Silenced voices at home; orators abroad-the universality of justice

By Kuda Chitsike

One of the major reasons, leading to the negotiation of the Global Political Agreement was that violence during the run off period had reached unprecedented levels. Approximately 200 people were killed, thousands displaced and assaulted, but there was no mention of the rape that women suffered. It is well known that there was widespread violence, but what is less known is that sexual violence was perpetrated against women as a political strategy.  Previously, there was a lot of anecdotal evidence but no proper documentation was available in the aftermath of the election. Civil society organisations, including women’s groups were hesitant to talk publicly about politically motivated rape, even though survivors were seeking refuge in their organisations and their horror stories were known. The silence of the women’s groups muted the voices of the survivors; if well-established organisations were unwilling to speak on their behalf, who would listen to their individual voices? But as time went on the survivors of rape became bold, began speaking out about their experiences during the election period, and demanded to be heard and taken seriously.

The first public report on sexual violence in Zimbabwe during the election period was written by an American-based organisation, AidsFreeWorld, ‘Electing to Rape: Sexual Terror in Mugabe’s Zimbabwe.’ This report was released in December 2009 and it was based on 70 affidavits collected from women who were survivors of rape and were living in South Africa and Botswana where they felt free to speak.  A second report was produced by the Research and Advocacy Unit (RAU) and the Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights (ZADHR) in 2010, entitled, ‘No Hiding Place: Politically Motivated Rape of Women in Zimbabwe.’  In these two reports, women reported that they were repeatedly raped and beaten for their support of the MDC, whether perceived or real, as the perpetrators told them so during the ordeal. Some stated that this happened in front of their children and family members, and, as a result of the rape, their marriages broke down. Most of the women did not receive appropriate care for the trauma that they had experienced. The women exhibited high levels of sleeplessness, nightmares, flashbacks, and hopelessness: symptoms, which are commonly associated with experiences of trauma.

These two reports gave credence to the claims that the women were making about politically-motivated sexual violence, and the issue could no longer be ignored.

The recently released findings of the Khampepe report supported what Zimbabwean organisations have been saying for the last 14 years, violence and intimidation are part and parcel of elections.  This report has implications for Zimbabwean women who lodged a case in 2012 in the South African courts with the support of AidsFreeWorld. The women brought their case to a South African court because they had failed to get any recourse in Zimbabwe. When they tried to report their cases to the police they were either turned away, told that the police were not dealing with political violence cases, or told by the police that they gor what they deserved. Sometimes the police outrightly  refused to open dockets, which effectively meant the women were unable to go for medical examinations.

AidsFreeWorld submitted an amicus brief to the South African courts after a case was brought by the Zimbabwean Exiles’ Forum and the Southern African Litigation Centre in 2008 on behalf of MDC supporters who alleged that they were tortured by ZANU PF supporters and state agents. On 30^th October 2014, the Constitutional Court in South Africa ruled that the South African Police Service (SAPS) is obliged to investigate crimes against humanity “where the country in which the crimes occurred is unwilling or unable to investigate.” The ruling is based on the fact that South Africa is obliged to investigate because it signed and domesticated the Rome Statute on the establishment of the International Criminal Court.

This ruling has given hope to the Zimbabwean women who were brave enough to tell their stories. Unfortunately not all perpetrators will be brought to justice, but it sends the right message; that sexual violence will not be tolerated in any society for any reason.

Had the election report, which was compiled by the high court judges Sisi Khampepe and Dikgang Moseneke, been released when it was compiled it is highly probable that 2008 might never have happened as a government of national unity could have been negotiated in 2002. The Kamphepe report supported other observers’ groups that stated that there was serious election violence and it would have added to international pressure to end the Zimbabwean crisis.

As we commemorate the 16 days of gender activism, there is hope that justice will be delivered and that the victims of election violence, particularly the victims of rape that have not been acknowledged will get the redress they deserve. Although their voices may have been largely silenced at home, they can get justice abroad-proving that justice is a universal principle and that no atrocity committed against another human being can be hidden forever.

My state of Predestined Misery

By Anonymous

What is it that I could have done differently? Should I have worn fuller skirts, should I have not worn the hipsters that were all the rage, should I have gone on a diet so that my ample behind did not show so much, should I have smiled less brightly, should I have avoided conversation with him, should I have been invisible, should my father never have died? Should he have left me a trust fund that would allow me to be self-sufficient and never lack? Should I never have gone to live with them in the first place? So many questions and no answer as to why he sexually molested me.

