On 5 and 12 November, Zonta clubs across South Korea gathered in three major cities and marched for the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign. The event, held in the relatively cold weather of November, was led by District 32’s Governor Unna Hur in Seoul, Lieutenant Governor Hyo-Sook Na in Daejeon and Area 3 Director Kyung-Hee Kim in Yeosu. 65 Zontians marched through central locations, distributing pamphlets and picking up waste.
This event, which was reported through SNS and media channels, has brought about an impact that increased public awareness of Zonta.
The district believes the campaign is an opportunity for all participants to carry out Zonta’s mission of eliminating gender-based violence, building a better world for women and girls, and confirming their Zontian pride. The district has adopted the campaign as a regular event to be performed every November.
Zontians from Area 5, District 27, Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg and Ukraine, comprised a 35-member Zonta On Tour Cycling Team to kom op tegen kanker, stand up to cancer, through a four-day bike tour in Flanders.
One way the team trains is by cycling to district conferences whenever possible. Their driving force is their deare Zonta friend, Griet De Prycker, who lost her battle against cancer. Her motto was “focus on the sun,” the team stuck to this motto during their bike rides, despite rain or wind.
This year, the team aims to draw attention to the Zonta Says NO campaign. For the fifth year, they will embark on a journey to reach district conferences by bike. This time, they began their trip from the same point where we had concluded in 2021: Leuven, Belgium.
On Wednesday, 20 September, the team disembarked from Leuven to Vaals, Netherlands. Their 130 kilometers (about 80.8 miles) took them through Tienen, Sint-Truiden and Tongeren before we reached Vaals. The next day, they followed the Vennbahn bike route to Troisvièrges, Luxembourg, covering a distance of 135 kilometers. On Friday, they embarked on a 90-kilometer journey from Troisvièrges, heading south towards Luxembourg. In total, they covered 355 kilometers and encountered numerous uphill challenges, a true test even for their well-trained legs.
The team successfully conquered these challenges with the invaluable assistance of their dedicated sports team and logistical support whenever it was needed. Their arrival in Luxembourg was marked by a warm welcome from Honorary Member Maria Teresa, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, President Ute Schulz and many other dignitaries.
The team felt incredibly fortunate to be a part of Zonta, an organization that continuously motivates and propels us forward, regardless of our obstacles. The Zonta On Tour Team presented a generous donation of 5,000 euros to the Zonta Foundation for Women.
Together with the Hong Kong Women’s Coalition on Equal Opportunities task force, the Zonta Club of Kowloon, Hong Kong, met with officials from the Equal Opportunities Commission in November. The Equal Opportunities Commission is a statutory body set up by the Hong Kong government. It is responsible for implementing the Sex Discrimination Ordinance, the Disability Discrimination Ordinance, the Family Status Discrimination Ordinance, and the Race Discrimination Ordinance in Hong Kong.
A Survey on Sexual Harassment in Hong Kong from 2021 showed that one in eight ( 11.8%) of the 5,027 respondents reported being sexually harassed at the workplace in the past 24 months. Most victims were harassed by men (66.7%). They were harassed by colleagues of the same rank (44.6%), but more female victims were sexually harassed by someone more senior in rank (30.5%) or by clients. (15.9%).
The meeting focused on sexual harassment in the workplace, and the club explored how NGOs can contribute to solving this issue. The groups agreed that we should encourage corporations, especially Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs), to establish sexual harassment policies, set up frameworks for internal complaints and investigation and establish staff training in their own companies. They also discussed the issue of how to generate more awareness on this issue in their community, as well as organizing public educational programs. There will likely be joint advocacy activities on this issue during International Women’s Day in March 2023.
The photo above shows participants of the Equal Opportunities Commission meeting, with Ricky Chu Man-Kin, Chairperson of the Equal Opportunity Commission and his team, Winnie Teoh, Chair of Advocacy Committee of Zonta Club of Kowloon and other Zontians, as well as Sisi Liu together with the seven NGOs under the Hong Kong Women’s Coalition on Equal Opportunities – Hong Kong Federation of Women’s Centres, Hong Kong Federation of Asian Domestic Workers Unions, Progressive Labor Union of Domestic Workers in Hong Kong, The Association of the Advancement of Feminism, Hong Kong Women Workers’ Association, Hong Kon Young Women’s Christian Association, Association Concerning Sexual Violence Against Women.
