Presentation of 25 November 2021 campaign: “Time to recognise abuse”

Céline Cottalorda entourée des actrices du film ©Direction de la Communication – Manuel Vitali

The Women’s Rights Committee presented its new campaign for the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, which falls on 25 November, at the Beaux-Arts cinema.

The aim of this day is to raise public awareness of efforts to combat violence against women and to remind people of the measures in place in the Principality.

Country Women’s Rights Officer Céline Cottalorda said: “Last year, we focused on abuse in the home, because that is where it mostly takes place. This year, we want to give people the keys to help them understand the ways that perpetrators manipulate their victims and to show that abuse can take a variety of forms: psychological, verbal, sexual, economic and physical.”

The campaign will focus on raising awareness of abuse among victims themselves, as well as among families and friends, by highlighting the message: To escape abuse, you first need to recognise you’re experiencing it. “Based on what we hear from victims, it is clear that the first signs of abuse are often easy to miss – or perhaps people don’t want to see them. Then, influence takes hold, and it is very difficult to escape from that,” explains Céline Cottalorda.

The 2021 campaign will involve a number of actions:

• A short, fictional film will be available on Monaco Info and on social media from Thursday 25 November. Shot in documentary format, the film features nine women and illustrates the manipulation that takes place over time, leading to increasingly horrendous situations.

• A poster campaign throughout the city and in the Fontvieille Shopping Centre.

• An outreach campaign with stands at Fontvieille Shopping Centre from 10 am to 6 pm on Friday 26 November. The aim of this campaign is to engage the public to improve understanding of the mechanisms available in the Principality, and the organisations who can help. The key stakeholders who provide care for those who have experienced abuse will be there alongside the Women’s Rights Committee:
  • Government bodies, including the Department of Social Welfare and Social Services and the Police Department, as well as the Victims of Criminal Offences Help Association (AVIP), which takes in victims and offers information and support;
  • SheCan HeCan and Fight Aids Monaco for the “Non à la violence/No to violence” campaign, inviting men to take action against violence by coming along and being photographed at the stand;
  • Club Soroptimist, Aux Cœurs des Mots, Zonta Club Monaco and Femmes Leaders Mondiales Monaco will also be welcoming the public to their stand.

• The Committee’s partners will also be running the following campaigns:

• Femmes Leaders Mondiales Monaco will have a poster campaign on the Principality’s buses;
• Zonta Club Monaco will be placing covers on public benches and shoes on the stairs at St Charles Church;
• The checkout assistants at Carrefour will wear badges in the Committee’s colours to show their support for the day;
• Finally, several public buildings will be lit up with orange lights on the evening of 25 November: the Prince’s Palace, the National Council and the Oceanographic Museum.

Céline Cottalorda emphasised the importance of this widespread mobilisation, which strengthens the impact of the day, and thanked all of the actresses who agreed to take part in the campaign on a voluntary basis, as well as all of the Committee’s partner associations and institutions.

Information on the Committee’s website: www.dfm.mc

Useful and emergency numbers:

Fire and Emergency Service: 18 or 112 | Police: 17

Free and anonymous information line, available 7 days a week: 0800 91 90 10

The Victims of Criminal Offences Help Association (AVIP): www.avip-monaco.org | 93 25 00 07