I remember standing outside of myself and wondering how I should respond to his sexual advances, his clammy hands clawing me, the lewd sexual innuendos directed at me, the leery looks cast above my aunt’s head as we sat at the dinner table…. He was after all my guardian following my father’s death. I wondered if he felt, and whether or not he was actually entitled to the fringe benefits accruing to him by mere fact of his having sent me to school, having provided me with a roof over my head and food in my stomach.

I had options: I could play along just so I could be out of harm’s way and not ruffle feathers unnecessarily. I could report him to my aunt whereupon I would put an end to his predation of me even though it meant destroying their marriage and alienating me from the people who provided a roof over my head. I could report him to the police and risk alienating myself from the bigger family by taking matters into my own hands; the matter’s resolution which, by cultural right belonged to vanababa vemhuri yangu (who by this time knew about this predation but had chosen to let the matter rest- it was more important that I finish my school with a roof over my head and meanwhile I needed to do whatever It took to protect myself from this man in his house).

My aunt was willing to forgive him this one transgression among innumerable indiscretions he committed against her but she was unwilling to disbelieve him when he told her I lied about his molestation of me even though it was not the first time he had sexually molested someone, having molested a maid once before. Doing so would shatter the perfectly embroidered lie of their marriage and depreciate her standing among her church peers. Even though she had suffered sexual abuse at a young age and I felt she should have known better about the trauma which I had gone through,   her condemnation of me only made things worse.

I found myself being judged along the lines of the perpetuated purity myth that places the emphasis on women having to remain chaste; conflating abstinence with responsibility and the construction of a good girl paradigm. My case was judged too, along the lines of the myth of male weakness which suggests that all men are cavemen; brutish and hyper-sexual, that their civility is a mist which can evaporate at any time. They suggested that men, driven by the irresistible forces of the Y chromosome and testosterone, are to be applauded for even the most half-hearted efforts at self-restraint. For some reason their ‘inherent’ vulnerability to temptation and their concomitant single-mindedness, suggested that, after all had been said and done, it was my job to protect him from himself.

I remember all too vividly the shame I felt when I shouldn’t have felt shame. The horrible guilt I felt when I should not have felt guilty. Feeling like I owed it to the both of them to keep them together, that I owed it to my family to forget my own pain because it was more important to recognise the collective good that would be the result of my shutting up. I was socialised to think in terms of the collective, never mind the individual harm caused, but it grated with me that the very system ostensibly designed to protect me, patriarchy, was working to stifle the very life out of me.

When sexual abuse happens to women I will them with everything that is in me to fight using the law at their disposal but I am aware that the same law was available to me then as it is now but I have not used it to bring the perpetrator to book. So many factors inform my decision, least of which is that I will let sleeping dogs lie, reliving the trauma is not something I particularly relish doing. I imagine that there are plenty of women like myself who have been faced with the same dilemma and have not done as justice would have them do because there are so many other factors to consider other than merely bringing the perpetrators of their violence to book.

My notions of what women need to be secure are informed by such things as I have first-hand knowledge. I envision a world where women do not have to apologise for being women as I had to and still continue to do. I hope that someday, the family, so highly esteemed in our social structures, will protect women and young girls and stop apologising for men where they have wronged women. I hope that someday women shall rise and cease to live in a state of predestined misery.

Change is Possible and Change is Happening

Michelle Bachelet, UN Women Executive Director: Message for International Women’s Day 2013

Today on International Women’s Day I join every individual who believes that change is possible. We are guided by a founding principle of the United Nations: the equal rights of men and women.

All around the world, our voices are rising, and silence and indifference are declining. Change is possible. And change is happening.

Change is happening when every country, for the first time in history, has women on their Olympic teams, as they did this past summer in London.

Change is happening when people worldwide declare solidarity with a Pakistani girl who was shot for championing education for all, a girl named Malala.

Change is happening when protests erupt across the globe with women and men, young and old, rising up and saying no to violence against women.

Today on International Women’s Day I have a message that has two sides, one of hope and one of outrage.

I have hope because awareness and action are rising for women’s rights. A belief is growing that enough is enough.

But I am outraged because women and girls continue to suffer high levels of discrimination, violence, and exclusion. They are routinely blamed and made to feel shame for the violence committed against them, and they too often search in vain for justice.

