Human Rights Day

Today, the 10th December, is International Human Rights Day. It marks the end of the 16 Days of Activism to End Gender Based Violence and it celebrates the anniversary of the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). The declaration sets out the fundamental human rights that all people are entitled to be protected by and that all people and nations should universally protect. The core values of the UDHR are equality, justice, freedom and dignity. 

This year’s theme is “Our Everyday Essentials” and it is a powerful reminder of how essential human rights are to everyday life in Moray, in wider Scotland and across the globe. The Human Rights Declaration enshrines the right to a safe, just and equal life, and this includes the right to an adequate standard of living (Article 25), which guarantees food, basic needs, and a healthy environment and the right to rest and leisure (Article 24), which allows time for well-being and connection with others.

Everyone has the right to food and basic needs. 

Everyone has the right to safety and community.

In Moray, people do not have guaranteed access to food and basic needs. Recent local authority data shows that 24% of children in Moray are living in poverty and that poverty is rising in the area faster than anywhere in Scotland*. Moray Food Plus, the charity operating Moray’s food bank and other related projects, supported close to 8000 people in the year 2024-25. 

Survivors of sexual violence accessing our support are increasingly affected by multiple hardships including food and fuel poverty.  Survivors routinely tell us about their concerns related to food poverty, welfare benefits, and meeting basic living costs such as heating their homes or affording rent. The stress and anxiety caused by the ongoing cost-of-living crisis compounds post-traumatic stress associated with sexual violence, frequently worsening mental health and well-being. Poverty affecting survivors compounds the impacts of their trauma experiences, particularly anxiety, distress and fearfulness, and impacts on basic needs including housing, income and food. This contributes significantly to a lack of safety for survivors, which makes recovery from the trauma of sexual violence, and its common mental health impacts, such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and depression, all the more difficult.

At Moray Rape Crisis, we understand that everyone’s experience of poverty and financial hardship is different. We understand that the cost-of-living crisis alongside other issues can affect people’s access to food. We are very grateful to work in partnership with Moray Food Plus to offer survivors accessing our service a Food Larder where they can choose food to take away with them. We also offer free toiletries and sanitary products.

Evidence shows that women are acutely affected by poverty and financial hardship, Engender and the Scottish Women’s Budget Group describe women as, “the shock absorbers of poverty”. (Rape Crisis Scotland). The effects can be felt particularly hard by survivors of sexual violence and other forms of gender-based violence (GBV). Economic abuse, including restricting a woman’s access to her own or household finances, can often be a form of coercive control, alongside sexual violence, within domestic abuse. 95% of people who experience domestic abuse experience some form of economic abuse (Surviving Economic Abuse). One in three survivors has to give up their home as a result of gender-based violence and domestic violence is the leading cause of women presenting as homeless in Scotland (Shelter). Poverty can prevent survivors from leaving their abuser if they don’t have the financial resources to sustain life outwith the relationship and gender based violence creates barriers to employment and economic resources due to the negative health and wellbeing impacts of the traumatic events, negative impacts to earning potential and career progression, and financial stability (Scottish Government). 

There is support available for anyone experiencing poverty and financial difficulties. You do not need to cope on your own. You may be scared or concerned about seeking help, but there is support, advice, and care for you. We created a list of support resources for poverty and financial hardship in our blog for International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.

Poverty and gender-based violence are intrinsically connected. Both are important issues that require a community response.

You and those around you have the power to stand up for the rights of others and make the future safe, just and equal. Small acts of resistance against misogyny, rape culture and other forms of discrimination and abuse help make Moray, and the world, a safer, better place.

Here are some things you can do right now to end gender-based violence in Moray:

• Believing survivors when they take the courageous step to tell you that something happened to them. Sometimes what somebody has gone through and the cruelty they have experienced may seem inconceivable, but that does not mean it did not happen. 
• Donating to us to help us continue to provide our specialist, frontline response for people affected by gender-based violence in Moray. You could also fundraise in aid of us.  Fundraising is a great way to also raise awareness of our work and to engage members of the community in our cause.
• Stand up against harmful myths and stereotypes about sexual violence- that often blame the victims because of what they were wearing or how they were behaving or how much they were drinking.  These pervasive myths can shame and silence survivors for many years and make them believe that what happened was their fault.  Rape, sexual assault and domestic abuse are never the fault of the victim. They are the responsibility and choice of the person who perpetrates them.  They are serious crimes, and there is never an excuse for them.
• Volunteer your time as a member of our board of trustees. Volunteering your time and effort helps us to continue the vital work we provide and it’s rewarding to know you are part of a lifeline to survivors of sexual violence and at the forefront of the fight to end sexual violence.
• Encourage your local representative to speak up about gender-based violence and support funding local, specialist services. You can find out more about who your representatives are, what MSPs do and how to contact them on the Scottish Parliament website and the Moray Council website.
• Share our campaigns and join our mailing list to find out more about what we do.
  

*https://newsroom.moray.gov.uk/news/moray-council-targets-rural-poverty-improvements