My ideal job would be Secretary General for the United Nations. What? I hear you scoff. Dream on Sunshine!
I do however meet two of the most important criteria for the role – not only am i a global citizen, but i also have an appropriate wacky name – but we won´t go into what the M. stands for in my middle name.
Who could forget the inspiringly named Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Kofi Annan and now Ban Ki-moon?
I was pleased to note Ban Ki-moon has been busy of late, highlighting violence against women.
Ban Ki-moon noted
"Violence against women and girls continues unabated in every continent, country and culture. It takes a devastating toll on women’s lives, on their families, and on society as a whole. Most societies prohibit such violence — yet the reality is that too often, it is covered up or tacitly condoned".
The statistics are completely shocking.
70% of women on the planet suffer physical or sexual abuse from men. Countries in the middle of war-zones are even more vulnerable; for example this figure rises to 80% in Afghanistan. Even in my beloved India, 22 women are murdered every day over dowry disputes.
It is estimated that worldwide, one in five women will become a victim of rape or attempted rape in her lifetime.
More than 50 percent of women in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Peru and Tanzania reported having been subjected to physical or sexual violence by intimate partners, with figures reaching staggering 71 percent in rural Ethiopia. Only in one country - Japan, did less than 20 percent of women report incidents of domestic violence.
An earlier WHO study puts the number of women physically abused by their partners or ex-partners at 30 percent in the United Kingdom, and 22 percent in the United States.