My message today is simple and straightforward. This year on International Women’s Day, we say enough is enough. Discrimination and violence against women and girls has no place in the 21st century. It is time for Governments to keep their promises and protect human rights in line with the international conventions and agreements that they signed onto. A promise is a promise.

When we set up UN Women more than two years ago, we made ending violence against women one of our top priorities. We are fully aware that this requires changing attitudes and making headway towards equal rights, equal opportunities and equal participation, especially in decision-making.

Last November, on behalf of UN Women I sent a letter to all heads of State and Government of the United Nations. I asked them to COMMIT and announce new actions to prevent and end violence against women and girls. So far, some 45 Governments have committed. I urge all Governments to commit to actions to end violence against women.

As we observe this Day, Government representatives and activists are gathered at the United Nations for the largest international gathering on ending violence against women. At the 57th Commission on the Status of Women, Governments are negotiating a global roadmap of actions to prevent and end these widespread human rights violations.

Ten years ago, when nations came together in this forum on this same issue, they were unable to reach agreement. Today, we cannot allow disagreement and indecision to block progress for the world’s women.

Yes, change is possible and change is happening. But given the atrocities committed each day, we must ask ourselves: Is change happening fast enough? How many more women and girls need to be violated? How many more families need to suffer?

The right of a woman to live free of violence depends on a strong chain of justice. Countries that enact and enforce laws on violence against women have less gender-based violence. Today 160 countries have laws to address violence against women. However, a law is only as strong as its enforcement and in too many cases enforcement is lacking.

So let us work together for strong laws and policies and for effective implementation. Let us work together for prevention and education and for programmes that provide essential services for the victims and survivors of violence.

Today and every day we say NO to discrimination and violence against women and girls.

NO to domestic violence and abuse.

NO to rape and sexual violence.

NO to human trafficking and sexual slavery.

NO to female genital mutilation.

NO to child brides and child marriage.

NO to murders committed in the name of honour or passion.

NO to femicide.

NO to impunity.

And we say YES to peace, human rights, justice and equality.

Today on International Women’s Day and every day, let us go forward with courage, conviction and commitment, with the message that women’s issues are global issues that deserve urgent priority. There can be no peace, no progress as long as women live under the fear of violence.

Politically motivated violence against women in Zimbabwe

With the breaking of the news about the AidsFree World submission of a dossier on politically motivated rape to the National Prosecuting Authority in South Africa, it is worth remembering that political violence against women is an unfortunate feature of the electoral landscape in Zimbabwe. It is also worth remembering that this is not merely a matter for history. Simultaneous to the reporting to the AidsFree World action was a report of the arson attack on the Maisiri home in Headlands (and the murder of 12 year old Christpower Maisiri), and the revelation that his mother too had been victim of political rape by Lovemore Manenji in 2008.

RAU, and its various partners, have been raising the spectre of politically motivated violence against women even prior to the 2008 elections, and thus it was gratifying to see the issue being given a national profile last year through the Women and Peace Conference, organized by Musasa, the Royal Netherlands Embassy, HIVOS, and UN Women. There were strong commitments by Government Ministers, UN agencies, international NGOs, and local women’s organisations to stop political violence, sexual violence, and rape of women.

The issue was raised again in 2013 on Valentine’s Day under the umbrella of the One Billion Rising initiative, where women from all walks of life came together at the National Gallery to dance their commitment to ending violence against women.

RAU therefore wishes to draw your attention to the research of several years on the issue of political motivated violence and intimidation of women. Below are a selection of reports that can be obtained by following the links, but other reports can be found on the RAU website:

www.researchandadvocacyunit.org

RAU (2010), Women, Politics and the Zimbabwe Crisis, Report produced by Idasa (An African Democracy Institute), the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ), the Research and Advocacy Unit (RAU), and the Womens’ Coalition of Zimbabwe (WCoZ). May 2010. HARARE: RESEARCH & ADVOCACY UNIT.

[http://www.researchandadvocacyunit.org/index.php?option=com_docman&task=cat_view&gid=54&Itemid=90]

RAU (2010), Preying on the “Weaker” Sex: Political Violence against Women in Zimbabwe. Report produced by IDASA (An African Democracy Institute), the International Center for Transitional Justice [ICTJ] and the Research and Advocacy Unit [RAU].  November 2010. HARARE: RESEARCH & ADVOCACY UNIT.

