The ManicaPost
ZIMBABWE from yesterday (Thursday) joined the rest of the world in campaigning against gender-based violence.
Globally, 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence are marked from November 25 to December 16, and this year, they are being commemorated under the theme: “Orange the world: End violence against women now”.
Violence in our society is often the symptom of deeper social problems.
Enduring violence and abuse is the reality of many Zimbabweans which together, we can change by standing up, and speaking out, especially for women and children.
This year, the media has been awash with the Anna Machaya story, a child bride who died while giving birth at the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church’s Mafararikwa Shrine in Marange.
The case generated public outcry, resulting in the Zimbabwe Gender Commission instituting an inquiry into matters surrounding harmful religious practices which perpetuate sexual exploitation and abuse of women.
The ongoing investigations are not limited to one denomination, but the apostolic sect segment as a whole.
Preliminary inquiry by the Zimbabwe Gender Commission targeted at the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church has revealed that there is strict adherence to the literal interpretation of the Bible which places women as people of lower standing to men insofar as religious processes and rites are concerned.
Women have no right to address the church gathering and cannot occupy leadership positions.
It is this ideology which breeds various other gender rights violations.
The sector is closed to the outside world. Only parishioners are privy to the church rites and protocols.
The members are highly indoctrinated and do not reveal the information to outsiders.
The Anna Machaya case is just a tip of the iceberg, as one in three women across the world experiences violence in their lifetime, translating to more than one billion women and girls facing physical or sexual abuse.
The rights of women and children are fundamental human rights protected by our national Constitution.
Gender-based and child violence, in all its different forms, devalues human dignity and the self-worth of the abused person and must be stopped in our society.
The 16 Days of Activism, therefore, are an opportunity for everyone to come together with the global women’s movement to call for an end to gender-based violence as well as eliminating all forms of discrimination and violence against women wherever they work or live.
For the past two years, the Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated existing inequalities, especially at the workplace where violence against women is a pervasive and persistent problem.
Since the first Covid-19 cases were detected globally, women have borne the brunt of the pandemic as they have suffered a disproportionate loss of livelihoods and income compared to their male counterparts.
From street vendors and domestic workers to subsistence farmers, statistics show that 61 percent of the world’s workers are informal workers; 740 million of them being women.
This figure shows that women need protection as most informal workers often work without any protection of labour laws or access to social benefits such as pensions, health insurances or paid leave days.
Covid-19 brought about lockdown measures which have increased the threat of violence against women, both at home and the workplace.
The girl child has not been spared either, as some were forced out of school after falling pregnant.
While pervasive, gender-based violence is not inevitable; it can and must be prevented.
Stopping this violence starts with believing survivors, adopting comprehensive and inclusive approaches that tackle the root causes, transform harmful social norms, and empower women and girls.
With survivor-centred essential services across policing, justice, health, and social sectors, and sufficient financing for the women’s rights agenda, we can end gender-based violence.
