The safety of women and combating gender-based violence and human trafficking puts everyone’s safety and security at the centre of attention. It is about protection from all forms of violence and threats of violence, a functioning rule of law, access to the courts and both physical as well as socio-psychological security. The work aims to prevent and combat harmful traditional and cultural practices, violence against homosexuals, bisexuals and transsexuals, sexual assault in conflict and post-conflict situations, violence in the home and other forms of gender-based violence.
What is gender-based violence?
We define gender-based violence as: All the harm and suffering a woman or girl, man or boy, is subjected to which have a negative effect on the person's physical, sexual or mental health, development or identity.
The reason for the violence is founded on gender-based, unequal power structures and gender-based discrimination. Gender-based violence impedes combating poverty and gender equality and is a crime against human rights. There are no global statistics on the occurrence of violence. However, in a study on female health and violence in the home conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO) involving 24,000 women in ten countries, between 15 and 71 per cent of the women stated having at some point been subjected to physical or sexual violence by their husband or partner.
High figures were provided by women in rural areas in countries such as Bangladesh, Ethiopia and Tanzania. According to studies the occurrence of gender-based violence can reduce the monthly income for a poor family by as much as 25 to 30 per cent. It is being suggested more often that sexual violence is also a major contributing factor to the spread of HIV. Several of the countries in cooperation with Sweden are conflict and post-conflict countries. A new study conducted by the organisation Women for Women International shows that gender-based violence increases in conflict and post-conflict situations and is one of the greatest obstacles towards development and peace.
Gender-based violence stops subjected women, men, girls and boys from participating in development thus making it more difficult to gain access to education, work and good health. Work in this area therefore also aims at securing the rights and opportunities of women to influence public decision-making in conflict and post-conflict situations. We are also working towards a clearer gender equality perspective to characterise the work of disarmament, rehabilitation, peace and rebuilding to ensure the knowledge and actions of women's organisations so conflict resolution may be utilised on all levels.
