Skopje, 25 November 2021 - "Don’t be quiet, don’t endure, end it" is this year's motto under which North Macedonia joined the global campaign: Orange the World: End Violence against Women Now!"

From November 25 – the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls to December 10 – the International Human Rights Day, a number of events, presentations, training, film festivals and panel discussions were held. Traditionally this year, the family of the United Nations, the European Union and the OSCE Mission joined their forces for the campaign: 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, a campaign aimed to end violence against women and girls.

At the central event, the UN Resident Coordinator in North Macedonia, Rossana Dudziak indicated that the violence could be prevented.

"The violence against women and girls is not inevitable. It can be stopped. It is obvious that progress has been made, both globally and locally. That cannot be denied. However, that is simply not enough. It will not be enough until every woman and girl feels completely safe and welcome in their home, school, workplace, online or anywhere," said UN Resident Coordinator Rossana Dudziak.

The EU Ambassador David Geer noted that the (OSCE) 2019 survey showed that every second woman in North Macedonia has experienced psychological violence by her partner. One in three women have been sexually harassed, and 14% have experienced physical or sexual violence from partners or others.

"Unfortunately, when it comes to gender-based violence and femicide, North Macedonia is no exception to the negative world trends," said the wife of the President of the Republic of North Macedonia, Elizabeta Gjorgievska. "Most cases of femicide occur in the very place that should be the safest shelter for women, and most of the perpetrators are the current or former partner of the victim," she said.

"For too long, the silence and the stigma have allowed violence against women and girls to continue," said Ambassador Clemens Koya. The Head of the OSCE Mission to Skopje added that no one should be indifferent to such crimes. "We must provide victims with the support they need in order to feel safe to report such acts and to recover from their traumatic experiences," said the OSCE Ambassador Clemens Koya.

The Macedonian pop stars Tamara Todevska, Dani Dimitrovska, Antonija Gigovska, Svetlana Jovanovska, John Ilija Apelgrin, Luka Gjorgievski (Funk Shui) and Branko Nikolov (Foltin) together with the audience sang the song "Black Eyes", adapted by Dime Popovski and Vasia Popovska and arranged by Djian Emin. With this song, a strong call was sent to unite all voices and a message to all men and women to step forward, speak clearly and say loudly - "Don’t be quiet, don’t endure, END IT!"

Ending gender-based violence is one of the three global goals of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

"With the strong commitment of the state, the Embassy of the United Kingdom, UNFPA as part of the United Nations, the civil society organizations and the stakeholders can end the gender-based violence in our country. Gender-based violence is unfortunately still one of the most pressing global issues that seriously undermine gender equality. Stop the violence against women and girls! Don’t be silent, don’t endure, END IT, stated Afrodita Shalja Plavjanska, the Head of the UNFPA Office in North Macedonia