Several hundred people gathered at Mont des Arts in Brussels on Sunday at around 1 PM to protest against the violence suffered by many women in Belgium.
The demonstrators then marched through the city centre, past the Palace of Justice, before returning to Mont des Arts at around 3 PM.
A large banner reading “Stop violence against women” was displayed at the head of the march. The names of several women who have died as a result of violence by a man in recent years was also written under the slogan, including their ages and the cities where it happened.
The demonstrators main message “protect your daughters, educate your sons,” was cried out during the march.
For the sixth consecutive year, several associations, brought together under the Mirabal Belgium Platform, called for a national demonstration in Brussels to fight against violence against women.
The aim was to remind public authorities to better protect women in society.
“We ask Belgium to concretise its policy against street harassment and integrate a gender dimension in urban planning to ensure women’s safety in public space. We also ask that Belgium puts in place a procedure allowing any victim of gender violence, regardless of their residence status to lodge a complaint.”
On Friday, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, the European Commission announced the EU-wide harmonized number for helplines for victims of violence against women – 116016. The deadline for Member States to reserve the common EU number to connect to national helplines is end of April 2023.
