Fight Against Domestic Violence
Domestic violence against women has rightly become a high-profile issue - but it's a two-way street. Million Women Rise 2011

Thousands of women will be marching down Oxford Street to Trafalgar Square to protest male violence against women in the afternoon of 3 March.

Million Women Rise (MWR), a group of individual women and representatives from the Voluntary and Community Sector wanting to fight violence against women, orgainse the march annually on the eve of International Women's Day to be celebrated worldwide on 8 March.

The march starts at 1 pm from Oxford Street to Trafalgar Square and volunteers will be rallying in Trafalgar Square at 3 pm. Around 5 pm, there will be a fund-raising event.

According to Home Office statistics, there were over one million female victims of domestic abuse in England and Wales. Around 400,000 women are sexually assaulted and 80,000 women are raped each year.

In the UK, at least one in four women experiences domestic abuse at some point in her life. Domestic violence has more repeat victims than any other crime.

Over 20,000 girls could be at risk of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in the UK, while 100 to 140 million women and girls around the world are currently living with the consequences of FGM. At least 1,420 women per year are trafficked into the UK for sexual exploitation.

The UK government launched an action plan last year to work with international organisations and governments to promote women's rights and end violence against them. Million Women Rise was established in 2007 by Sabrina Qureshi, an award-winning campaigner. More than 10,000 women and children took part in the MWR campaign in 2011.

For more details check out: http://www.millionwomenrise.com/