UN Women calls for social awareness on gender-based violence

BEIJING, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- UN Women held a launch ceremony for a 16-day event featuring prevention and elimination of violence against women and girls on Wednesday in Beijing.

The event, themed on "Generation Equality: Stands Against Violence," started on Nov. 25, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.

The 16-day event chose the color orange to warn against gender-based violence, as well as to express hope and encouragement for the victims, aiming to raise public awareness to respect women and support their rights.

A series of activities will be held including "Orange the World," an online campaign encouraging the public to pay more attention to gender-based violence by answering relevant questions.

"Every day and everywhere, people should share responsibilities to achieve the goal of eliminating gender-based violence," said Smriti Aryal, head of the office for UN Women China, who also noted the importance of China's anti-domestic violence law that went into effect in 2016.

Hot issues including public attitudes, evidence collection and education on gender-based violence were also discussed at the ceremony.

Lyu Xiaoquan, a public interest lawyer, stressed the importance of collecting evidence which includes mediation and diagnosis records.

"Women in China are undergoing a process of self-awakening. They should know that if one woman stands up to tell her story, it saves far more women than herself," said Chinese actor Hai Qing, who is also UN Women goodwill ambassador for China.