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London, UK: Twenty-eight-year-old Paulina Kenamuni recently moved away from her boyfriend's house in Otjiwarongo, Namibia to flee their abusive relationship. On June 4, the man turned up at her mother's house having a hunting rifle, and fatally shot both women.

women in networking australia - For any growing variety of women all over the world, the greatest risk from guns is not on the streets or perhaps the battlefield, in their own homes - and most from the deaths are caused by a close acquaintance. In Portugal, 47 women have been killed in incidents of domestic violence up to now this season. Eighty-two percent of the murders were committed by a current or former husband, boyfriend or partner.Disarming Domestic Violence Exhibit in Canada

This week, women in 28 countries launched the first international campaign to get rid of the threat of armed domestic violence, led through the London-based International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA). The campaign was unveiled included in IANSA's Global Week of Action Against Gun Violence (June 15 - 22), that is being observed this season in 85 countries worldwide.

The new network seeks to take guns out from the hands of males who have previous domestic abuse, and are probably to utilize a gun in anger. "If you have a previous record of violence, you just really should not be allowed to own or have a very gun," said Sarah Masters, who coordinates the IANSA Women's Network. "It is shocking that only four countries took action to lessen gun deaths in your home."

The Advocacy Project (AP), a partner of IANSA, is supporting the Disarming Domestic Violence campaign by sending Peace Fellows to eight IANSA members - in Argentina, Canada, Colombia, El Salvador, Nepal, Namibia, Portugal, Serbia, and Uganda. The Fellows are already asked to collect information, document the stories of abused women, and make a common database for the campaign.

women in networking australia - According to IANSA, women are three times more prone to die violently if there is a gun in the home. For every woman killed or injured by firearms, many more are threatened.

The world nature of the crisis is reflected in the new network, including top researchers in Serbia, community advocates in Namibia, and disarmament specialists in Canada. Together, they are demanding that spouses and partners are consulted before a gun license is granted, to ensure that men with a reputation domestic abuse are denied access to firearms or have their licenses revoked.

Firearms licensing was already built-into domestic violence laws australia wide, Canada, Nigeria, and Trinidad and Tobago - with impressive results. Canada tightened its gun laws in 1995, by 2003 the gun murder rate came by Fifteen percent overall by Forty percent for ladies. Australia, which overhauled its gun laws in 1996, saw a 45 percent drop in the murder of women within five-years.Pauline Dempers interview

networking for women australia - The campaign started this week having a flurry of activities. In Argentina, advocates held a candlelight vigil and met with Argentine Senator Christina Perceval to press to get a new bill on armed domestic violence. In Canada, activists brought their message for the First Annual Canadian Conference around the Protection against Domestic Homicide in Ontario.

Peace Fellow Johanna Wilkie joined Pauline Dempers, the National Coordinator of Breaking the Wall of Silence (an IANSA member) in Namibia, for an interview on Namibia's national radio station. Nepali advocates held a rally Sunday to brief representatives of political parties. Advocates in Serbia launched their campaign with a television appearance Monday (June 15) along with a press conference today. Women in Portugal will begin their campaign June 29 having a documentary screening and discussion.