PHOTO: Atty. Mmonbeydo Joah CEO of ORWOCH (Left) and participants (Right)
By Garmah Never Lomo, garmahlomo@gmail.com
Monrovia, Liberia- The Organization for Women and Children (ORWOCH) has conducted training for 25 state prosecutors on Domestic Violence Law, in an effort to beef up the fight against the wave of domestic violence in the country.
Domestic violence is a pervasive problem in all regions of Liberia and the world, occurring in every culture and social group. It is perceived to be the second highest case next to cases on property.
Acting Chief Executive Officer of ORWOCH, Hawa Jembell facilitated the training on Friday April 7,2023 to enhance duty bearers (prosecutors) implementation of due diligence obligation to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls and provide pro Bono costs associated with indigent women.
Madam Jembell during the training said it is devastating emotional, financial, physical and social effects on the victims, families and communities.
It is a fact that victims are mostly women and girls who faces many challenges in accessing Justice and protection and international efforts have recognized the need for comprehensive and multi-sectorial approach to this complex social problem identifying the law enforcement and Justice sectors as crucial players.
ORWOCH is a feminist women-led registered national nongovernmental organization committed to championing the rights of women and girls building their capacities and taking collective actions, which seek to support Liberian women and girls to claim their rights and have their voices heard free from all kinds of domestic violence.
Due to the numerous domestic violence cases against women and girls, President George M. Weah signed into law the Domestic Violence Act to address domestic violence in Liberia. But the difficult part is the implementation of the law by duty bearers remain a grave challenge even though some efforts have been made overtime she noted.
Since the law was passed in 2019, it remains rarely or largely unused by the Liberian magisterial courts which are courts of first instance and have jurisdiction of this law. In many cases, judges still use section 16 of the Liberian penal code or are influenced by societal and cultural perceptions of gender roles of women.
However, the law enforcement and justice sectors are key sectors as they can be mobilized to become more effective tools in protecting the victims, ending, impunity, providing access to justice and redress and responding to special needs and vulnerabilities experienced by women victims within the Justice system; therefore it is prudent that they have in-depth knowledge of the law and use it to promote the rights of women in Liberia which is the intent of the proposed training as they are first responders in situations of domestic violence.
The achievements of a violence free society will require all hands on deck; different sectors and actors including duty bearers and service providers working together in an integrated manner utilizing strategies, skills and resources to implement legislations or policies that promotes women’s right to live in a society free of violence.
Hence, the one-day training with the support from KWINNA Till KWINNA is geared towards familiarizing law enforcement and justice sectors professionals with the national laws and international standards relating to key issues for responding to domestic violence, particularly violence experienced by women within the context of the domestic violence law and to develop a better understanding by members of the National prosecutors of Liberia and courts on the dynamics of domestic violence, the root causes of the violence and the concept of gender equality and respond effectively to domestic violence ensuring the prosecution and safety of victims while holding the abuser accountable.
“We are confident that at the end of this training session, The Domestic Violence Law will become a useful working tool in the fight against Domestic Violence against women and girls”.
On the other hand, this training also aims to improve the knowledge and insights underlying domestic violence concepts and roles as well as reviewing themes related to Domestic Violence with specific knowledge about what the laws entails.
For her part, the City Solicitor of Barnesville Atty. Laura K. Collins said from her field of study, so many times she has come across domestic violence cases but whenever she tries to perform her duty, most often the victims can be off for settlement instead of prosecution.
Atty. Collins, who participated in workshop, added that domestic violence always originates from persistent non-support and she stands in the middle to implement the domestic violence law.
She further said that they are faced with challenge where the victims are not always willing for the perpetrators to be penalized but instead the victims can be coherence by family members, church and community chairman to take the matter home for settlement.
What she learned from the workshop, will be utilized to the code especially whenever the victims are willing for their abusers to not be prosecuted, she will do all she can to prosecution the perpetrators.
Another participant of the workshop from the Owen groove Magisterial Court is the City Solicitor, Atty. Angeline Lemue said as per her experience, she will prosecute domestic violence cases using the law despite custom norms.
Atty. Lemue told journalists in an exclusive interview that every crime is committed against the state. Therefore, whether a domestic violence victims are not willing for their cases to be prosecuted, she as lawyer representing the government has the authority to prosecute the case using the law.
According to her, she doesn’t blame any Magistrate for paying less attention to domestic violence cases because she has remedies to the law through summon.
“If we as City Solicitor don’t need to give up on domestic violence cases because when we do so, it will become the order of the day,” she noted.
Atty. Lemue told journalists that “despite family or religious interference, I will prosecute domestic violence cases when it comes before me.”