Shattering the Chains to End Violence Against Women: 25 November

25 November – A Day of Remembrance, Reflection, and Renewed Action

Every year on 25 November, the world unites in remembrance, reflection, and renewed commitment to confront one of the most widespread and preventable human rights violations of our time: violence against women and girls. This date is not arbitrary. On 25 November 1960, in the Dominican Republic, three sisters—Patria, Minerva, and María Teresa Mirabal—were assassinated on the orders of dictator Rafael Trujillo. Their courage in standing against tyranny and their tragic deaths became a powerful symbol of resistance against injustice. In 1999, the United Nations General Assembly officially adopted this date as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (Resolution 54/134), transforming a moment of historical anguish into a global call to action.

The Stark Reality: 2025 Global Data

More than two decades later, the reality remains profoundly troubling. According to the WHO's comprehensive report "Violence against women prevalence estimates, 2023" published on 19 November 2025—synthesizing data from 168 countries for intimate partner violence and 140 countries for non-partner sexual violence spanning 2000-2023—the global picture is stark:

840 million women—approximately one in three women (30%) aged 15 and older—have experienced physical or sexual violence from an intimate partner or non-partner at least once in their lifetime. This staggering figure represents a crisis of unprecedented scale, yet one that has shown negligible improvement over two decades, with only a marginal annual decrease of 0.2% in intimate partner violence rates.

Breaking down these numbers further reveals the depth of the crisis:

316 million women and girls (approximately 11% globally) experienced physical or sexual violence from an intimate partner within the past 12 months alone.
263 million women have experienced non-partner sexual violence since age 15—a figure widely acknowledged to be underestimated due to severe underreporting driven by stigma, fear, and systemic barriers.
12.5 million girls aged 15-19 (representing 16% of this age group) experienced intimate partner violence within the past year, demonstrating that violence begins early and affects the most vulnerable.

The COVID-19 pandemic (2020-2022) served as a historical inflection point, exposing and exacerbating this crisis. Many countries reported increases in domestic violence ranging from 20 to 60 percent during lockdown periods, coining the term "shadow pandemic" to describe violence unfolding behind closed doors while the world focused on a different emergency.

The Ultimate Price: Femicide Statistics

Perhaps the most devastating manifestation of this violence is femicide—the gender-related killing of women and girls. According to the joint UN Women and UNODC report "Femicides in 2024: Global estimates of intimate partner/family member femicides" published on 25 November 2025:

50,000 women and girls were killed in 2024 by intimate partners or family members. This translates to 137 women or girls killed every single day—approximately one every 10 minutes. This represents 60% of all intentional homicides of women and girls globally, underscoring that for women, the most dangerous place is often their own home, and the most dangerous person is someone they know and trust.

Regional Disparities in Femicide Rates (per 100,000 females):

The burden of violence is not equally distributed across the globe:

Africa: 3.0 (highest regional rate)
The Americas: 1.5
Oceania: 1.4
Asia: 0.7
Europe: 0.5 (lowest regional rate)

These regional variations reflect complex intersections of factors including legal frameworks, cultural norms, economic conditions, conflict situations, and the strength of support systems and accountability mechanisms.

Notably, the 2023 estimate was 51,100 femicides; the slight decrease to 50,000 in 2024 does not represent genuine progress but rather reflects variations in data availability and reporting across countries.

Understanding the Crisis: A Structural Problem

Violence against women is not a private matter or isolated incidents of individual deviance. It is a structural problem deeply rooted in gender inequality, harmful social norms, economic dependency, inadequate legal protection, and cultures of silence and impunity. This violence manifests in multiple interconnected forms:

Physical violence includes hitting, kicking, burning, strangulation, or any form of bodily harm that causes injury, disability, or death.

Sexual violence encompasses rape, forced sexual acts, sexual harassment in public and private spaces including workplaces and educational institutions, and sexual exploitation.

Psychological and emotional abuse, though often invisible, inflicts profound damage—including controlling behavior, isolation from family and friends, humiliation, threats, surveillance, and constant criticism that systematically erodes self-esteem and mental health.

