InkVisible campaign in Pakistan raises Parliament support for women's protection

Campaign ME

19-03-2025

UN Women has launched its InkVisible campaign, which leans into the rich, cultural beauty of henna 'ink' applied on the 'visible' marks of domestic violence to bring attention to women's protection, empowerment and gender equality in Pakistan, and make women aware of national helpline number that can help them.
The campaign was launched in partnership with creative agency IMPACT BBDO, production house Déjà vu Films, with digital and social assets created by UN Women's in-house designers.
The campaign films have been played at various events in Pakistan and have been placed online on various social channels. Posters were put up in strategic locations that targeted high female traffic in major Pakistani cities.
Campaign Middle East has also learned of plans in place to launch the campaign across billboards and broadcast commercials. Teams working with UN Women to bring this to life have even invited henna artists to draw on the hands and feet of brides, while simultaneously training them and instructing them on how to escape abuse. Henna cones printed with the national helpline number are also being distributed in rural communities.
The Governer of the largest province in Pakistan, as well as the nation's Prime Minister's office, have reacted positively to the campaign, which promises to be a very positive influence in building more programs for women's protection.
One of the main objectives for UN Women has been to end violence against women: The organisation works to prevent and respond to all forms of violence against women, including domestic violence, sexual violence and harmful practices such as child marriage.
The objective for this particular campaign was to drive better conversations around spousal abuse so that women may feel safe speaking up, and to have lawmakers demand more action to protect women.
According to UN Women, incidents of violence against millions of women rise when they get married, as spousal abuse is commonplace in Pakistan.
In Pakistan 1 in 3 married women reportedly face physical and mental abuse by their partners, and a vast number don't report the crime out of fear that the violence may escalate, or due to societal taboos around divorce.
Those working on the campaign, strategically decided to focus on the irony that while a marriage is meant to be celebrated, often it becomes the gateway for abuse. The teams then looked for symbols of a happy marriage that they could pivot to use as a communication device, and henna stood out.
Usually meant to adorn hands and feet, this campaign called for the application of henna in places it has never been before: the areas where bruises often occur as a result of domestic violence. For instance, henna is applied on a black eye to highlight beauty amidst the trauma.
The jarring visuals were meant to alarm, and to inform millions of married women that they could call a national helpline to seek help.
Beyond the rise in calls made to the national helpline immediately after the campaign — indicating that the InkVisible campaign has started to inform its audience successfully — one of the strongest results of the campaign was that female parliamentarians in the National Assembly wore henna as wounds and bruise marks to further the message.
They amplified the InkVisible campaign by reposting it, while pushing lawmakers to join them to strengthen laws against spousal abuse.
Apart from parliamentarians, donor agencies have also joined the call for stronger legislation and action to protect women from violence.
Client: UN Women
Creative agency: IMPACT BBDO
Production house: Déjà vu Films