BANGKOK, 2 December 2021 – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its ten Member States agreed today on stronger measures to carry out the ASEAN Regional Plan of Action on the Elimination of Violence against Women, 2016-2025.
The pledges were made at the online launch of a report on the midterm review of the plan. The event coincided with the United Nations global campaign, 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence.
The review was done by the ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children and the ASEAN Committee on Women under the leadership of Thailand, through a partnership with UN Women and support from ASEAN Secretariat.
The review report highlighted significant progress at the regional level, including the production of ASEAN data collection guidelines on violence against women, campaigns to raise awareness about violence against women, and guidelines for front-line service providers on ending such violence including the administration of justice.
At the national level, progress includes the finalisation of national action plans on ending violence against women, data collection, and development and adaptation of gender-responsive legal frameworks to penalise perpetrators and to prevent violence.
The report recommended that ASEAN and its Member States monitor and assess the effectiveness of the measures they have taken. It also proposed to make further progress on developing international-standard laws and national action plans as well as quality services for women and girls, and on generating evidence and data on gender-based violence.
“Through our partnership at the ASEAN level, we learn from one another and identify policy areas that need to be addressed collectively. This is where the mid-term review of the RPA EVAW comes in: to aid in our policy thinking and action in the coming years,” said Ekkaphab Phanthavong, Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN for ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community.
“I am particularly pleased that, as evident in the Mid-term Review Report, remarkable progress at both regional and national levels has been made with regard to our efforts to eliminate violence against women and girls,” said Jintana Chanbamrung Director-General Department of Women’s Affairs and Family Development, Ministry of Social Development and Human Security of Thailand.
“It is my hope the Report will spark off ways forward on how to ensure gender equality and women’s empowerment, based on the mantra of leaving no one behind. For Thailand, the issues have always been of paramount importance in our policy agenda. We remain engaged and dedicated to working closely with our colleagues and partners to advance and accelerate our tasks to promote and protect women and girls in our region.”
“In the post- COVID era, cross-sectoral collaboration between development programmes, humanitarian aid and peacebuilding is key,” said Sarah Knibbs, Officer-in-Charge of the UN Women Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific. “We are proud to join forces with ASEAN to accelerate progress in combatting violence against women to ensure a better protection and empowerment of all women and girls in ASEAN, including the most marginalised.”
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Ending Violence against Women in ASEAN Member States: Mid-term Review of the ASEAN Regional Plan of Action on the Elimination of Violence against Women (RPA on EVAW 2016-2025) can be downloaded here: https://asiapacific.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2021/10/rpa-on-evaw-2016-2025
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About ASEAN
ASEAN brings together Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Viet Nam in a community united by a common desire and collective will to live in a region of lasting peace, security and stability, sustained economic growth, shared prosperity and social progress, and to promote the region’s vital interests, ideals and aspirations.
About UN Women
UN Women is the United Nations agency dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women worldwide.
