The annual Reclaim the Night marches against gender-based violence have brought hundreds out in Belfast and Derry.
The marches are part of a ‘Global 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence’ initiative that began last Monday, and the gatherings call for the need to “reclaim public space for all” in the face of ongoing attacks against women.
In Belfast, participants set off on Saturday evening from Writer’s Square in the Cathedral Quarter and made their way through the city centre, and among issues marchers aim to highlight is drinks spiking faced by women on nights out.
Organisations taking part included the Belfast Feminist Network and Unison NI.
In Derry, the march took place against a backdrop of fear over a spate of sexual assaults in the city in recent weeks.
Participants, including Derry and Strabane mayor Lilian Seenoi Barr, walked from Ebrington Square and crossed the city’s Peace Bridge before culminating at Guildhall Square.
Alliance for Choice Derry’s Bethany Moore said: “Following the recent attacks in the city, we are deciding to reclaim our night, reclaim our streets...violence against women and girls is everybody’s issue.”
Similar marches were held in cities across the UK, and the movement - which first saw a Belfast march take place in 2014 - traces its roots to 1977 when police in England advised women not to be out after dark following the brutal Yorkshire Ripper murders by Peter Sutcliffe.
