This year’s 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence highlighted once again the global concern about the need to tackle online violence against women (OVAW). From the UN to the Council of Europe and from Bengaluru to Ramallah, activists, researchers and human rights defenders were calling out the lack of action towards ending OVAW. It has been powerful, invigorating and galvanising to observe the global unity over this modern phenomenon.
However, now that 16 Days of 2021 are over, we must continue to ask difficult questions about the responsibility to end OVAW, and put a spotlight on how slow progress in addressing it is an obstacle to gender equality and women’s rights.
The pandemic of online violence against women
OVAW is no longer a niche topic and there is a growing acceptance, both amongst international institutions and the general public, that violence against women is as serious online as it is offline. What’s more, OVAW crosses geographical boundaries as well as geopolitical and cultural contexts.
