Mahira Khan unites with the Commonwealth to help end domestic violence and sexual assault

Actor and the National Goodwill Ambassador for UNHCR, Mahira Khan has become a part of #JoinTheChorus campaign to raise awareness about domestic and sexual violence.

The campaign has been initiated to prevent domestic abuse and sexual assault in the 54 countries of the Commonwealth. It is being helmed by the No More Foundation, the Commonwealth Secretariat and Gentle Forces.

Mahira took to her Instagram to share a video message for her followers. “Hi I’m Mahira Khan, an actor from Pakistan, and I invite you to ‘join the chorus’ and say ‘no more’ to domestic and sexual violence,” she said.

She further stressed upon the need to speak up and create awareness.

“We either know of or have experienced firsthand, some sort of abuse or sexual/domestic violence. The more we speak up, the more we break the silence surrounding domestic and sexual violence.”

 

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A post shared by Mahira Khan (@mahirahkhan)

“I am proud to #JoinTheChorus in support of survivors. Join me at commonwealthsaysnomore.org/jointhechorus,” the superstar wrote as she invited her fans to join the movement.

“Let’s break the culture of silence that has enabled domestic and sexual violence to persist for so long,” she stated in the following post.

 

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A post shared by Mahira Khan (@mahirahkhan)

The was followed by another video about the campaign as well. “Home is not a safe place for everyone. Together, we can help free those harmed by domestic and sexual violence,” she captioned it.  “While one voice might go unheard, a chorus can not be ignored.”

 

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A post sh

ared by Mahira Khan (@mahirahkhan)

According to the campaign website, #JoinTheChorus “aims to increase awareness of domestic and sexual violence and call for collective action”.

The campaign is driven by artist FKA twigs who is joined by distinguished public figures such as Rose Byrne, Joselyn Dumas, Khan, and Thandiwe Newton.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) reports that in Pakistan 32% of women have experienced physical violence and 40% of ever-married women have suffered from spousal abuse at some point in their life (The Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey).

However, it is stated that these statistics do not represent the full extent of cases of violence.

“One in two Pakistani women who have experienced violence never sought help or told anyone about the violence they had experienced,” according to the UNFPA.