Rally round violence against women - UNSG

November 25, is the UN-designated International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

This Day was declared by the General assembly in 1999 with the aim of raising public awareness on the problem of violence against women which is one of the most widespread violations of human rights.

The date came from the brutal assassination in 1961 of the three Mirabel sisters, political activists, in the Dominican Republic, on orders of Dominican Ruler, Rafael Trujillo.

According to many UN studies on the subject, violence against women is the most common but least punished crime in the world. It can include physical, sexual, psychological and economic abuse and it cut across boundaries of age, race, culture, wealth and geography. It takes place in the home, on the streets, in schools, the workplace, in farm fields, refugee camps, during conflicts and crises.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon in his message to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women says that there has been significant progress in addressing this heinous crime in the ten years since the General Assembly designated this Day.

"Women around the world are the very linchpin keeping families, communities, and nations together. On this International Day, let us reaffirm our commitment to women's human rights: let us invest more resources in countering this violence: and let us do all it takes to end these horrific assaults once and for all" Ban Ki-Moon said, in his message.