Thousands of people are marching against gender-based violence in Brussels on Sunday afternoon, on the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on Monday. This year, the focus is particularly on violence against children.
The protestors gathered around noon on Place Poelaert, in front of the Brussels Palais de Justice. At 14:00, they marched to reach the Parvis de Saint-Gilles. The demonstration is organised by the Mirabal platform, which brings together around 100 organisations.
Among its ten demands, Mirabal draws attention to sexual violence against children, whether it is female genital mutilation or incest. The fight against violence against children "remains an insufficiently prioritised concern, both in Belgium and in Europe, despite the obvious urgency," said Mirabal.
"According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), sexual violence affects 20% to 24% of girls and 5% to 11% of boys under 18 in Western countries," said Margot Foubert, project manager at Sofélia, a federation of family planning centres. Incest affects "between two and four children in each class of each school in our country," she said.
Ce 25 novembre, c’est la journée internationale de lutte contre les violences faites aux femmes.
Ce 24/11, les rues de Bruxelles seront remplies de mauve. Le mauve - symbole du féminisme- sera bien présent pendant la manifestation #Mirabal. pic.twitter.com/fCe2tTq2eN — Carine Thibaut (@thibaut_carine) November 24, 2024
The platform calls for the development of a national action plan to combat sexual violence against children. It also advocates for better training for professionals, to "exclude the use of theories without scientific basis in all youth assistance and protection cases, such as Parental Alienation Syndrome."
This concept, subject to scientific controversy, refers to the rejection by a child of one of their two parents following manipulation by the other parent. Feminists denounce it, because this supposed syndrome can be used as an argument by a violent spouse to claim custody of the offspring before the courts.
Another theme highlighted this Sunday is international solidarity. "The Istanbul Convention (on the prevention and combating of violence against women), ratified by Belgium, provides for the protection of women, migrants, asylum seekers or refugees, victims of gender-based violence as well as children."
Credit: Belga/The Brussels Times
"The situation of women in the world is very worrying," said Foubert. "In Afghanistan, they no longer even have the right to speak. While in Gaza, 80% of the victims of the ongoing genocide are women and children. What are Belgium and the European Union doing to help them?"
More generally, Mirabal is calling for the implementation of "an integrated and comprehensive policy for the primary prevention of gender-based violence."
"Sexist and sexual violence concerns us all," the platform stressed. "It takes place in all areas of the lives of women, sexual and gender minorities, and children: in the street, in the family, at work, and in the legal and political spheres."
