Stop the Attacks Against Women and Children! Rise for Freedom from Violence and Wars of Aggression!

Joint Statement of the ILPS Commission 7 on Women, GABRIELA, and One Billion Rising Philippines

SIGN HERE: http://bit.ly/WomenRise4FreedomPH

One out of every three women in the world is expected to encounter physical assault and sexual violence in her lifetime. Given the world’s population of 8 billion, this translates to over a billion women and girls. A huge number of these cases occur during wars of aggression where aggressor nations or the militarist governments they support target women’s bodies through ethnic cleansing, sexual violence, objectification, and other forms of violence in order to subjugate entire communities and nations.

Women breathe life to any community, paving the way for new generations to continue their people’s history and identity, and to challenge old ways of living that no longer serve their people’s interests and aspirations. This distinct ability of women has made them targets of imperial forces and their allies in their violent pursuit to monopolize the world’s resources and consolidate power.

This is clearly demonstrated in the genocidal war being committed by the US-backed Israeli government against Palestine. Latest reports show that over 14,128 people have been killed in Palestine since October 7. About 70% of those massacred, 75% of injured, and 66% of those missing under literal rubbles are women and children. The disproportionate impact of wars and wars of aggression against women and children can likewise be seen in the experience of the Philippines, where US remains as a neo-colonizer and the main backer of its puppet government. Cases of military sexual abuse against Filipino women and girls have historically been shown to rise during joint exercises and operations by US and Philippine military forces, while indiscriminate bombings in peasant communities and repressive policies imposed across the archipelago also heavily impact already marginalized women.

And so we, the women of the world, rise against these atrocities committed in the name of imperial domination. We raise our collective voice in defense of mothers, young women, girls and infants—all of whom are being wantonly murdered by Israel and its western supporters. We resist the destruction of an entire nation and the annihilation of entire generations of peoples in the name of colonial conquest for oil and profit. We demand justice from war criminals, instigators, and the powers supporting them for each civilian life lost, each house destroyed, each building pulverized in Palestine and elsewhere in the world.

We, the undersigned, rise for freedom from violence and wars of aggression! Stop the attacks against women and the peoples of the world!#

Add your voice by signing below and passing this sign-on statement to your network of advocates for women’s and peoples’ rights. 

Other forms of actions:

1. Hold physical and virtual protests to amplify women’s calls for freedom from violence and wars of aggression;
2. Issue statements in support of our demands to end the attacks on women and children in Palestine, the Philippines, and all across the globe;
3. Show your solidarity on social media by using any or all of our hashtags: 

• #RiseForFreedom
• #FreePalestine
• #DefendFilipinoWomen

4. Dates to remember:

• 25 November 2023 – International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (IDEVAW)
• 29 November 2023 – International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People and International Women Human Rights Defenders Day