B.C. to develop gender-based violence action plan by the end of 2022

B.C. to develop gender-based violence action plan by the end of 2022
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As people mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, the B.C. government is sharing details on its next steps to address gender-based violence.

Focused engagement will take place early next year to develop a multi-year action plan addressing gender-based violence by the end of 2022, according to a press release.

“Gender-based violence happens in communities of every kind. It also happens at work, at school and in the home, and it remains far too prevalent,” said Grace Lore, parliamentary secretary for gender equity.

“Survivors deserve care and support, and the generations to come deserve a world free from violence. For these reasons, we want to talk with people who are on the front lines because we need to know where there are still gaps and where it is best to focus our priorities.”

Representatives from the anti-violence sector, Indigenous partners, LGBTQ2S+, BIPOC, immigrants and newcomers, sex workers and disability advocates, among others, will be engaged to help develop the action plan.

It will build on work already underway to address gender-based violence, including more training for police, Crown counsel and justices, minimum standards for sexual assault response, and funding for sexual assault centres.

“Sexual assault and gender-based violence remain a serious concern in B.C. and have devastating and long-lasting effects on survivors, their families and communities,” said Mike Farnworth, minister of public safety and solicitor general.”

The action plan will serve as a roadmap, he added, to help guide the government’s approach to addressing gender-based violence in the future.

There were 497 victims of intimate partner homicide in Canada between 2014 and 2019, according to the release. Eight in 10 victims were female.

Jasmine BalaJasmine Bala

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