The 25th November each year is dedicated as a day against gender-based violence since 1981 and in doing so, inviting governments, international organizations as well as NGOs to join together and organize activities designed to raise public awareness of the issue every year on that date. This year’s theme is ‘Orange the world, Generation Equality stands against rape’.
Hon. Desheila Bastienne as a Member of the Women’s Parliamentary Caucus(WPC) made a powerful speech in commemoration of this day to the House, highlighting not only violence against women and girls, but also against men and boys. In her moving speech, Hon. Bastienne pointed out the severity of gender-based violence in Seychelles, highlighting that in the first quarter of 2022 around 184 cases were reported in the country. She went on to state that “before the tribunal from May 2021 to May 2022, 734 cases of protective orders of which 48 were cases of sexual violence….this shows the severity of the situation in the country and the necessity of laws that protect the population against violence.”
To end her speech, Hon. Bastienne called for unity in the fight against gender-based violence and to not wait for tomorrow to address the severity of the situation.
All Members and Parliamentary staff of the National Assembly wore orange ribbons throughout the day as a way to promote awareness gender-based violence on breast cancer and stand in solidarity with the global movement aimed at laying the foundation for the road towards a world free of gender-based violence.
Read the full speech of Hon. Desheila Bastienne here: https://www.nationalassembly.sc/publications/statements/statement-hon-desheila-bastienne-international-day-elimination-violence
