Engaging Youth in Ending Gender Based Violence

This conference will bring together students, lawyers, researchers, government officials, service providers, paralegals, community leaders and activists to discuss the experiences of youth engagement on ending Gender-Based Violence. Participants are going to share informed strategies to prevent and respond to gender-based violence. This will include strategies implemented with adolescents and youth living in a broad range of settings, including settings affected by conflict and high levels of violence. Concrete examples and effective strategies for building young people’s and especially young women’s leadership will also be shared. Additionally, the subject of how to engage men and boys in ending GBV and advocating for gender equality will be discussed.

1. INTRODUCTION:

WHAT IS GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE (GBV)?

Gender-based violence (GBV) is the violence that is directed at an individual based on his or her biological sex OR gender identity. It includes physical, sexual, verbal, emotional, and psychological abuse, threats, coercion, and economic or educational deprivation, whether occurring in public or private life.

GBV may be physical, sexual, psychological, economic or socio-cultural. Its root causes need to be understood in the context of gender norms, values and beliefs which support unequal hierarchies of power between women and men but also among men and among women. These hierarchies of power not only make gender-based violence possible, in some cases, but they also create an environment where GBV is tolerated and even considered acceptable. Perpetrators may include family or community members and those acting on behalf of cultural, religious or state institutions

WHY DO WE TALK ABOUT GBV?

Gender-based violence is an issue faced by people all over the world. Women are disproportionately harmed by gender-based violence. That is why hundreds of organizations focus on ending violence against women. According to the United Nation’s Population Fund, 1 in 3 women have experienced physical or sexualized violence in their lifetime. That is not including emotional, financial, or verbal abuse. Despite being so prevalent, gender-based violence is largely under-reported because of stigma and lack of access to resources and support systems.

GBV can impact anyone regardless of their geographical location, socio-economic background, race, religion, sexuality, or gender identity. While women and girls are the most at risk and the most affected by gender-based violence, boys, men, and sexual and gender minorities also experience gender-based violence. GBV can have serious physical, mental, economic, and social repercussions. For example. sexualized violence can lead to unwanted pregnancies, unsafe abortions, and STI transmission, as well as isolation and depression. It can also prevent survivors from achieving economic prosperity because of stigma or physical and psychological trauma caused by the violence.

The prevalence of gender-based violence worldwide is largely due to systemic gender inequality that disempowers women, girls, and other minorities, and stifles their voices so that their stories are not heard and their natural human rights can be more easily taken away. The cycle of violence is further perpetuated by lack of justice, a dearth of available resources, or lack of economic opportunities which leads to the survivor being dependent on the abuser.


2. WHY YOUTH ENGAGEMENT ON ENDING GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE?

The UN defines “youth” as those persons between the ages of 15 and 24 years. If that definition is used, approximately 29 million people in Bangladesh can be categorised as a youth. In Bangladesh, however, youth are defined as persons between the ages of 18 and 35 years. Applying this definition, approximately 48 million of this country’s population may be considered as a youth: this is almost one-third of the total population

According to the UN population report, there will be 1.3 billion youth – which is a hugely positive force for change. Youth have a great role to play in preventing violence; working towards maintaining and promoting international peace, security and focusing on prevention rather than belated interventions.

Awareness raising campaigns organized by youth organizations in schools and universities have had a major impact on young people. When young men are involved in these campaigns, then, a deeper transformative change is more likely to happen and harmful gender norms can be tackled.

Youth has widely used social media. Social media has an empowering the effect, it had allowed them to reach large audiences, organize meetings, engage others in debates, and raise awareness on sexual violence and gender equality.


3. AIMS

 To share youth experiences about systems and processes for ensuring access to justice on gender-based violence;
 To understand how multi-sectoral youth interventions – on healthcare, social security, community solidarity building, – can increase to ending gender-based violence;
 To build cross-regional learning, and on how youth engagement can strengthen to ending gender-based violence;
 To build knowledge of successful challenges to discriminatory laws, policies and procedures which institutionalize discrimination and obstruct to end gender based, and of legal empowerment, strategies to implement progressive laws.

4. OUTLINE
The Conference will open with a review of challenges and opportunities youth engagement to end gender-based violence through the Inaugural Ceremony. In Session 1, speakers will focus on the basic concept of Gender-Based Violence and the situational analysis from national to a regional perspective. Along with that the legal rights and mechanism, legal service bodies, providing legal awareness, advice and information, and access to remedies at the community level and city or national level. In Session 2, speakers will highlight multi-sectoral youth interventions from social, legal and media perspective, which further secure access to justice to end gender-based violence. Session 3 will focus on sharing the best practices from regional to the national level in combating GBV.
The outcome of the sessions will emphasize the need to build and pursue regional networks and alliances for greater impact in ending gender-based violence and securing sustainable development goals. In the closing session, a summary of agreed recommendations will be presented on collaboration and commitments towards furthering the achievement of ending gender-based violence.


5. PARTICIPANTS

The people will participate in the Conference should be selected carefully following the purpose and objective of the program. 200 undergrad Students from Law, Social Science, International Relations, Journalism and Development Studies and will get preference as it is close to the purpose and objective mentioned above.
About 100 youth participants are expected, with expertise and experience in providing services around the world, including government officials, lawyers, researchers, service providers, journalists, IT experts, legal aid and rights organizations, community-based organizations, social activists, paralegals and community health workers.
Registration Fees:
100 USD for International Participants
1000 (One Thousand) Taka for the Bangladeshi Participants

6. EXPECTED OUTCOMES
The conference will result in an overall assessment of the status of Gender-Based Violence & Youth Engagement in the participating countries, with a focus on strategies, and innovations including changes in the legal or policy frameworks. It will provide a platform to map out the challenges and evaluate successes.

7. ORGANISERS

Youth for Human Rights International (YHRI) is an American nonprofit organization founded in 2001 by Dr Mary Shuttleworth, an educator born and raised in apartheid South Africa, where she witnessed firsthand the devastating effects of discrimination and the lack of basic human rights.

The purpose of YHRI is to teach youth about human rights, specifically the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and inspire them to become advocates for tolerance and peace. YHRI has now grown into a global movement, including hundreds of groups, clubs and chapters around the world.


Youth for Human Rights International teaches human rights education both in the classroom and in nontraditional educational settings. We aim to reach people from diverse backgrounds, with materials which often appeal across generations. By teaching human rights through all means—from conferences and workshops to hip-hop and dancing—this message has spread around the world.

Our materials include the UNITED music video—a street-savvy, multiethnic, anti-bullying message that has captured the imagination of people around the world. Our 30 short public service message videos depict the 30 Articles of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In less than a minute, youth can learn one of their human rights—and all of them in less than half an hour. The videos have garnered media attention as well, airing on television networks in countries worldwide. But it doesn’t end there. The videos are now airing during halftime on stadium screens, within taxicabs, on supermarket screens, in theatres, railway stations, and many other locations.
The Youth for Human Rights International (YHRI) holding the event, with the logistics support of the National Human Rights Commission, Bangladesh; United Nations Resident Coordinator Office, Dhaka; Commonwealth Youth Human Rights and Democracy Network and United for Human Rights.
8. DATE AND VENUE
The Conference will be held on the 25th October 2019 at The Olives Hotel, House No, 3 Road 126, Gulshan -1, Dhaka 1212, Bangladesh

Event link: https://www.facebook.com/events/2541304045931478