I would like to thank the China White Ribbon Volunteers Network for taking action to further advance gender equality in China by introducing this very engaging approach of storytelling and community dialogue project that brings exploration of social ideas about masculinity into public forums.
Last year, UNFPA launched two reports on masculinities and gender-based violence in China, which are a part of the UN Multi-county Study on Men and Violence in Asia and the Pacific. While the quantitative study is limited to one county in China, we learned a lot from these studies. It shows that men begin perpetrating violence at much younger ages than previously thought. Of men who perpetrated rape, 24 percent were 15-19 years old when they did it for the first time. The findings also indicate that the most common motivation for rape among perpetrators was related to sexual entitlement-a belief that men have a right to have sex with women of their choosing regardless of consent or lack of it. About 86 percent of men who admitted to rape gave this response. Those findings highlight the need to nurture and encourage more peaceful, caring, and healthy ways of being a man. Real men should be against violence against women. We should therefore promote positive male role models that are non-violent, gender equitable, and encourage respect and equality.
To transform our society by engaging more Chinese men and boys to fight against gender-based violence，UNFPA supported Dr. Fang Gang and a group of volunteers in establishing the China White Ribbon Volunteers Network last year. Since its establishment，the China White Ribbon Volunteers Network has mobilized support from different sectors to work as volunteers and provided Hotline counselling services to those who have experienced or perpetrated violence. Through working with media, the Network has campaigned to raise awareness on violence against women, especially focusing on what men can do to prevent it and how to respond to it.
The aims of the “Men Talk Stories”is to strengthen social norms that support healthy masculinities and gender equality, and to help eliminate gender-based violence, homophobia and other oppressions that are intertwined with masculinities, through men's public story-sharing events, documentary film and other media. It is still relatively rare to hear men talk openly and honestly about their experiences in families, struggles and joys in relationships, violent victimization or perpetration, or anything else that leaves us feeling vulnerable - especially in front of other men. Sixteen gender equitable men from diverse backgrounds share their life stories and experiences lining in their communities and campuses. They are opinion leaders, activists, journalists，teachers，nurses, and husbands. They share their personal stories on subjects including gender equality, gender identity, gender-based violence and different gender practices— all with a framing focus on exploring different ways of “being a man.” We hope that by telling these stories conversations will be stimulated among the readers and viewers about male socialization, the variety of masculinities men act out and the roles that all men can play in building healthy and just communities.
UNFPA is committed to working with all those that advance gender equality and prevent gender-based violence, and we hope that many men will join this important cause.
Mr. Arie Hoekman, UNFPA Representative to China