[http://www.researchandadvocacyunit.org/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=96&Itemid=90]

RAU (2010), “When the going gets tough the man gets going!” Zimbabwean Women’s views on Politics, Governance, Political Violence, and Transitional Justice. Report produced by the Research and Advocacy Unit [RAU], Idasa [Institute for Democracy in Africa], and the International Center for Transitional Justice [ICTJ]. November 2010. HARARE: RESEARCH & ADVOCACY UNIT.

[http://www.researchandadvocacyunit.org/index.php?option=com_docman&task=cat_view&gid=54&Itemid=90]

 RAU (2010), No Hiding Place. Politically Motivated Rape of Women in Zimbabwe. Report prepared by the Research and Advocacy Unit (RAU) and the Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights (ZADHR). December 2010. HARARE: RESEARCH & ADVOCACY UNIT.

[http://www.researchandadvocacyunit.org/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=170&Itemid=90]

RAU (2011), Women and Law Enforcement in Zimbabwe. Report produced by IDASA (An African Democracy Institute), and the Research and Advocacy Unit (RAU). March 2011, HARARE:RESEARCH & ADVOCACY UNIT.

 

[http://www.researchandadvocacyunit.org/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=97&Itemid=90]

 

RAU (2011), Politically Motivated Rape in Zimbabwe. Report produced for the Women’s Programme of the Research and Advocacy Unit. May 2011. HARARE:RESEARCH & ADVOCACY UNIT.

[http://www.researchandadvocacyunit.org/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=102&Itemid=90]

RAU (2011), Women and Political Violence: An Update. July 2011. HARARE: RESEARCH & ADVOCACY UNIT.

[http://www.researchandadvocacyunit.org/index.php?option=com_docman&task=cat_view&gid=54&Itemid=90]

Why I am rising on V-day

As V-day approaches I ponder on the very reason why I am rising.

I am rising because my life history is scarred with exposure and experiences of violence against women. I have been through too much, seen too much, and heard too much that not rising is a betrayal to my psyche.

I have grown up in a patriarchal society and have seen women brutalised and abused, and the only question that everyone asks is what did she do? We have lost too many women to keep silent in the face of violence.  I have seen my society normalise sexual violence against women so much that they victimise the victim and paralyse her from crying out for help. I have seen too many political battles being fought on the bodies of women in my country that my conscience is scarred with their experiences and those demons continue to haunt our society! I have seen women being abused by the hand that is supposed to protect them; the father, the uncle, the husband, the police, and the state.

So rising is essential. V-day provides an opportunity for me to intensify the everyday fight for justice and respect for women in my nation.

That is why I am rising!

A crime against humanity

In this modern world of instant information, have we become inured to horror? Every day we are exposed to pictures and films of extreme violence, they flicker through our consciousness, moving on to the newest examples of human propensity for violence. And we forget each previous example as the newest hits the media.

However, one example of this propensity for violence, common to every country in the world, is with us every day, has been going every day throughout recorded history, and seems hardly to evoke the same concern as war in Syria, Mali, South Sudan, or Somalia. But it is prevalent in every country in the world – WITHOUT EXCEPTION.

As UN Women has pointed out:

Violence against women and girls is a problem of pandemic proportions. Based on country data available, up to 70 percent of women experience physical or sexual violence from men in their lifetime — the majority by husbands, intimate partners or someone they know.

Consider the following, according to the UN Women report, The Violence against Women Prevalence Data: Surveys by Country, based on data from 86 countries

• In the United States, one-third of women murdered each year are killed by intimate partners.
• In South Africa, a woman is killed every 6 hours by an intimate partner.
• In India, 22 women were killed each day in dowry-related murders in 2007.
• In Guatemala, two women are murdered, on average, each day.
• Women and girls comprise 80 percent of the estimated 800,000 people trafficked annually, with the majority (79 percent) trafficked for sexual exploitation.
• Approximately 100 to 140 million girls and women in the world have experienced female genital mutilation/cutting, with more than 3 million girls in Africa annually at risk of the practice.
• More than 60 million girls worldwide are child brides, married before the age of 18, primarily in South Asia (31.1 million and Sub-Saharan Africa (14.1 million).
• An estimated 150 million girls under 18 suffered some form of sexual violence in 2002 alone.
• As many as 1 in 4 women experience physical and/or sexual violence during pregnancy which increases the likelihood of having a miscarriage, still birth and abortion.
• Approximately 250,000 to 500,000 women and girls were raped in the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
• In eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, at least 200,000 cases of sexual violence, mostly involving women and girls, have been documented since 1996, though the actual numbers are considered to be much higher.
• In Zimbabwe, 52% of women reported being victims of political violence, with 2% being victims of politically motivated rape, and 3% reporting that a family member had been raped. A startling 16% claimed that they knew of a women that had been raped.
• Up to 53 percent of women physically abused by their intimate partners are being kicked or punched in the abdomen.
• In Sao Paulo, Brazil, a woman is assaulted every 15 seconds.
• Domestic violence alone cost approximately USD 1.16 billion in Canada and USD 5.8 billion in the United States. In Australia, violence against women and children costs an estimated USD 11.38 billion per year.
• Between 40 and 50 percent of women in European Union countries experience unwanted sexual advancements, physical contact or other forms of sexual harassment at their workplace.
• In the United States, 83 percent of girls aged 12 to 16 experienced some form of sexual harassment in public schools.
• In Ecuador, adolescent girls reporting sexual violence in school identified teachers as the perpetrator in 37 percent of cases.

