Delegates from Australia, Namibia and the US have arrived for the 57th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women, the theme for which is the elimination and prevention of all forms of violence against women and girls—an unyielding global pandemic. The Baha'i International Community's statement to the Commission calls attention to the “culture of impunity” within which violence against women is often tolerated and condoned.  The eradication of violence, it states, requires not only changes in law and policy, but more fundamental changes at the level of culture, attitudes and beliefs. Its recommendations to the Commission include: a shift from reactive to preventative approaches to the eradication of violence, redefinition of concepts of power, and ensuring that no custom or religious interpretation that sanctions violence be allowed to outweigh State obligations to eradicate violence against women and girls. The Baha'i International Community is working actively with civil society representatives in an effort to ensure that this year’s Agreed Conclusions move beyond the status quo and that they are implemented in a timely and comprehensive manner.