A movement against sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) code named, “We are Unprotected” has held a one-day call to action dialogue in the Liberian capital, Monrovia to end SGBV.
“Strengthening Gender-Based Violence Protection Frameworks” was the theme of the forum held earlier this week at a local hotel.
Through the #WeAreUnprotected, this is a campaign organized to respond to a media report on ProPublica and Time Magazine revealing sexual abuse and negligence of young underage girls at the More Than Me Academy, a charity institution established to help educate less fortunate girls in West Point, a slum community.
The campaign is being funded by Action Aid Liberia in collaboration with the Liberia Feminist forum and other advocacy organizations.
Speaking during the event, the Country Director of ActionAid Liberia, Lakshmi Moore noted the year started with the passage of an Executive Order on Domestic Violence and it will be ending with analysis on where to go in terms of its passage, expiration or renewing of the order.
That was the reason theygather as women rights defenders and advocates to close the 16 days of activism,according to the ActionAid Liberia Director.
Ms. Moore said people take women’s rights work to be just a community work, noting that it is important that women come together to analyze what they have been through over the years, so as to understand where they have gone in the fight against SGBV–be it rape, domestic violence and other forms of violence.
“To change culture, we need to change policies, thing in the policies will ensure that when you lead, the culture will change based on the policies. That is why we will talk about policies that can help in the fight,” she said.
The ActionAid Director continued, “under the we are unprotected campaign, is more than just looking at where we are, but where we need to go. When we say we are unprotected we are saying that all of these issues we are having, we need to get to where we will be protected as women in this country.”
At the same time, the president of the National Rural Women Association, Kebbeh Monger noted that laws are pass, but those who it affects are in included in decision making that relate to these issues.
When the Executive Order 46 was passed, no one from rural communities knew about it or how is it impactful to them.
The rural women leader said those are some of the issues Liberia is faced with, because when Bills are passed, they are not implemented.
“One thing I know about Liberia, we don’t know how to pass good bills, but we know how to signed documents,” Madam Monger said.
People in the rural areas, she said face a lot of challenges because of lack of information on how to act to issues like rape, domestic violence and others when they occurred.
“People in the interior don’t know when ley rape your child you have to have proof, that we are not supposed to bathe that child before carry complained and we can bath them before taking the complaint to the police,” the head of Liberia’s rural women group stressed.
According to Madam Monger, the Ministry of Gender is not creating more awareness for in the rural areas and those gender coordinators are all based and focused in the city.
She maintained if there are more awareness done in the rural areas on how to handle rape and other violence issues, there will be no impunity.
“Another problem is the justice system, justice is not free in Liberia and that is why many victims, survivors and the families compromised with rape cases,” she affirmed.
Long distances to get to cases in inaccessible were also cited as some of the challenges.
“Some places, we need motor bike, some no road for motor bike at all, which means you have to walk and some of the distance requires four to five hours of walking, which of the police officer are willing to do this,” the head of the rural women questioned.
“Give responsibility to the women to make decision for themselves and create a need based organization that will help provide information to the people on sensitive issues,” Madam Monger indicated.
Cllr. Ruth Jappah, a Commissioner at the Law Reform Commission said the reason women’s rights issues keep coming up because they are rights that are entitled to human being.
She said everyone is entitled to be free violence, slavery, discrimination, and have the right to be educated, own properties, earn equal pay, among other things, noting women are singled out to have these rights all around the world.
The Law Reform Commission official indicated that this is why governments around the world are coming out with laws that protect women against those violations and denials in the society and women issues keep flagging on a daily basic.
Some of the laws Liberia has passed in favor of women’s
rights and protection are the New Rape Law, the Land Rights Act, the Local
Government act, the Executive Oder 92 that introduced the Domestic Violence
Act, though it has not yet been passed, the act that established Criminal
Criminal Court E focuses on crimes committed against women, especially rape cases and the Inheritance Law. These are laws that protect women give them the right to benefit from ownership to properties of their dead husbands.
Meanwhile, Pearl Atuhaire, Program Specialist responsible for SGBV at UN Women has stressed that women are faced with lots of issues such as sexual and gender-based violence, harmful traditional practices, domestic violence, persistence non-support and others in every part of the society.
She maintained the International Declaration of Human Rights, which was put adapted on December 10, 1948 recognized that women’s rights are human rights, something she said everyone including government institutions, women, men, boys and girls need to take into consideration.
Madam Atuhaire said this Declaration is the cornerstone for human rights for all peoples, regardless of culture, race, religion, political affiliation, status or background.
“It doesn’t matter who you are, you have right inherent to you by the fact that you are a human being.”
Over 2.5 billion women across the world are said to be affected by discriminatory laws and lack of legal protection.
“SGBV and harmful traditional practices are manifestations of women rights violation. We should know that if there is any form of rape, domestic violence, physical violence, economic violence, Female Genital Mitigation and all other harmful practices are all manifestation of human rights violation and most of the people affected by this are women and girls,” the UN Women official explained
She further explained that the Constitution of Liberia also laid out issues of human rights and protection of human rights. Stating it does not discriminate against who has those rights.
“The Constitution also spells out that women and men, boys and girls, we all have equal rights, although in some way this is just on paper, but when it comes women having similar space and provision as the male counterpart is not there.”