in the frame of the International Day of the Girl, Luz Diana Mamani Tarapa, lead actress of the acclaimed Peruvian film Yana-Wara, joined UNESCO to dedicate an emotional message to the girls of Peru, encouraging them to transform their dreams into reality. In her moving video, she called on girls to defend their rights, in accordance with the Declaration on Future Generations of the Pact for the Future.
This 2024, UNESCO commemorates this day under the motto “Girls’ vision of the future.” The celebration focuses on empowering girls, amplifying their voices and ensuring that their ideas and actions are taken into account in the creation of strategies and policies that allow them to build a better future.
Luz Diana Mamani, took advantage of UNESCO’s social networks to share her message from Conduriri, in the province of El Collao, Puno, pointing out: “We still have to face many barriers in our path: discrimination, violence, lack of access to quality education and the invisibility of our voices. Girls want and can be defenders of our rights.”
Through her performance in Yana-Wara, a film spoken in Aymara that tells the life of a girl who faces gender violence and its terrible consequences, Luz Diana embodies the challenges that thousands of girls still face today, such as discrimination and violence. According to the Specialized System for Case Reports on School Violence (SISEVE) of the Ministry of Education, 85,967 cases of physical, psychological and sexual violence have been reported between 2013 and 2024, of which 51% were directed towards girls. Likewise, according to the Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations, So far this year, more than 12 thousand girls and adolescents between 0 and 17 years old have been victims of sexual violence.
With the support of inspiring figures such as Luz Diana Mamani, UNESCO renews its call for girls’ voices to be heard and valued, ensuring that they too can feel safe in schools, families, communities and contribute to a more equitable and just world .
Watch the video of Luz Diana here