Today we mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, recognising that, despite decades of commitments, violence against women remains pervasive. At this historical moment we can see, more clearly than ever before, that the only way to end violence and marginalisation is to dismantle the root causes – militarism, globalisation, fundamentalisms and patriarchy.

The world is in a state of perpetual war. Wars waged to protect resources and supply chains for multi-national corporations have fueled fundamentalisms which, in turn, create the justification for greater militarism and further repression of human rights and democracy. It is evident that fundamentalists have been funded by powerful countries to destabilise regions and governments and ensure their resources are available to foreign capital. Women’s rights are routinely violated by both states and fundamentalists and women’s bodies used as battle ground for geo-political warfare.

Violence against women proliferates when violence as a means of control is normalised. A UN study found that almost half of all men surveyed in selected countries of Asia and the Pacific reported using physical and / or sexual violence against women. The rates were highest in post-conflict areas (for example in Bougainville Papua New Guinea where 80% of men admitted to having used violence against a woman and 62% of men admitted to raping a woman). Men who have witnessed violence and who have used violence against other men appear more likely to be perpetrators of violence against women. Gender inequality is both a cause and a result of violence. The more unequal a society is, the more violent it appears to be.

Violence is always about control and power. Like some men, governments use violence and the threat of violence to maintain control and power. They use it when they don’t have the consent of the people. They use it to maintain inequalities. They use it to secure resources, to protect the interests of multi-nationals and the powerful, to repress social unrest caused by inequality. When governments use violence women suffer directly (killed by military, by fundamentalists, denied medical attention, food, livelihoods) and indirectly by the increasing normalisation of men’s violence.

As governments prepare for the climate negotiations next week in Paris they must address the root causes of climate change. The consequences of climate change are truly frightening. Climate change is already displacing millions of people and contributing to global resource wars (the war in Syria, for example has been linked to climate change induced drought, mono-crop production and resulting food crisis).

Climate change exposes women, particularly rural and Indigenous women, to increased violence and marginalisation. Women who have survived natural catastrophes increasingly brought about by climate change find themselves vulnerable to abuse and sexual violence when they are forced to live in emergency evacuation camps. Organisations who work with women in disaster refugee camps have noted a 400 percent rise in reporting of violence after a natural disaster. The threats to their safety and health escalate the longer they have to live in these camps, even as they lose access to livelihoods.

But catastrophic climate change, inequalities and violence are not inevitable. They are largely the consequence of a global economic and political system designed to facilitate wealth accumulation for a tiny minority. They are the consequence of a militarised globe.

The US military is the single largest consumer of oil. It is the single largest perpetrator of violence. Yet military emissions are not currently included in emissions reductions targets in Paris. While wealthy countries deny the availability of funds to address climate change and build renewable futures, NATO calls for states to spend at least 2% GDP on militaries. Redirecting half of that money would be a first step in achieving development justice.

Development Justice is possible. Development Justice represents the future the vast majority of humanity wants

– a future where wealth, resources and power are equitably shared

– a future where the Earth is habitable and temperature increases are kept well below 1.5c

– a future where conflict and war are rare

– a future where energy, food and water are democratised

– a future where refugees are able to return home if they desire

– a future where violence against women is eliminated