Attornies-General to become White Ribbon Day Ambassadors
The Standing Committee of Attorneys-General, meeting in NZ, has announced that on the eve of the 25th Anniversary of the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women, all Ministers agreed to become ambassadors of the White Ribbon Foundation, signalling their commitment to reducing violence against women.
About November 25 White Ribbon Day
White Ribbon Day is the largest effort by men across the world, working in partnership with women, to end men’s violence against women.
On November 25, hundreds of thousands of people around the world will be wearing white ribbons to encourage all men to speak out against violence towards women.
[Disclosure: I am a director of Australia’s CEO Challenge, which receives funding from the Queensland Government for White Ribbon Day activities in Queensland.]
The History of White Ribbon Day
On November 25, 1960, the three Mirabal sisters from the Dominican Republic were killed for their political activism. The sisters became known as the “Unforgettable Butterflies” and became a symbol of the crisis of violence against women.
White Ribbon Day was first introduced in Canada in 1991 after the shooting of 14 female students at the University of Montreal. In the first year, 100,000 ribbons were distributed to men across Canada. White Ribbon Day has now spread to countries on every continent and has the support of UNIFEM and Amnesty International.
In 1999, the United Nations declared November 25 as the ‘International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women’.
