Masvawup

About MASVAW Men’s Action to Stop Violence Against Women (MASVAW) is an alliance of men and organizations working on gender issues, committed to reacting to and reducing incidents of violence against women. Through cultural and advocacy campaigns, MASVAW raises awareness and recruits new network members who will work for institutional changes in gender relations. MASVAW is primarily active in the state of Uttar Pradesh. Background MASVAW started in 2001 when male activists involved in supporting a state wide campaign on violence against women realized that this issue was not just a women’s issue but an issue that involved society at large. In order to focus men’s attention on this issue, and to build a larger coalition of concerned and active men, a series of meetings were held and the MASVAW campaign was launched. Male workers and activists in these social development organizations have been the backbone of MASVAW, and starting from these nuclei, the message of MASVAW has now spread to schools and universities, to villages and to urban communities. Farmers and businessmen, students and teachers, journalists and their readers from segments of society are all associated with MASVAW. MASVAW groups are now active in 40 districts of Uttar Pradesh and three districts in the neighbouring state of Uttaranchal.