The commitment by Primates at the January meeting in Dublin to work to eliminate violence against women and girls has been warmly welcomed by the Communion’s International Anglican Women’s Network (IAWN).
IAWN members were part of a delegation of 80 Anglican/Episcopal women and girls who were in New York for the Fifty-fifth Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW55) at the beginning of March.
IAWN steering group member the Revd Canon Alice Medcof of the Anglican Church of Canada said the decision of the Primates’ Meeting to put in writing a range of commitments to address violence against women and girls would serve as a new impetus for the churches of the Communion to act for change. She added, however, that in discussion with IAWN women around the Communion it was clear that different cultural contexts amongst the Provinces needed different responses.
How about opposing unjustified violence against anybody? Why “women,” LBGTs”, etc? Isn’t everyone deserving of freedom from violent assault?