Rising Child Foundation, a Nigerian NGO, has called on the judiciary arm of government to prioritize the prosecution of abusers by forming a Special Court in order to ensure swift dispensation of justice and discourage perpetrators of Gender-Based Violence (GBV).
Mrs Taibat Hussein, the foundation’s Executive Director, made the statement during a news conference in Ilorin, the state capital of Kwara, on Wednesday to mark the start of the state’s Gender-Based Violence (GBV) project.
Mrs Hussein highlighted her concern that victims of GBV had received little or no justice over the years because numerous culprits have eluded the long arm of the law.
She said “at present, there is a low conviction rate for GBV in Nigeria and this sadly contributes to emboldening perpetrators to continue to perpetuate these heinous crimes against women and girls.
“For instance, Nigeria’s Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development recently disclosed that out of the over 5100 cases of GBV currently in court, only a paltry 16 convictions have been secured.
“There is therefore a need for our judiciary to prioritize the prosecution of perpetrators of GBV. In this regard, Special Courts can be created to entertain GBV cases to ensure swift dispensation of justice.
Mrs Hussein went on to say that despite several interventions and advocacy efforts by government institutions and civil society groups to draw attention to cases of GBV in Nigeria, particularly in Kwara, “the cases continue to grow, and what is more worrisome and sad is the fact that many of the perpetrators go unpunished.”
She also urged security services to handle GBV cases professionally and without embarrassing victims, saying, “Parents should refrain from using shame to dissuade their abused children from speaking up.”
According to her, “Cases of gender-based violence abound in every part of the country.
“In fact, due to the prevalence of violence against women and girls in Nigeria, the Federal Government was in 2020, forced by activists, to declare a state of emergency on GBV and was after a series of cases of violence against women sparked protests on and offline”.
She said, “Almost every day, we read or hear stories of victims and survivors of GBV in the media.
“From the case of Barakat Bello, a 19-year-old girl who was gang-raped and murdered in Ibadan, Oyo State, Uwa Omozuwa who was raped inside a church in Benin, Edo State and subsequently died as a result of the brutal attack, to Hiny Umoren, a 26-year-old job-seeking lady who was murdered by a man who had invited her for a job interview in Uyo, Akwa-Ibom.
“Also, recently, the Nigerian media space was awash with news of the death of a popular gospel singer, Osinachi, who reportedly died after enduring a series of physical assaults from her husband”.
Mrs Hussein added that “As part of the project of the foundation, we shall organise a broad-based training for 25 selected young ladies that will be regarded as GBV Champions.
“They will be educated on GBV and its implications on the society, trained on how to use social media – majorly Twitter – to advocate GBV-related issues, and what they can do to curb the spread of GBV in their respective communities.
“At the end of the training, we will create a Kwara Gender Action Group that will comprise participants at the training.
“The group will work in local communities across Kwara to create awareness on GBV issues, track and report cases of violent abuse against women, and advocate for redress for victims and punishment for the offenders.
“Our GBV champions will also carry out sustained awareness on GBV across senior secondary schools in Kwara State while creating a pipeline for safe reportage of GBV cases.
“In addition, we will embark on the market drive, organise radio shows, reach out to the community and religious leaders and other relevant stakeholders to create awareness on GBV and seek their support and cooperation towards the prevention and elimination of violence against women and girls.
“To ensure the success of this project, we are humbly soliciting the support of the State and other relevant bodies. We are also open to collaboration with other civil society groups working on GBV issues in Kwara.”
