Even before the coronavirus outbreak, violence against women had reached pandemic proportions. According to UN Women, 243 million women and girls were abused by a partner and less than 40 percent of women experiencing violence report it or seek help.
Last month, Angelina Jolie, in her role as * UNHCR Special Envoy, delivered a powerful speech at the 2nd International Conference "Action With Women & Peace in Seoul".
* UNHCR - The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
She mentioned that many women have been imprisoned after attacking or killing someone to protect themselves. Jolie appealed to the responsible authorities and called for topics such as funding and programs against sexual violence, as well as the protection of human rights.
"The truth is, a woman's life is not ranked equally with that of a man, much more universally than we are willing to accept," she said. "Conflict-related sexual violence is a manifestation of this reality."
The actress, filmmaker and activist stressed that governments and political leaders seem to believe in the rights of women and girls "only to a point" - to the point that it does not conflict with business and trade, or competes with vested political interests, or "to the point that it can force us to see something we do not want to see and have to act on it."
She stressed that "this is care to a point", which means that gender equality is still at least a century away; that domestic violence has increased significantly worse during the pandemic; "and that the number of people displaced by conflict and persecution, over half of those women and children - has doubled in a decade."
What motivates Jolie in her work?
In an interview with Harper's BAZAAR she states:
"I value women. I can not bear to see the great and enduring suffering that so many women face and how little responsibility there is. I see the same patterns repeated around the world. Women are vulnerable because societies are Women and children suffer disproportionately as a result of war or economic crisis.They make up two thirds of all refugees and displaced people, and they are most affected by the effects of climate change.We do not accept violence in the family or on the basis of gender quite seriously nowhere, and we often overlook the trauma and harm suffered by children who witness or experience violence, in their own homes ”.
