“Walk a Mile in Her Shoes,” an international march, where men walk in red high heel shoes to show empathy for female victims of assault and abuse, was held at Marina Dbayeh Sunday.
Sunday’s event, which marked the first march in the Middle East, was organized to raise funds for Women's rights organization KAFA (Enough Violence and Exploitation) by selling heels to men.
The event which was organize by Lebanon-based social initiative Uf Concepts, kick-started at Marina Dbayeh at 10 am Sunday, with men baring their red heels for all to see.
Over 200 people gathered for the march, raising banners that read “Beirut is walking,” and “smash violence under your heels.”
The event also included a blood drive and featured musical performances denouncing violence against women.
Nearly one year has passed since the monumental legislation to criminalize domestic violence was approved.
The initial passage of the law was mired by controversy because it was amended under pressure from different religious groups.
Regardless, civil society groups and activists still consider the law an achievement that resulted from years of lobbying for legislation on domestic violence.
While the law has been successfully used to protect victims of domestic violence, civil society groups argue that problems remain with implementing the legislation.
All involved parties, such as lawyers, judges and victims, are still confused about how to use the law, while many people are unaware of its existence, they say.