Economic abuse traps women in abusive relationships by controlling access to financial resources, preventing employment, sabotaging career opportunities, exploiting women's economic contributions, or creating deliberate financial dependency.

In our digital age, technology-facilitated gender-based violence has emerged as a growing concern: cyberstalking, online harassment, non-consensual sharing of intimate images, deepfake pornography, digital impersonation, GPS tracking, and social media abuse create new avenues for perpetrators while affecting women's ability to participate fully and safely in digital spaces.

Harmful traditional practices persist in various regions, including female genital mutilation (affecting millions of girls annually), child marriage (robbing girls of childhood, education, and autonomy), honor killings, dowry-related violence, and forced marriages. These practices, often justified through cultural or religious interpretations, constitute grave human rights violations.

Progress Worth Acknowledging

Despite the sobering statistics, there has been meaningful progress that provides foundation for continued action:

The Istanbul Convention (2011) remains the most comprehensive regional binding instrument on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, establishing legal standards and accountability mechanisms.

The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence campaign, running annually from 25 November to 10 December (International Human Rights Day), has become the largest globally coordinated effort against gender-based violence, engaging millions of activists, organizations, and governments.

The Orange the World movement has transformed buildings, landmarks, and social media platforms to orange—a symbol of a brighter future free from violence—creating powerful visual solidarity across continents.

Legislative advancement has been significant: more than 150 countries have enacted laws specifically addressing domestic violence, while 140 countries have legislation on sexual harassment in the workplace. Many countries have reformed rape laws to recognize marital rape, eliminate statutes of limitation for sexual offenses, and shift legal frameworks from victim-blaming to perpetrator accountability.

Yet critical gaps remain: implementation and enforcement vary widely, access to justice is limited for many women, and legal protections for marginalized groups—including LGBTQ+ individuals, migrants, refugees, and women with disabilities—require substantial strengthening.

The Funding Crisis

One of the most significant barriers to progress is catastrophically inadequate funding. In 2022, only 0.2% of global development assistance was allocated to programs preventing violence against women, and this percentage has declined further in 2025. This represents a severe disconnect between the scale of the crisis (affecting 840 million women, costing $1.5 trillion annually, or approximately 2% of global GDP) and the resources dedicated to addressing it.

From Discourse to Action: What Must Be Done

Ending violence against women and girls is not merely an aspirational goal; it is a realistic and achievable objective—but only if we move from discourse to coordinated, sustained action with adequate resources and political will.

Individual Action

Individuals can start by educating themselves about the dynamics of gender-based violence, challenging harmful stereotypes and sexist language in everyday conversations, supporting survivors without judgment or victim-blaming, refusing to remain silent when witnessing abuse, modeling respectful relationships, and teaching children about consent, equality, and healthy relationships from an early age.

Men and boys have a crucial role as allies: challenging harmful masculinity norms among peers, calling out sexist behavior, understanding consent, supporting women's leadership, and recognizing that gender equality benefits everyone.

Institutional Responsibility

Educational institutions—from primary schools through universities—must implement comprehensive programs addressing gender equality, consent, healthy relationships, and bystander intervention. This education should be age-appropriate, evidence-based, and continuous throughout schooling.

Workplaces must establish and enforce robust anti-harassment policies, provide training on recognizing and responding to domestic violence, offer flexible work arrangements and support for employees experiencing violence, and create cultures of respect and accountability.

Healthcare systems must adopt trauma-informed approaches, train providers to recognize signs of violence, establish standardized screening protocols, provide sensitive and confidential care, and connect survivors with specialized support services.

Media and entertainment industries carry responsibility for portraying women respectfully, challenging harmful stereotypes that normalize violence or objectify women, amplifying survivor voices responsibly, and contributing to cultural transformation through storytelling that promotes equality.

