Debate contribution: Strategic Framework to End Violence against Women and Girls: Implementation

Debate contribution by Ms Sian Mulholland on 26 February 2024.

MLA

Ms Sian Mulholland

Party at the time

Alliance Party

Date

26 February 2024

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

Strategic Framework to End Violence against Women and Girls: Implementation

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4230669

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. I am grateful to the proposers of the motion for bringing it to the Assembly. As others have said, it is a shameful reality that this is statistically the most dangerous place for women in Europe. However, it is not just the most serious of crimes that makes it such a dangerous place to be a woman; we have to factor in the interconnected continuum of violence, from everyday misogynistic attitudes and damaging social norms to harmful and unwanted behaviours. As mentioned earlier, in the 'Ending Violence Against Women and Girls: Experiences and Attitudes of 16 year olds in Northern Ireland in 2023' report, one third of sixteen-year-old girls said that they had experienced online violence in the past year. It was by far the most prominent form of gender-based violence experienced by the young women who responded to the survey. The type of violence most experienced by young men was in the physical form. It is clear from the statistics that young women often experience a type of violent behaviour that pervades so much more than a physical act and cannot easily be avoided. It is evident that online spaces, particularly social media networks, are simply not safe spaces for young women and girls. Worryingly, in the 'It’s just what happens' report, young women indicated that they considered receiving unsolicited sexual imagery and advances as just:

"a normal part of online life."

How perverse is that? As highlighted in that report and many others, more needs to be done to hold the social media companies to account. It is not good enough to abdicate responsibility for the safety of your clients just because you are not curating a physical space. That includes but is not limited to — some have been mentioned before — dealing with the AI generation of deepfake pornographic material, being quicker to delete offensive material that has been reported, blocking the IP addresses of accounts with multiple violations so they cannot simply create yet another account immediately, and having an easily contactable department that responds immediately to serious complaints of abuse. Reports have pointed out that parents and carers feel that it is now simply impossible to keep their children safe in online spaces due to the lack of appropriate protections against acts of violence and inappropriate sexualised behaviour. Like most behavioural and attitudinal changes, early intervention and age-appropriate education programmes, like those outlined by Mrs Dillon, are effective tools to create the catalyst for long-term societal change. Seven in 10 young female respondents demonstrated their commitment to combating sexism by being willing to intervene when their peers made sexual or sexist jokes. That 69% figure significantly outstrips the 30% of young male respondents who expressed a similar inclination. The findings underscore the urgent need for comprehensive, age-appropriate relationships and sexuality education in schools, because by equipping all young people, regardless of their gender, with knowledge about healthy relationships, consent, gender equality and respect, we can foster a generation that is confident and has the tools at their disposal to challenge harmful stereotypes and nip in the bud those questionable approaches to women and girls. It is clear that this is not just a women's problem; this is a societal problem, and boys and men need to be included in the solution. The key aspects required for the strategic framework delivery to be effective are that it must be cross-departmental, multidisciplinary and involve stakeholders from the statutory, private and voluntary sectors. We have also seen initiatives, such as Ask for Angela, which nightclubs and bars have signed up to, and Hospitality Ulster signing up to the Women's Night Safety Charter, something that I championed in the arts sector. Those and other societal approaches to protecting women in social spaces, challenging dangerous norms and, ultimately, preventing violence against women and girls are so important. To conclude, this is an issue that impacts women and girls in every aspect of their lives. It is imperative that central to every strategy is the desire and cooperation to work using a joined-up approach. If we make this place safer for all women, we will create a society that is safer for all. We need to address attitudinal change from an early age, we need tangible outcomes, we need targets that are experience led and intersectional, and we need to deliver it all with the utmost urgency because women are paying the price with their lives.

741 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not qualifying

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 09:38 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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