So, when it is claimed that one billion women are victims of violence, let us be clear that this is an underestimate. If any of us lived in a country where 70% of half the population suffered these kinds of abuses, we would not be happy, and it would be another of those terrible stories flashing through television and the internet. But is endemic everywhere and hence invisible it seems.

No wonder one billion are rising! Actually it should be three and a half rising! But wouldn’t it be wonderful is all seven billion were rising, and these statistics became a thing of the past.

Maybe we need to see all these violent and discriminatory practices as crimes against humanity, fully one half of humanity. Not merely ordinary crimes, but evidence of deep rooted cultural prejudices, and how do we get rid of these prejudices? Perhaps when patriarchy is seen as a crime against humanity?

Gender Based Violence on the Streets

Zimbabwe Women’s Resource Centre and Network (ZWRCN) and Katswe Sisterhood organised a gender and development (GAD) talk as one of their activities to commemorate this year’s 16 days of Activism against Gender Based Violence. This talk focused on gender based violence against women who are experiencing violence in places they call home, but which homes are not the conventional structures with 4 walls, a door, windows and roof. These women live and work on the streets. They are homeless women and commercial sex workers. The streets are their homes.  We never give much thought to the lives of women who live and work on the streets and sure enough many of you reading this haven’t either; except perhaps in a judgmental way. We judge them, we never give thought to their realities, the reasons that led them onto the street, the things they go through on a day to day basis, and the nature of the lives they lead on the street.

At this talk women living on the streets made their voices heard. Commercial sex workers told their stories of abuse at the hands of family members which forced them to run away from home and end up on the streets. They talked of how they were forced into prostitution; without an education and no skills they had no choice. They also talked about the extreme violence they suffer at the hands of their clients, but also violence perpetrated against them by the police. Four young homeless women in their late teens, two of them pregnant and one with a small child also spoke about their experiences. This included abuse at home, being orphaned, living on the street and trying to find males to offer them protection in exchange for sex. They also talked about violence at the hands of the police when the police claim to be ‘cleaning up’ the streets.

The police are supposed to  provide a safe place for victims to turn to when they are violated, but in Zimbabwe they are the perpetrators. The women spoke about rape within police cells and sex in exchange forrelease when they are arrested for soliciting. They cannot negotiate with the police for safe sex and they have nowhere to report to when they are raped by the police; after all it will be a sex worker’s word against that of the police officer. Who is more likely to be believed? The police have become a law unto themselves and impunity is the order of the day.  The circumstances in which these women find themselves make them more vulnerable because they are said to have consented to sex with any man by virtue of the fact that they are sex workers and/or homeless.  This is not the case as  every woman has the right to choose her sexual partner(s). The police should be enforcing this right not violating it.

Listening to these stories elicited extreme sadness in me and to a certain extent shame. These things are happening every day in our country but nothing is being done about it. No one is challenging the situation because to speak in solidarity with sex workers makes you one of them in the eyes of society.   One thing that stands out is the need for genuine sisterhood in the women’s movement. Let us not be elitist in our support, homeless women and commercial sex workers are no worse than the rest of us. Their circumstances have forced them to make these difficult choices. The bottom line should be the simple fact that they are also women in need.

It was stated at this talk that the time for talking and writing petitions and research papers is over, let us all act against violence, especially when it is perpetrated against vulnerable individuals such as homeless women and commercial sex workers!

HIV/AIDS and Gender Based Violence.

