On International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (November 25), JHR-DRC kicked off activities for the #16daysofactivism for the prevention of gender based violence (GBV) with an on-air forum at the Radio de la Femme studio. At the forum, United Nations Joint Human Rights Office representative Charlotte Songue and Pascaline Zamuda of the Recovery and Supervision Framework for Youth Empowerment talked about policies that normalize SGBV and strategies for dismantling patriarchal norms.

The UN Women estimates that roughly 51% of Congolese women have experienced sexual and/or physical Intimate Partner Violence  During the discussion, Songue stressed, “The government needs to take more concrete actions to address factors that contribute to SGBV.”

Guest speakers also discussed the significance of the Positive Masculinity conference taking place in Kinshasa, which was attended by six African heads of state. The conference seeks to adopt an African Union endorsed declaration to end violence against women and girls. Zamunda said this was a positive step: “The conference sends a strong message on the need to end GBV. I invite the youth to follow in the footsteps of the leaders and embrace positive masculinity.”