18/11/2025
Next week marks the start of this important annual campaign to reduce inequalities and raise awareness of Gender Based Violence.
Gender-based violence (GBV) is violence directed against a person because of their gender or violence that affects people of a particular gender disproportionately. It is an umbrella term for harmful acts rooted in a system of unequal power between genders and includes a wide range of abuses.
✳️Key Aspects of Gender-Based Violence
Rooted in Inequality: GBV stems from historical and current power imbalances and societal norms that discriminate against and marginalize certain genders, most commonly women and girls.
✳️Disproportionate Impact: While anyone can experience GBV, women and girls are overwhelmingly and disproportionately affected.
✳️Forms of Harm: The harm caused by GBV can be physical, sexual, psychological/emotional, and socio-economic.
✳️Scope: GBV can occur in both private and public life, including at home, school, work, online, and in communities, and can be perpetrated by partners, family members, strangers, or even state actors.
Examples of Gender-Based Violence
Forms of GBV include, but are not limited to:
Domestic or intimate partner violence (physical, sexual, psychological, and economic abuse)
R**e and other forms of sexual assault or abuse
Sexual harassment in various settings
Harmful practices such as female ge***al mutilation (FGM) and "honor" crimes
Forced marriage and child marriage
Human trafficking for sexual exploitation or forced labor
Online violence, including cyber harassment and the non-consensual sharing of private images
Hate crimes targeting individuals who do not conform to gender norms, such as homophobic and transphobic bullying.
Gender-based violence is a violation of human rights and is recognized globally as a public health problem with long-lasting physical, mental, and social consequences for survivors and their communities.
All together to prevent and end gender-based violence
Local people are being asked to support the annual 16 Days of Action campaign to challenge Gender Based Violence.
16 Days of Action is an annual international campaign to raise awareness about gender-based violence. Gender-based violence is any act of violence that is directed at a person because of their gender, or that affects people of a particular gender disproportionately.
Every year, partners of the Gender Based Violence Committee looks to engage Lothian in the annual 16 days of action campaign to raise awareness about gender-based violence and work with local groups and communities with aspiration of making West Lothian a safer place for everyone to live.
A march and rally will take place on the first day of the campaign, Tuesday 25th November. The march will start at West Lothian College around 10:15am before finishing outside West Lothian Civic Centre where attendees will get to hear important messages from individuals involved in the campaign.
As part of 16 Days activities, the Gender Based Violence Committee are keen to hear from people who live or work in West Lothian about their local experiences of Gender Based Violence via an anonymous survey. The information gathered in this survey will help identify the strengths, gaps and inequities in services in West Lothian, and inform future improvements.
https://forms.office.com/e/YtU6FAx7n8
For more information on the 2025 awareness raising campaign, see: https://westlothianhscp.org.uk/16-days-of-action