Tomorrow, the 1st of December, the world will commemorate World Aids Day. The theme this year is ‘Getting to Zero: Zero new HIV infections. Zero discrimination. Zero AIDS related deaths.’ As we are also commemorating 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence it becomes paramount to realise the correlation between Gender Based Violence and the prevalence of HIV and AIDS.

The greatest threat thus far to development, poverty alleviation and health today in Africa, still remains HIV/AIDS.  The virus undermines human development objectives, therefore reversing the positive effects of national and regional development.

If we are to get to Zero, then society has to tackle Gender Based Violence (GBV). This is due to the fact that GBV directly and indirectly increases the vulnerability of everyone, but especially women and girls to HIV infection. In dealing with the issue of GBV in relation to HIV /AIDS a number of issues which play a significant role in the exacerbation of the pandemic need to be dealt with. These include gender inequality, poverty, economic stress and unemployment, lack of institutional support from police and judicial systems, alcohol and substance misuse, dysfunctional and unhealthy relationships characterised by power imbalances, conflict and inequality. It is crucial to note that as long as GBV exists, both men and women are more susceptible to HIV/AIDS contraction.

It is the responsibility of every Zimbabwean to take charge and play their part in working towards getting to Zero new infections, Zero discrimination and Zero HIV related deaths. We are all either infected or affected by the virus and denying it will not do Zimbabwe any good.

 

Women, Stand up for your rights!

On Saturday the 24^th of November the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Gender and Community Development officially launched the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence. The 16 days kicked off with a three day fair at which different organisations that offer services to victims of gender-based violence show-cased their work. The aura at the launch was inspiring. Men and women who understand the destructive nature of gender-based violence gathered to demand “Peace in the Home and Peace in the Community.”  Artists such as  Sniper ‘gweta remabhebhi, ’Albert Nyati, Tererai Mugwadi and others also graced the occasion to add their voices to the demand for an end to gender-based violence. The MC, a lively man, kept the crowd roaring with laughter but underneath all the humour his message stood out loud and clear that people should love their partners and not abuse them.

Often, around the 16 days, many comments are raised about how women are not the only victims yet all the attention is on them, why women do not leave if they are in abusive relationships, and about what women may have done to deserve a beating from their partners. These comments are condescending  because one can never know what it feels like to be beaten senseless or to be genuinely petrified of the man you said ‘I do’ to. Many women are caught in a web of violence and do not know where or how to get help.

The fair gave some women access to legal services to get protection orders and others knowledge about the location of safe houses when the need arises. The fair provided a space for all citizens to understand that violence is unacceptable as well as to know where to go to seek help.

We often hear arguments that the women’s movement in Zimbabwe died a natural death. However whether that is an altogether accurate assertion cannot be proved more wrong  than by the woman who was chased out of her house and had some lawyers fight for her or by the woman who was beaten every day and didn’t have anywhere to go but found an organisation that gave her shelter and counselling to enable her to be alive today.

Although these efforts may not be as comprehensive as is required, they are significant to the thousands of women without which there would have been no assistance at all.So when we talk of the 16 days of activism, it is not a time for ‘bitter women to rut against men’ as some may perceive it to be. It is a time to stand up against violence that has affected our society, because be it a sister, a neighbour or a friend of a friend we must say no to  gender-based violence!

16 Days of Activism. What are you doing?

The  23^rd of November 2012 marks the first day of 16 days of activism against Gender Based Violence (GBV). This year Zimbabwe unites with the rest of the world under the global theme “From Peace in the Home to Peace in the World: Let’s Challenge all forms of Gender Based Violence and End Violence against Women!” Gender-based violence is usually committed against women and girls and although sexual violence against men and boys also occurs there are reportedly fewer cases. GBV is an umbrella term for any harmful act that is perpetrated against a person’s will and that is based on socially ascribed (gender) differences between men and women. The nature and extent of specific types of GBV vary across cultures, countries and regions. Examples include rape, sexual exploitation and forced prostitution; domestic violence; trafficking; forced or early marriage; and harmful traditional practices, such as female genital mutilation and honour killings. Lately the media has been reporting cases of domestic violence, highlighting its prominence in Zimbabwe.

It is therefore important for Zimbabweans to familiarise themselves with the current laws on GBV and encourage policy makers to continuously review these laws to combat GBV. We all have a role to play in raising the visibility of Gender Based Violence and prioritising the prevention of violence against women, girls and men. CHANGE BEGINS WITH YOU TODAY!!