2019 Women's World Cup: ARDN launches Red Card campaign on violence against women
Dakar, Senegal (PANA) - At the ongoing 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup in France, the African Renaissance and Diaspora Network (ARDN) on Tuesday launched the "Equal Light" campaign against all forms of discrimination and violence against women and girls in the world, according to ARDN's statement sent to PANA.
The campaign aims to obtain maximum signatures so that all people - men and women - are treated equally, with the same rights and respect all places and all types of activity, including in sport where they should receive the same attention from the media and be equally recognized for their success.
According to Djibril Diallo, president of the ARDN Network, this initiative is correlated to the 5th of the 17 "Sustainable Development Goals" (SDGs) adopted by all governments at the UN in September 2015 to create, by 2030, a more equitable, prosperous and peaceful world, free from extreme poverty and hunger.
Goal 5 aims to ''achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls''. It coincides with FIFA's plans to use football as a unifying factor and make it a vehicle for positive societal change, contributing to reduce inequalities and empower girls and women around the world'', said Dr Diallo.
FIFA has therefore joined several UN agencies such as UN Women, UNDP (United Nations Development Program) and UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund) to support this global momentum launched by the Network for the African Renaissance and Diaspora (ARDN) under the banner of "Under the Same Light", to ensure that a considerable number of people commit themselves to changing their behavior in private life.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino stressed that football is more than a game because it can have a powerful positive social impact. On June 6 and 7 in Paris, UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka and UNFPA Executive Director Natalia Kanem participated in the FIFA Convention which focused on the positive social contributions of football for women and girls around the world.
Teams from Cameroon and South Africa were the first to sign red card pledges at national ceremonies with UNDP representatives actively mobilizing young leaders across Africa to ensure success of SDGs.
The players taking part in the Cup call on all women and men to commit themselves to "fully respect each human being and to put an end to all forms of discrimination and violence against women and girls".
The African Renaissance and Diaspora Network (ARDN) is a coordinating body to unite the efforts of individuals and organizations with the sole purpose of supporting the advent of the ''African renaissance'' by promoting the unity between African nations and all peoples of African descent.
-0- PANA KAN/BEH/KND/VAO 18June2019
