Argentinian City Awards Schools’ Blogs in Campaign to Reduce Violence Against Women

An image from one of the Argentinan blogs to receive an award. Decilenoalaviolencia2014.blogspot.com.

Argentina took an important step in 2009, when it enacted Law No. 26485, which mandates the “prevention, punishment, and eradication of violence against women.” Since then, over the past five years, there's been a blossoming of organizations dedicated to spreading awareness about gender-based violence. Despite these advances, however, the phenomenon continues to grow in Argentina. In 2013, the country recorded 295 feminicides—a 16 percent increase, when compared to 2012 data.

For the third year in a row, the city council of Rosario is doing what it can to fight violence against women, launching a public awareness campaign that bestows rewards on the best blogs that address gender-based violence. The winner this year was Secondary Education Oriented (EESO) No. 572 School. One of the school's videos offers safety tips for spotting an abusive boyfriend:

In another video from the same school, a student named Guido Roldan briefly summarizes Law No. 26485:

The school San Martin de Porres No. 3143 won the second prize for its blog, titled “Decile NO a la Violencia de Género” (Say NO to Gender Violence). In one post, the blog reflects on several cases of gender-based violence that have struck Argentina in recent years. They cite the case of Wanda Taddei, whose husband burned her to death in 2010. The case received special attention mostly because of the way in which the court mitigated the husband's sentence, after his lawyers claimed he committed the crime in “violent emotional state.” The case gained publicity for the discussions about impunity it sparked, and also because it later inspired a “copycat” crime.

Taddei's husband was eventually imprisoned for life, after appeals by her relatives, but a flood of similar crimes across Argentina soon followed.

Y el más reciente, el caso de “Wanda Taddei” en 2010, cuyo crimen derivó en una condena “ejemplar” de prisión perpetua para su esposo, Eduardo Vázquez, ex baterista del grupo Callejeros, de parte de la Cámara Federal de Casación Penal después de varias apelaciones por parte de la familia de la víctima. A partir de ese homicidio fueron registrados más de 50 casos similares, bajo la modalidad de violencia de género incendiaria.

The most recent is the case of “Wanda Taddei” in 2010, a crime that resulted in an “exemplary” life sentence by the Federal Criminal Cassation Chamber for Taddei's husband, Eduardo Vazquez, the former drummer of the group Callejeros, following several appeals by the victim's family. After the homicide, the courts registered more than 50 similar cases involving women burned to death.

The Jesus de Nazareth No. 2046 School shared second prize. In its blog, the group writes about gender-based violence's real cases.

Rosario City Council's Vice President, Norma López, said the beginning of the award ceremony:

Esta es una actividad muy querida por nosotros porque vemos el trabajo y el esfuerzo que ponen cada una de las escuelas y la forma en que se organizan, así como el interés que aportan para que nos percatemos que somos iguales, porque de eso se trata cuando hablamos de la violencia contra las mujeres.

We consider this to be very important activity, because we see the work and the effort that each of the schools invested. We see the organization that went into this. We also see the interest students display for spreading awareness about equality, which is the main thing to remember, when talking about violence against women.

For more material on this subject, check out Global Voices’ special coverage on 16 days to end violence at home and around the world.