Large crowd attends vigil organised by Women's Aid to remember 24 women and girls brutally murdered across Northern Ireland #Women #WomensAid
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00:00Thank you so much for your generosity and your support in being here tonight to help us honour the women who have died in Northern Ireland this year.
00:09Last year at our vigil we were remembering 18 women who had been murdered.
00:16This year we have to add a further 6 to that number.
00:21There have been 24 murdered women in Northern Ireland since 2020.
00:3024 murdered women and children who were there when mummy died or died with mummy.
00:42On the island of Ireland the number sits at 59 women.
00:50And it's timing because we're just waiting to hear the next name.
00:56But we also remember and hold dear memories of all the women whose lives have been brutally taken from us.
01:06And these figures remember include the loss, the bereavement, the grief of the extended family and friends and community who feel that loss so terribly.
01:22We're going to remember some of the women now.
01:52Stacey Snell and Karen McLean.
01:58Nidmilla Beletilova and Kathleen Kate Branton.
02:06Katrina Raney and Keeva Morgan.
02:11Alison Nelson and Margaret Inanew.
02:16Holly Thompson and Natalie McNally.
02:22Alessia Nazarovan and Chloe Mitchell.
02:28Katherine Kat Parton and Patricia Hatsy-Oust.
02:36Sophia Watson and Montserrat Elias.
02:42Rachel Simpson and Mary Ward.
02:47Laura Marshall.
02:50And those are the names of the 24 women who have lost their lives since 2020. Lives taken from them.
02:57And now, with a moment's silence, we will remember the women that we loved.
03:20Thank you for joining us.
03:50Thank you for joining us.
04:20Words can never express the pain and grief that the murder of the women in our community mean to us.
04:36But I will try to give some sentiment of what it means to Women's Aid and to family and friends.
04:45And it's in memory, but it's also in hope.
04:50In the quiet moments, we remember the lives that were taken. The voices now silent.
04:58Their light, though dimmed, still shines within us, a beacon of strength, of love and of resilience.
05:08We honour their memory with every breath, carrying forward their dreams and their laughter.
05:15In our hearts they live on, forever cherished. In our actions, their spirit finds new life.
05:24Though the pain is deep, hope remains.
05:30In the love we share, in the justice that we seek, together we stand united and strong.
05:39Through their remembrance, our voices can rise.
05:46This vigil is a gathering of family, friends and, so importantly, of community,
05:53coming together to remember and celebrate the lives of all of these women who have been ruthlessly taken from us.
06:00We encourage everyone here to join us in advocating for change by raising our collective voices.
06:09We need to really urge government to take much, much stronger action in eliminating violence against women and girls.
06:18And I absolutely, from the bottom of my heart, believe that if we as a community stand strong
06:24and demand that those who have the power, who are in the power, actively do what needs to be done,
06:33then we can eradicate violence against women and girls and we can make our homes and our streets and the places we love
06:41safe for women, for children, for young people, for those we love.
06:47Thank you all very, very much for being here with us tonight.
06:50It's truly great to get this sort of support and, in fact, it's the first time ever in my 20 plus years in Women's Aid
06:58that so many have come out to stand beside us and the bereaved to support the work that we do.
07:05So thank you all very much.
07:20www.womensaid.org