The Business and Professional Women of Manitoba (BPW) presented City of Winnipeg with BPW National Commendation for their Safe Cities Initiative

At a special breakfast event on Wednesday September 19, BPW Central presented the City of Winnipeg with the Winnipeg Safe City Commendation to recognize the hard work of the Winnipeg Safe City Steering Committee.

Sexual harassment and other forms of sexual violence in public spaces are an everyday occurrence for women and girls around the world. Women and girls experience and fear various types of sexual violence in public spaces…thereby reducing women and girls’ freedom of movement. Sexual harassment of women and girls remains a largely neglected issue.

In response to these ongoing conditions, UN Women created a global initiative, “Safe Cities and Safe Public Spaces.” It is the first-ever global programme that develops, implements, and evaluates tools, policies and comprehensive approaches on the prevention of and response to sexual harassment and other forms of sexual violence against women and girls.

Winnipeg Selected to Join Global Initiative

In 2013, UN Women selected Winnipeg as the first city in Canada to join the UN Global Safe Cities Initiative. The Safe Cities Initiative supports innovative approaches to preventing and reducing harassment and sexual violence against women and girls in public spaces. Manitoba Status of Women and the City of Winnipeg partnered with UN Women, as well as representatives from the Winnipeg Police Service and other stakeholder & community groups to establish the Winnipeg Safe City Steering Committee. The Committee identified five neighbourhood sites to target their efforts to address this serious crime.

Role of Winnipeg in the UN Women Global Report

“This inaugural global report presents results across the initiative’s “champion” cities – from Cairo to Kigali, Winnipeg to Quito, and New Delhi to Sakai. It stresses the need for comprehensive laws and policies that prevent and respond to sexual violence in public spaces, and highlights some of the encouraging initiatives that are already yielding results…

In Canada, Winnipeg was the first city to participate in the Global Safe Cities and Safe Public Spaces Flagship Initiative. Under the leadership of the Manitoba Status of Women Secretariat and the City of Winnipeg, a variety of partners are collaborating on the initiative – including from health and law enforcement, civil society, and institutions committed to women’s rights. A scoping study informed a first set of interventions, such as Canada’s first indigenous-led programme for survivors of sexual violence. New transportation safety initiatives are in place, and law enforcement agencies have established stronger data collection mechanisms to examine offences on the continuum of violence, and work with city partners to increase reporting of sexual harassment. Workshops to raise awareness among men and boys have been part of a drive for public education and information sharing.”

The Safe Cities Commendation
BPW Central presented the City of Winnipeg with the Winnipeg Safe City Commendation to recognize the hard work of the Winnipeg Safe City Steering Committee.

This event featured several honourable guests:

Hon. Rochelle Squires, MLA for Riel