Despite numerous and countless awareness, campaigns and talks on Gender Based Violence in the country, Gender Based Violence is still the number one crime says Mama Emma.
Mama Emma, a Human Rights Defender from the Mama Emma Crisis Centre in Pagwe Station, Gawi District in East Sepik Province also mentioned that sexual abuse is endured by many victims of Gender Based Violence.
At most instances when Mama Emma is counselling victims of Gender Based Violence (GVB) she often discovers that most of these GBV victims and survivors are also victims of sexual violence and 80% of these women suffer in the hands of their own husbands.
“One root cause of GBV is marital problems, and marital problems often end up with violence thus most women often fall victim to acts of violence and come to the centre for assistance on police referrals, mediation and in some worst cases, medical referrals.”
“It is sad to see in most sexual abuse cases that victims are silent about this form of abuse because it happens inside their marriage and often times many never realise that they are being sexually abused until the moment they start sharing their fatal experiences during counselling.”
Mama Emma is making a stern call urging all married women who often endure GBV and who are often forced into sexual intercourse with their partners out of fear to come out and report their partners because this is sexual abuse.
She further stressed that putting offenders and perpetrators behind bars is the right way to deal with the issue and not to charge them to pay compensation or ‘bel kol’ money as mostly referred to.
Paying ‘bel kol’ money is not the best solution to end violence and to change their violent ways and mindset especially in rural places were policing is not effective.
“Some perpetrators when out on bail turn out to be more violent towards their wives and whoever that helped in the process of putting them behind bars,” said Mama Emma.
She also mentioned that when bel kol money (compensation) is paid, the perpetrator thinks he can still commit violence and get away with it by paying bel kol money again.
Mama Emma highlighted that the main tool to help change any violent person is proper counselling.
“When proper counselling is given to a perpetrator over a period of time it actually becomes effective because it changes the violent person psychologically.”
Mama Emma is urging all women facing GBV and sexual violence to go to any nearby safe house, Family Sexual Violence Unit and police station and get help as soon as possible.
She is also asking all men who often inflict violence and abuse on their wives to seek help and get counselling at nearby counselling centres before it is too late, before they commit a regrettable act and put themselves away in prison for a very long time.