State Obligations

Governments bear the primary responsibility for protecting women's human rights:

Legislative action: Ratify and fully implement international conventions (particularly the Istanbul Convention and CEDAW), close legislative gaps especially concerning marital rape, gender-based killings (femicide), digital violence, and stalking, ensure laws protect all women including marginalized groups.
Adequate funding: Dramatically increase resources for specialized support services, prevention programs, and research to match the scale of the crisis—far beyond the current 0.2% of development assistance.
Justice systems: Establish specialized courts, train law enforcement and judicial personnel in trauma-informed approaches, eliminate victim-blaming practices, ensure swift and certain accountability for perpetrators, and provide accessible legal aid for survivors.
Support services: Fund 24/7 emergency hotlines, crisis centers, safe shelters with adequate capacity, transitional housing, medical care, mental health services, legal advocacy, and economic empowerment programs.
Prevention: Invest in education programs, public awareness campaigns, community mobilization, engaging men and boys, and addressing root causes including gender inequality and harmful norms.
Data and research: Improve data collection, ensure regular surveys, support research on effective interventions, and use evidence to inform policy decisions.

Prevention Through Education

Education represents one of the most powerful tools for preventing violence. Comprehensive sexuality education that includes consent, bodily autonomy, healthy relationships, gender equality, respect, and digital safety must begin at age-appropriate levels and continue throughout schooling.

Programs challenging harmful masculinity norms, promoting emotional literacy, and modeling respectful behavior contribute to cultural transformation. Father-involvement initiatives and male advocacy groups demonstrate that engaging men and boys is essential for lasting change.

Bystander intervention training equips individuals with skills to recognize warning signs, safely intervene in potentially harmful situations, and support survivors—transforming entire communities from passive observers to active participants in violence prevention.

Supporting Survivors: Pathways to Safety and Healing

Comprehensive support services are essential for survivors:

Immediate safety: Emergency hotlines operating 24/7, crisis centers offering immediate intervention, safe shelters providing secure accommodation, and emergency protective orders.

Healthcare: Medical care addressing immediate injuries, forensic examination, sexual and reproductive health services, and trauma-informed mental health support including counseling and psychiatric care.

Legal support: Legal advocacy helping survivors navigate judicial systems, understand their rights, access protective orders, pursue criminal prosecution or civil remedies, and obtain custody or immigration relief.

Economic empowerment: Job training and placement, microfinance initiatives, entrepreneurship support, financial literacy programs, and access to education—enabling survivors to achieve financial independence crucial for leaving abusive situations and rebuilding lives.

Critically, services must be accessible, culturally appropriate, language-accessible, disability-inclusive, and responsive to diverse needs including those of LGBTQ+ individuals, migrants, refugees, indigenous women, and women facing multiple forms of discrimination.

Digital Activism: Amplifying Voices for Change

Social media platforms have transformed how we observe and engage with this cause. Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok have become powerful spaces for awareness, education, mobilization, and survivor storytelling.

Key hashtags create global conversations: #EndViolenceAgainstWomen, #16Days, #OrangeTheWorld, #BelieveSurvivors, #HearMeToo, #NotOneMore (#NiUnaMas), and #TimesUp connect activists, survivors, organizations, and allies worldwide.

The impact extends beyond awareness: digital campaigns have influenced policy changes, pressured institutions to address systemic issues, connected survivors with resources, challenged perpetrators' impunity, and created communities of support transcending geographical boundaries.

The Intersection of Violence and Other Crises

Violence against women does not occur in isolation but intersects with other global challenges:

Climate change disproportionately affects women and increases vulnerability to violence through displacement, resource scarcity, breakdown of social structures, and increased stress on communities.

Humanitarian emergencies and conflict see dramatic increases in sexual violence, trafficking, exploitation, forced marriage, and the breakdown of protective systems, while humanitarian responses often fail to adequately address gender-based violence.

Economic instability creates conditions where violence flourishes as financial stress exacerbates tensions, women lack resources to leave dangerous situations, and support services face budget cuts.

Pandemics and health crises, as COVID-19 demonstrated, can trap women in dangerous situations while simultaneously restricting access to support services and overwhelming healthcare systems.

