
campaigns can be successful – within a reasonable scope. A single campaign however,
cannot solve all issues related to VAW. Long-term multi-pronged strategies are needed
to effectively prevent and reduce violence against women and girls (WHO, 2010.
Preventing intimate partner and sexual violence...). The sum of partial campaign
successes has done much to contribute to tangible change in public awareness, and in
laws and policies to end VAW.
The following describes what might reasonably be expected as successful
outcomes of a campaign to end VAW:
� As a minimum, to break the silence on violence against women and girls:
campaigning is about public action to achieve change, i.e. making VAW a public
issue. However, breaking the silence is only a first, albeit essential, step towards
ending VAW.
� In advocacy campaigns, to influence decision-makers: the more public support a
campaign garners, the more it is likely the issue will be noticed by politicians and
opinion-makers who can prompt policy/institutional change.
� To attain specific and realistic campaign goals: a campaign for a precise action
to be taken by a well-specified group of people has better chances of reaping
success than a vague call for an end to violence. Such goals may include -
a. prompting survivors of violence to seek support and redress
b. securing government funding for women’s centers that support VAW survivors
c. convincing legislators to translate international law on VAW into national
legislation (see Legislation Module.)
d. persuading perpetrators of violence to seek treatment
Examples:
The Freedom from Fear campaign in Western Australia succeeded in substantially
increasing the number of VAW perpetrators seeking psychological treatment by
phoning a help-line.
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Campaigns December 2011