The University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) Office of Gender Concerns (OGC) continues to advocate for a #VAWFreePH by joining this year’s International Day for the Elimination for Violence Against Women and Children and the National Consciousness Day for the Elimination of VAWC as declared through Republic Act 10398 .

The office will be participating in the 18-day campaign through trainings, webinars, and social media engagements — highlighting the continuous fight for the elimination of all types of violence against women and children. This will run from 25 November to 12 December 2020. 

OGC launches this campaign through its first activity, a Gender Sensitivity Training via zoom — catering to students from UPOU, other UP campuses, and other SUCs. The event will be live-streamed through UPOU’s Networks portal and on UPOU’s official Facebook page. 

This fight is more important than ever, especially in this time of pandemic and lockdown wherein women and children are forced to stay indoors with the perpetrators and are faced by the uncertainties in health, security, and economy. The recent disasters have also aggravated their vulnerable conditions creating another storm. 

With these issues, the campaign circles around the theme “Orange the World: Fund, Respond, Prevent, Collect!” 

“The UN Secretary-General’s UNiTE to End Violence against Women campaign, a multi-year effort aimed at preventing and eliminating violence against women and girls, will focus on amplifying the call for global action to bridge funding gaps, ensure essential services for survivors of violence during the COVID-19 crisis, focus on prevention, and collection of data that can improve life-saving services for women and girls.” (United Nations, 2020)