United Nations launch Europe wide ad competition to end Violence against Women

The United Nations Regional Information Centre for Western Europe has launched an advertisement competition calling for gender equality and an end to all forms of violence against women and girls.

The competition is launched as part of International Women’s Day in partnership with the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (UN Women), and UN information offices around Europe.

The Europe-wide competition, which is part of the Secretary-General’s Campaign UNiTE to end Violence against Women, invites Europeans, professionals and non-professionals alike, to create an ad saying: “No to Violence against Women.”

The winner, who will receive 5000, will be selected by a jury composed of experts including Vice President of advertising giant Havas, Omar Vulpinari Creative Director of the Visual Communication Department at Fabrica, Benetton’s communication research centre, and Mieke Gerritzen, Designer and Director of the Graphic Design Museum in Breda.

“We live in a world of violence. Violence against women is all the more intolerable because of the contradiction between love and brutality, the rejection of equality. There will never be enough of us to mobilize against this scourge that neither time nor modernity has managed to defeat”, says Jacques, Vice President of advertising giant Havas.

“We were extremely encouraged by the enthusiasm with which European citizens joined the competition on the WeCanEndPoverty campaign last year, and because the subject of this year’s competition is, alas, a real tangible issue for every nation, we can expect the same enthusiasm and creativity to put the spotlight on it,” says Bassir-Pour, Director of UNRIC.

The competition opens for submissions on 8 March 2011, International Women’s Day, and ends at midnight (CET) 30 May 2011. The winners will be announced on 25 November 2011, the International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Women.

For more details, please visit: www.create4theun.eu.