This year’s global campaign, 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, continued with the panel Danish-Serbian Dialogue: Combating Misinformation and Hate Speech, organized in partnership with the Embassy of Denmark in Serbia.

The event brought together Danish and Serbian voices to explore shared responsibilities among the media, civil society, and the education sector in fostering respect in public discourse and empowering citizens to recognize and resist digital manipulation.

Verbal abuse, hate speech, and misinformation remain central challenges to democratic dialogue and social trust in both Denmark and Serbia. Women and girls are disproportionately exposed to online violence compared to men and boys, especially those active in the public sphere—such as activists, journalists, politicians, human rights defenders, and young women. These were among the key topics discussed during the panel.

Plamena Halacheva, Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia, emphasized in her opening remarks that technology-enabled violence is often amplified by misinformation, manipulation, and coordinated online attacks designed to silence women and undermine democratic participation.

“The EU recognizes misinformation and information manipulation as global threats to democracy, and since 2015 we have been developing policies and capacities to address them, always with full respect for freedom of expression. We collaborate with partners who share our commitment to defending media freedom, open debate, and diversity of voices. Combating misinformation also means supporting women who are targeted, exposing manipulations, and strengthening public resilience,” she said.

“In the next 11 minutes it takes us to grab a sandwich, chat with a colleague by the coffee machine, or open this panel, another woman will be killed by her partner or a member of her close family. Over the next hour, countless women around the world will be attacked, injured, or silenced by threats of violence,” emphasized H.E. Pernille Deler Kardel, Ambassador of Denmark to Serbia, in her opening remarks.

The panel featured Henriette Laursen, Director of the Danish Centre for Research on Women and Gender (KVINFO); Aleksandra Krstić, Professor at the Faculty of Political Sciences, University of Belgrade; Minja Bogavac, Creative Director of the E8 Center, writer, playwright, and theater director; and Selena Tasić from WeBalkans. The discussion was moderated by Jelena Glušac from the Europe House in Belgrade.

Participants agreed on the importance of reporting violence and stressed that violence against women and girls must be openly discussed.

“UNITE to stop digital violence against women and girls” is the theme of this year’s 16 Days of Activism campaign, which begins on November 25, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls, and concludes on December 10, International Human Rights Day.