Member's statement: 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence
Member's statement by Ms Connie Egan on .
- MLA
- Ms Connie Egan
- Party at the time
- Alliance Party
- Date
- 25 November 2025
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5258618
Read the official Assembly record
Text
16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence begins today. Those 16 days are a reminder that we must maintain momentum in our collective fight to end violence against women and girls once and for all. The theme of the days for 2025 is "#NoExcuse for online abuse" and brings into focus the need for lawmakers, social media companies and other regulatory bodies, including Ofcom, to keep pace with our unwieldy and ever-evolving online world.
The internet can be a fantastic tool for connection, curiosity and learning, but we cannot ignore the data in front of us about the real, tangible dangers that it poses. Research has found that, at a minimum, one in 10 women and girls in Northern Ireland have experienced online violence. Overall, between 2022 and 2023, the amount of deepfake pornography created increased by 464%. Online abuse is now so prevalent in the fabric of our society, and we must take action to prevent it. The dedication of vital charities and grassroots community groups to building a safer world for all, whether that be through teaching what healthy relationships look like, debunking myths about abuse itself or giving refuge to those in crisis, should be commended. That includes groups that are working in Northern Ireland, such as Nexus, the NSPCC, Hourglass, Women's Aid, the Men's Advisory Project and local women's centres, which are often at the coalface of the problem and see at first hand the needs of women in their communities. I think about where we were 18 months ago. We now have the strategic framework to coordinate a cross-government approach to gendered violence and a complementary domestic and sexual abuse strategy. Ending violence against women and girls is a key strand of our Programme for Government. We have new data and new funding, including the release of the local and regional change funds. We can still see, however, that Northern Ireland is one of the most dangerous places in western Europe to be a woman. Our femicide rate is deeply distressing, and my thoughts are with all the women who have lost their lives to gendered violence and with their families and loved ones. Since 2020, 28 women have been violently killed in Northern Ireland. On top of that, the PSNI has reported that there were 29,740 incidents of domestic abuse between 1 July 2024 and June 2025. The actions that I have outlined will have some impacts now, but we are also building towards the future. We cannot lose speed and focus on bringing about a future in which every woman and girl is safe online and in our society.
436 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Assessment
Jev’s structured answers met the documented threshold for “not flagged”.
- Overall probability that the activity is being used to promote, exploit or escalate an identity-based controversy: 0.04 (flagging needs at least 0.70; at or below 0.30 is not flagged).
- None of the five culture-war criteria was met (each was below 0.60).
- Assessed as legitimate policy scrutiny (0.79).
- No identity-based framing was identified (0.95).
- Subject area: Gender, sexuality, abortion and related social issues.
- The overall probability was at or below the not-flagging threshold.
This is an AI-generated assessment of the text, made against published criteria. It is not a finding of fact about the MLA or their intentions. The Assembly record itself is the fact.
Jev’s structured answers
| Question | Probability | Met? |
|---|---|---|
| Identity framing | 0.06 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.02 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.01 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.02 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.03 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.79 | Yes |
| Overall judgement | 0.04 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 0.95 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.00 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.05 |
| Adopts it | 0.00 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| Gender, sexuality, abortion and related social issues | 0.61 |
| Sexism, misogyny, ageism and other equality groups | 0.39 |
| No identity-related subject | 0.00 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
| Parades, bonfires and commemorations | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 13:48 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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