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An image illustrating a stop to gender-based violence
Community leaders and other stakeholders in Plateau State have harped on the need to tackle the challenge of gender based violence in the state.
In particular, the stakeholders tasked men to champion the crusade and protect the women and girls against any form of gender related abuse in society .
The call was made on Thursday when The International Federation of Women Lawyers,
held a bi-annual forum for community leaders in Plateau State themed, “Engagement, Coordination, and Sharing of Lessons on Gender Based Violence Prevention between Religious, Traditional, and Government Leaders in Nigeria.”
The forum which held in Jos, the state capital and was supported by the Ford Foundation brought together men from the different communities, including Angwa Rogo community, Tudun Wada, Gyel community among others to discuss the best ways of preventing gender based violence in the state.
Speaking at the event, the National President of FIDA, Amina Agbaje, expressed serious concerns over the menace of GBV across many communities in Plateau State.
Thus, she noted that the intervention aims to promote a shared understanding among community leaders, particularly men, regarding the harmful social norms that perpetuate violence against women in society.
Represented by the Plateau State Chairperson of FIDA, Ngozi Achilefu, the National President noted further that “Gender based violence has been an all time concern in many African and international countries but it is particularly exacerbated in Africa where there is a preponderance existence of an unhealthy mix of religion, tradition and gender discriminatory beliefs.
“Gender based violence is deeply rooted in many cultural and traditional values. It is regarded as a normal attitude or remains hidden or tacitly condoned with devastating health impacts on women because women are mostly controlled and dominated by the patriarchs in a relationship and must never complain of sexual harassment and in the case of childlessness, she is blamed and considered as the problem.
“So, traditional beliefs impose economic barriers. Therefore, the intervention is aimed at rallying men forum on creating a counter narrative against the patriarchal system and enhance awareness on women rights protection while enabling men to stand as champions not just to defend the rights of women and girls but also get more involved in efforts to seek justice for victims and survivors of violence against women and girls in their communities.”
Community leaders who attended the event shared their experiences, describing the incidence of gender based violence in the state as real .
A participant recounted how a 14-year-old girl was married and later divorced after giving birth to twins and putting her life in jeopardy, while another participant recounted how an 11-year-old child was buried alive over allegations of witchcraft.
The participants commended FIDA for organising the biannual forum and called on the people to look into the challenges of gender based violence in their communities and speak up against it while expressing their resolve to work collectively to end the menace in Plateau communities.
