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Ukrainian Celebrities Join Campaign to Protect Women
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Kyiv, Ukraine, March 2009- On International Women's Day, prominent Ukrainian artists, athletes, politicians and writers were among the Ukrainian men who joined a new network fighting violence against women in the country. Violence against women in the Ukraine is an endemic problem. “We Ukrainian men leaders who have a certain impact on our society and its development have to unite our efforts to fight against this dire phenomenon,” Verkhovna Rada Deputy Speaker, Mykola Tomenko, said. According to the Ministry of Ukraine for Family, Youth and Sports, there were more than 56,000 domestic violence incidents in 2008. The actual number is believed to be much higher than those figures, since many incidents are unreported. Additionally, 90 percent of domestic violence victims in Ukraine are women. As a result, Ukrainian men have signed onto the Stop Violence! campaign. Launched in Ukraine in 2008, the programme is managed by the United Nations Development Programme. The European Union will also fund an outdoor social advertising campaign in April. The campaign coincides with the United Nation’s multi-year initiative, “Unite to End Violence Against Women.” Both campaigns are in response to global violence against women. According to the UNDP, globally one out of three women is beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in her lifetime. Such violence poses more of a threat to women than cancer or vehicle accidents. In addition to being a health and safety issue, violence against women also affects human rights and economic development. In Ukraine, for instance, the Ministry of Information reports that more than 400,000 women have left the country in the last decade searching for a better life —a migration that also leaves them vulnerable to trafficking. The addition of a network of men in Ukraine in response to these concerns is seen as a way to raise awareness, create a culture of change and serve as role models of non-violent behavior. “We have to take responsibility for women, children and our families, and should stop concealing it,” Mr. Tomenko said. In addition to Mr. Tomenko, well-known Ukrainian men to join the network include former Olympic champion, Sergiy Bubka, world champion swimmer, Oleg Lisogor, Olympic champion, Denys Sylantliev, journalist, Danylo Yanevsky, non-governmental organization leader, Olexander Marchenko, football player, Andriy Guisin, artist, Ostap Stupka, artist, Bogdan Benyuk and publisher Ivan Malkovych.
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