Stop DowryMongering - UNWOMEN

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In the subcontinent, forced dowry is a practice in which the groom's family coerces the bride's family to pay the groom in material goods. Failure to match this expectation frequently results thousands of brides being victimised through domestic violence and in many cases, even leading to death through murder or suicide. In Pakistan, the custom is practised by all classes, and national laws against it have been unable to stop people from continuing to pressure women to submit. UN Women's goal was to create awareness around the evils of this practice by starting a national movement against it, and expose it for the stigma it is.

We coined a new word for the act of demanding dowry, "Jahezkhori"; which compares in English to an abusive phrase such as "Dowrymongering." We then used one of the most recognised symbols of marriages in the country to disseminate the message: hands decorated with henna held up as if to say "Stop."