Cyprus has launched a nationwide campaign against gender-based violence amid statistics revealing 22 femicides and more than 12,000 reported cases of domestic violence in the past five years.
The campaign, “Gender Violence Hides in Plain Sight,” is part of the global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence. It is being implemented by the National Coordinating Body for Prevention and Combating Violence against Women in cooperation with the Commissioner for Gender Equality.
Justice Minister Marios Hartsiotis emphasised the campaign’s aim to combat gender-based violence and associated social stereotypes. “We are strengthening access to information and placing victims’ rights and protection at the centre of our policies,” he said.
Gender Equality Commissioner Josie Christodoulou stressed that violence against women affects everyone. “Each incident of violence not only traumatizes the victim and their family but pushes society one step away from progress and prosperity,” she said.
The campaign highlights various forms of gender-based violence, including physical, sexual, psychological, and economic abuse, harassment, stalking, and online sexism. While Cyprus’s legislative framework, aligned with the Istanbul Convention, criminalizes all these forms of violence, officials acknowledge that many cases go unreported due to fear, insecurity, and social pressure.
The awareness campaign uses audiovisual materials and public interventions to highlight the difficulty in identifying victims and the need for action. It adopts the purple and orange colours of the UN’s #OrangeTheWorld campaign to symbolise the need for cultural change.
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