Understanding these intersections is crucial for developing comprehensive responses addressing root causes and structural factors that enable violence.

A Checkpoint, Not Just a Memorial

25 November is not merely a day of remembrance. It is an annual checkpoint: a moment to measure how far we have come, acknowledge how much remains ahead, assess whether political will matches the magnitude of the crisis, and recommit to accelerated action.

The statistics are clear: 840 million women affected, 50,000 women and girls killed annually by those closest to them, only 0.2% annual decrease in violence rates, and only 0.2% of development aid allocated to prevention. These numbers demand urgent, scaled-up, sustained response.

Violence against women and girls is not an inevitable fate. It is a choice—a choice that societies continue to make through action or inaction, through adequate or inadequate funding, through strong or weak enforcement, through cultural transformation or maintenance of harmful norms.

Conclusion: The Chains Can Be Broken

The chains binding 840 million women can be broken. But breaking them requires all of us—individuals, institutions, governments, and international community—working with unprecedented coordination, commitment, and resources.

It requires men and boys as allies, not bystanders. It requires adequate funding matching the crisis scale. It requires laws with teeth and enforcement with consistency. It requires cultural transformation challenging centuries of inequality. It requires centering survivor voices and experiences in all responses.

The vision of a world where every woman and girl can live free from fear, violence, and discrimination is not utopian—it is achievable. The progress over recent decades, though insufficient, proves that change is possible when communities unite with determination and purpose.

As we observe 25 November and engage in the 16 Days of Activism, let us commit not only to awareness but to action—action that continues 365 days a year, action that challenges systems and structures perpetuating violence, action backed by adequate resources, and action that centers justice, dignity, and equality.

Wear orange. Raise your voices. Demand accountability. Support survivors. Challenge perpetrators. Educate the next generation. And most importantly—take sustained, meaningful action.

Together, we can break the silence, transform cultures, and create a world where the elimination of violence against women is not merely an aspiration but a reality for all.

Key Statistics: The Crisis in Numbers (2025 Data)

Global Prevalence:

840 million women (1 in 3, or 30% aged 15+) have experienced physical/sexual violence in their lifetime (WHO, 2025)
316 million women and girls (11% globally) experienced intimate partner violence in the past 12 months
263 million women have experienced non-partner sexual violence since age 15
12.5 million girls aged 15-19 (16% of age group) experienced intimate partner violence in past year
0.2% annual decrease in intimate partner violence rates—demonstrating insufficient progress over two decades

Femicide:

50,000 women and girls killed by intimate partners or family members in 2024 (UN Women & UNODC, 2025)
137 women/girls killed daily—approximately one every 10 minutes
60% of all intentional homicides of women/girls are by intimate partners or family

Regional Femicide Rates (per 100,000 females):

Africa: 3.0 (highest)
Americas: 1.5
Oceania: 1.4
Asia: 0.7
Europe: 0.5 (lowest)

Economic Impact:

$1.5 trillion annual global cost (≈2% of global GDP)
Only 0.2% of development aid allocated to violence prevention programs (2022, declining in 2025)

COVID-19 Impact (Historical 2020-2022):

20-60% increase in domestic violence reports during lockdowns

Data Coverage:

Analysis based on comprehensive data from 168 countries (intimate partner violence) and 140 countries (non-partner sexual violence)

Important Dates

25 November: International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women
25 November - 10 December: 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence
10 December: International Human Rights Day

Essential Resources and References

Latest Global Reports (November 2025):

WHO (2025): Violence against women prevalence estimates, 2023
Published: 19 November 2025
View Report
UN Women & UNODC (2025): Femicides in 2024: Global estimates of intimate partner/family-member femicides
Published: 25 November 2025
View Report

International Frameworks:

Istanbul Convention (2011): Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence
UN General Assembly Resolution 54/134 (1999): Establishing 25 November as International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women
CEDAW (Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women)

Shattering the Chains to End Violence Against Women: 25 November – A Global Commitment to Eradicate VAWG.