Leading up to this year’s 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, the Zonta Club of Bunbury, Australia, invited local schools to participate in its ‘Choose Respect, Expect Respect’ poster competition as a strategy to focus on respect.
“By talking about respect and exploring what respect looks like, sounds like and feels like through art, we believe that what is and is not acceptable will reinforce positive behavior and contribute to a positive change for the future,” said Club President Kerry Kerr.
Building on the club’s program, Kerry also said that “the Zonta Club of Bunbury is proud to support the Australian Government’s Stop it at the Start campaign and the WA Government’s Path to safety: Western Australia’s strategy to reduce family and domestic violence 2020-2030 to help create a future free from violence for women and children.”
The club received 100 competition entries, and 16 finalists from local schools were invited to attend a presentation afternoon with their parents on the 3 November. Deputy Mayor Tresslyn Smith congratulated the students and presented them with their awards.
The event was also featured in a double-page coverage in a local newspaper, which gave greater visibility to the project.
The Zonta Club of Palermo Triscele, Italy, partnered with the Zonta Club of Palermo ZYZ, the Rotary Club of the Panormus Area and the Inner Wheel Palermo Centro to promote the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign during the 16 Days of Activism.
The clubs set up an ‘Enough violence against women’ advertisement on a bus on the Amat line in Palermo from 25 November to 30 December. The ad also included a helpline for victims of violence.
The Zonta Club of Hong Kong’s Z clubs used unity chains to join students and their schools in making a powerful statement about uniting in the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women global campaign.
More than 400 students at St. Mary’s Canossian College wrote words of encouragement on orange strips of paper. Strips were connected to form the word “NO.”
Members of the True Light Girls’ College Z Club asked their classmates to write their thoughts about violence against women and girls on orange strips of paper. Each class then joined their strips to create their own unity chain and took a picture holding the chain.
Members of the Good Hope School Z Club hung unity chains around the school to remind and connect students to the issue of violence against women in the world. The executive committee also created the word “NO” with their unity chains.
The St. Paul’s Convent School Z Club created a unity chain with each member expressing their feelings about violence against women by writing meaningful words on orange strips of paper. The strips of paper were joined to create unity chains.
The Zonta Club of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, joined with the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals Cease Crisis Center to kick off “V4V Survivor-mentors Endorsement Ceremony.” Fifteen women were appointed as peer counselors to encourage and support women who are facing domestic violence and crisis.
The V4V (Victim for Victim) project’s objective is to provide shelter and care for women who are experiencing domestic violence and support them after they have left the center so that they can adapt to the changes in their lives, rebuild their confidence and reestablish themselves in society.
District 17 Area 5 organized the Zonta Earth Store, a trade fair promoting local products made by women micro, small and medium entrepreneurs.
Through its partnership with the Department of Trade and Industries of Camarines Sur, the Zonta Club of Naga & Camarines Sur, Philippines, participated by inviting 20 local women entrepreneurs, thereby promoting economic empowerment among them.
The trade fair runs for the whole 16-Day Activism Campaign from November 25 to December 10.
The Zonta Club of Mitchell, Australia, visited local businesses and organizations leading up to 25 November with a letter of introduction and an “Orange Lady.” The project asked local groups to collectively display the “Orange Lady” in a prominent position within their business or organization so staff, customers and passers-by could view ‘her.’
The ‘Orange Lady” will be displayed throughout the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence. Every day during the 16 days of activism to end violence against women, businesses and organizations hosting the Orange Lady are featured on the club’s social media platforms.
Their business is highlighted, and they are thanked for raising awareness in our local community and being part of the solution. The project has been widely and wholeheartedly supported throughout the local area. Businesses have been very positive, keen to show their support and appreciative that they have featured their participation on social media.
The club has also gained many “followers” on Instagram, and our posts have been shared on Facebook. The project has been a great success because of its simplicity, and all members have been able to contribute, creating a high impact with a small amount of effort by everyone.
Join us in saying NO 