A Call to End Violence Against Women: Fighting to Defend Dignity and Protect Futures

Defending the rights and dignity of women is a fight for humanity itself, and ending violence against women is key to securing a safer and brighter future for children, especially girls, who deserve to grow up in a world of equality and opportunity.

On this International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, we stand united to amplify the voices of women and girls who endure violence and systemic oppression, while also recognizing the countless children whose lives are profoundly shaped by its devastating ripple effects. When women suffer, children suffer -physically, emotionally, and socially- perpetuating cycles of trauma and inequality that stretch across generations. We reaffirm our commitment to building a society where safety, dignity, and justice are not privileges but fundamental rights for all.

Violence against women extends far beyond the home; it is a profound violation of human rights, born from entrenched inequality and discrimination, an undeniable form of gender apartheid that demands immediate and collective action.

Across the world, nearly one in three women[1] have faced physical or sexual violence, most often at the hands of someone they trusted. This disturbing reality highlights the systemic nature of this crisis, which thrives in silence and impunity. For far too many women, this violence ends in tragedy: in 2023 alone, 51,100 women were murdered by partners or family members, a horrifying statistic that reminds us that every 10 minutes, a woman’s life is violently taken[2]. These figures represent not just statistics; they signify a call to action against the global epidemic of gender-based violence.

Harmful practices such as female genital mutilation, child marriage, and honor killings, coupled with modern threats like cyber harassment, show that the forms of violence against women evolve, but their purpose remains the same: to oppress and control. For girls, the flow of discrimination is institutionalized from the very beginning, within families, schools, and eventually across all aspects of society, including the economy, law, and politics. This pervasive inequality shapes their lives, reinforcing cycles of oppression at every turn.

In Iran, violence against women is not just pervasive; it is institutionalized, woven into the very fabric of society by a system designed to oppress. These laws are rooted in traditions drawn from an interpretation of Islamic teachings that not only deny women equal rights but also strip them of any inherent value or recognition of their fundamental rights. This systemic oppression ensures that women are relegated to a subordinate status, perpetuating their marginalization at every level of society. Physical, psychological, sexual, and economic abuse, along with controlling behaviors, devastate women’s lives both inside and outside their homes. Yet, those responsible for such horrors often go unpunished. The Iranian government, far from protecting women, stands as one of the most powerful enablers of these violations.

Women in Iran endure systemic abuse daily, and the very laws meant to protect them instead reinforce their oppression. A chilling example reveals this stark injustice: a man who murdered his wife received only an eight-year prison sentence[3], while women accused of similar crimes face execution.[4]

Online abuse, including cyberstalking, harassment, revenge pornography, and non-consensual sharing of intimate images, is another pervasive issue. This violence often transcends personal relationships and is weaponized by the Iranian regime to silence women and crush dissent[5]. The message is clear: no space, not even the virtual one, is safe for women seeking autonomy.

Discrimination and abuse by the Iranian regime extend into law enforcement and detention facilities. Reports suggest women’s prisons are far worse than men’s revealing a twisted logic[6]: as a woman, stepping out of the boundaries of a male-dominated society is seen as a double offense. Women are punished not once but twice, first for their alleged crime and again for being a woman who dared to commit it and to defy governmental law that demanded their submission.

Sexual violence has been wielded as a weapon of repression throughout the 45 years of the Islamic Republic's rule. Since the "Woman, Life, Freedom" revolution, reports have exposed the systematic use of sexual violence against women and girls arrested during protests, with the regime justifying such atrocities as tools to silence dissent[7]. Every day, countless women resist the regime’s oppressive laws, including the mandatory hijab, turning something as simple as their choice of clothing into an act of defiance. This daily struggle places thousands of women in constant conflict with a regime determined to control their autonomy and silence their resistance. This is not just violence; it is a war against women's bodies and voices.

The Iranian regime's oppression does not stop at the individual level. Structural and institutional violence, upheld by discriminatory laws and practices, ensures women are marginalized at every turn. Denied legal protection, excluded from equal opportunities, and forced into submission, women in Iran are fighting a system designed to erase them. This is a battle for survival, not just recognition. Confronting such injustice demands more than acknowledgment; it calls for transformative, global action.

Perpetrators must be held accountable, and the international community must stand with Iranian women by supporting bold, well-funded strategies to dismantle the regime of oppression, while empowering women’s rights movements to lead the fight.

Children who grow up under suppressive regimes like the Iranian regime are not only subjected to countless child rights abuses, but they also witness gender-based violence up close. They see violence at home that goes unpunished and systemic oppression wielded by those in power. When they watch regimes target their mothers, their sisters, and their teachers, they are robbed yet again of safety and stability. This systemic violence grips entire generations, teaching children that inequality is inevitable and normalizing cycles of abuse.

True justice will come only when the structures of inequality, whether in homes, communities, or entire nations, are torn down and replaced with systems built on equality, freedom, and respect for all. This means not only restoring dignity and freedom to women but also securing a safer, brighter future for their children. A world where no child grows up in the shadow of oppression and abuse.

As child rights activists, we must and will fight tirelessly to dismantle all systems of violence, whether they exist within homes or are enforced by oppressive regimes.

Our mission is to demand that politicians and governments end their support for the suppressive Iranian regime. To the people of the world, we seek your solidarity and unwavering support for those fighting for freedom and justice. We must stand firmly with Iranians, particularly Iranian women, by advocating for political strategies that weaken and dismantle the regime of oppression while empowering women’s rights movements. This movement has already proven its strength and resilience, it can and will lead the fight, provided the international community ceases protecting the oppressors and, for once, stands on the right side of history.

[1] https://data.unwomen.org/global-database-on-violence-against-women

[2] https://www.un.org/en/observances/ending-violence-against-women-day

[3] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-64319487

[4] https://iranhr.net/en/articles/6606/

[5]https://themedialine.org/by-region/female-influencers-in-iran-targeted-by-cyberattacks-blame-the-iranian-government/

[6] https://wncri.org/2021/12/09/the-conditions-of-women-iran-prisons/

[7]https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2023/12/iran-security-forces-used-rape-and-other-sexual-violence-to-crush-woman-life-freedom-uprising-with-impunity/