Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, I warmly welcome you all who are here today to witness the official launching of this year's "16 Days of Activism to End Violence Against Women and Girls", the annual international campaign kicks off on 25 November to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and runs until 10 December - the Human Rights Day. The 16 Days of Activism is an initiative by individuals, groups and civil society organisations around the world supported by the United Nations. This year, Samoa once again joins the world to campaign under the slogan of "#NoExcuse" and the theme of "UNITE! Invest to Prevent Violence against Women and Girls".
The Pacific has one of the highest recorded rates of violence against women and girls globally - with two out of three women subjected to physical and or sexual violence in their lifetimes1. The last national inquiry into family violence in Samoa in 2018 reaffirmed the need for intervention to address the alarming rates of family violence in Samoa. On children, 87 per cent of those covered in the inquiry experienced threats of violence in a family setting; 86 per cent had been subjected to kicking, punching and other assaults; 9.5 per cent of females reported having been raped by a family member in their lifetime. For adults - 86 per cent of women were subject to kicking, punching, slapping, or causing bodily harm using a hard object (rock, stick, tree trunk, hose etc); 87 per cent of women respondents were subject to yelling and harsh words; 24 per cent experienced choking; 87 per cent women experienced threats of physical violence or bodily hard.
