For the 11th Annual Zonta Says NO to Violence campaign, the Christchurch 3 clubs and the Waimakairi Club formed a hard working committee.

The annual inaugural event opened by the Zonta Club Christchurch South, was a wonderful success. It was held in our post earthquake Art Gallery. The guest speakers were diverse and had compelling messages in line with the importance of the key message.

At the end of the evening, our District 16 Governor threw the switch that lite the whole building orange. One of our successes is a large electronic 24/7 sign on the corner of an arterial route around the city. This will be supported by the “Orange mystery tour” on the 6th December.

The clubs will combine for “orange mocktails” and orange cupcakes to then tour the “Orange lights”. As previously highlighted, the Dragon Boating features the orange theme and the Say NO to violence message. Their tremendous efforts are happily offset by a lot of laughs and shared hospitality at the end of each rigorous training session.

The importance of the message for all age groups has been well supported by a number of libraries with displays right at the entry. in other words, you can’t miss the message! Under the new initiative of Governor Phillippa Jacobs-Lory, the Chair has linked with and supported the South Island Clubs for the first time. Next year we look forward to strengthening these links and seeking a stronger message during these 16 days of activism.

Zonta Club of Port Lincoln hosted a dinner last Saturday on day one of the United Nation Women’s 16 Days of Activism against gender-based violence.

A three-course meal was enjoyed by guests who added an orange flair to their attire for the night, in honour of the United Nations’ chosen colour to raise awareness and take action to end violence against women and girls.

Yarredi Services organised the guest speaker for the night, Rabia Aftab of Zahra Services.

Zonta Club of Port Lincoln president Kaaren Coleman introduced the evening with a poignant reminder of Bishop Desmond Tutu’s observation.

“There comes a point where we need to stop just pulling people out of the river, we need to go upstream and find out why they’re falling in,” she recited.

Ms Aftab was joined by Zahra chief executive officer Kelly-Ann Tansley for support and spoke about her move to Australia from Pakistan.

At the time she was in a marriage experiencing domestic violence.

Ms Aftab said her experience leaving her marriage in a new country that did not recognise her Pakistani university qualifications meant she faced many challenges, especially with South Australian systems as she tried to establish her independence.

Ms Tansley reminded the audience that in the past week, it was alleged four women in South Australia had died due to domestic and family violence.

She urged residents to back a call to parliament for a Royal Commission into family violence.

A letter template can be found at zahrafoundation.org.au/advocacy – this letter, along with resident’s full name and full address can be emailed to the Premier if they wish to support the call.

The evening had a range of representatives from different service providers present, including Family Violence Legal Service Aboriginal Corporation, West Coast Youth and Community Services and Yarredi Services.

The Port Lincoln foreshore lights will be lit in orange for the full 16 days, as organised by Zonta.

Residents can keep an eye out for the ‘orange ladies’ – timber cutouts painted orange that will be scattered around town for the 16 days.

Orange finger buns will also be available at the Beach Bakery for a limited time.

The hashtags to raise awareness for the cause are #generationequality #spreadtheword and #orangetheworld.

The 16 Days of Activism ends on Sunday, December 10 – Human Rights Day.

Source: https://portlincolntimes.com.au/community-news/2023/12/03/zonta-raises-awareness-for-women/

For the 2023 Zonta Says NO Campaign, Zonta Club of Montevideo has chosen this year to run a campaign on the networks, placing an allusive poster every day to raise awareness and make visible the importance of ending violence against women and girls.

The campaign started November 25 and will continue until December 10.

JANESVILLE – The Zonta Club of Janesville is participating in an international campaign, 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, to inspire action and end violence against women and girls.

The Zonta’s “I say NO to Gender-Based Violence” awareness campaign began Saturday, Nov. 25 and will continue until Sunday, Dec. 10.

In honor of the campaign, the pedestrian bridge at ARISE Town Square was lit orange from Nov. 25 to Nov. 30.

There’s also a silhouette outside of the Janesville Woman’s Club featuring messages about Gender-Based Violence.

“Violence has no place in our community. It needs to be eradicated,” Zonta Club president Cathy Myers said in a release. “We’re hoping to drive home that point through these activities.”

Club members will also engage in a social media campaign about the prevalence and impact of gender-based violence.

Source: https://www.gazettextra.com/community/community_briefs/zonta-club-participates-in-16-days-of-activism-against-gender-based-violence/article_4b133ff4-8f02-11ee-8520-87ddb0b61e52.html