Despite the fact that law criminalizes sexual and verbal harassment, women and girls are still suffering of this type of violence which intimidates them and limits their presence and participation in public and recreational activities. Early in 2017, the Information and communication among the youth of Guelma Association (INFO-COM Jeunes de Guelma) decided to campaign against this type of violence.

“Let’s live better together, let’s respect girl” was the slogan of this campaign which reached out to Media, youth organizations, sports establishments, university residences, local officials, pyshician,  psychologists, and other actors and collaborated with them through different activities to increase the public opinion, especially, youth’s awareness of the consequences of this type of violence which the law criminalizes, as well as on its impact on girls, young women and women’s personal and professional development.

The campaign included different activities, but perhaps the most important ones are the discussions and the meetings that members of INFO-COM Jeunes de Guelma held with young men and women and children in public places such as sport establishments, cultural and youth centers, as well as with their parents who were informed about the amendments of the Algerian Penal Code and encouraged to allow their daughters to participate in the different activities that youth centers organize.

Over a period of 6 month, the campaign reached 180 young men and women, and achieved its objective which consisted in communicating the amended Pendal Code that criminalizes verbal violence and sexual harassment in public places, and encouraging the victims to denounce this form of violence and to reduce sexual violence in Guelma province, in Algeria.

The campaign was communicated and covered widely by different local newsapaers and radion stations, and social media platform such as Elitihad News, Vitaminedz, Guelma’s Radion Station. The campaign was also presented in different events like the National Meeting of the Algerian Network for the defence of Children’s Rights - Nada. 

This campaign is part of the CSO WINS project « Capacity building in Southern Mediterranean to open policy dialogue and monitoring for women in society » funded by the European Union, in synergy with the action of the Foundation.