Reading of the Town Hall's Commitment against gender violence
Today is the International Day against Gender Violence. We want to take advantage of this day of awareness and consciousness raising to share with all of you the Citizen Agreement for a Majorca free of sexist violence which our Town Hall has signed together with the Consell de Mallorca and the civil society.
CITIZEN AGREEMENT FOR A MAJORCA FREE OF SEXIST VIOLENCE
We, women and men who live in Majorca, on an individual basis or as representatives of social collectives, apart from the age, the place of origin, the culture, the beliefs, the social status or the sexual and gender diversity, affirm that:
-Human beings are born free and equal, and our rights have a universal nature. The biological and gender differences do not justify neither the lack of equity nor the discrimination in the effective exercise of their rights and the possibility of enjoying a life free of violence.
-Sexism is shown in different ways, which include the discriminations and the abuse in the labour, the domestic and the family environment, the harrassment and sexual assaults, and the mistreatments and the sexual exploitation, amongst others.
-Sexist violence is visible and invisible, physical, psychological, economic, sexual or symbolic.
-Children who live in environments where there is sexist violence, are always direct and invisible victims of the violence.
-There is violence towards women because there is inequality amongst men and women. It is not a problem of women but a problem of everybody. More than eight hundred women have been murdered by their partners or ex partners in the Spanish State in the last twelve years (twenty-six of whom were in the Balearic Islands). And that we have to say «enough!».
-«Silence makes us accomplices» and therefore, we have to reject decisively those quotidian attitudes which maintain or justify the violence. These attitudes must be condemned the same way as racism and terrorism.
-The concept of joint responsibility amongst women and men breaks the male domination, leading us, consequently, to a fair and more egalitarian society.
-As all human evidences and behaviour, the sexist violence and the quotidian attitudes which maintain or justify this violence can be changed. We can mix together in another way. To achieve this, concrete measures are needed to stop the violence.
-Given that sexist violence affects the different social environments, the efforts of all the sectors are needed to face it and thus progress towards other models of life.
Therefore the Calvià Town Hall commits to:
-Work to make of our municipality a community free of sexist violence.
-Express publicly our rejection to sexist violence and make explicit the enquestionable responsibility of who practices it.
-Improve the assistance of gender violence victims.
-Prepare a municipal plan of equality.
-Work online to take advantage of the resources and favour the coordination of all the professionals who take part in the municipality.
-Boost prevention initiatives with the educational centres of the municipality.
-Encourage the (individual and collective) participation of women and create spaces of reflection.
-Promote and spread initiatives of prevention of the different ways of violence towards the women and support them.
Therefore, women and men, entities and institutions, subscribe this agreement to work for a municipality free of violence in which prevail plural and solidary ways of coexistance.
It is a responsibility of everybody. Let's get involved!
Calvià, 25th November 2015