16 Days of Activism Against Gender- Based Violence offers hope for redress

The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence - an annual international campaign kicked off on November 25, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Gender-based violence is any act that is perpetrated against a person’s will and is based on gender norms and unequal power relationships.

It encompasses threats of violence and coercion. It can be physical, emotional, psychological, or sexual in nature. It can also take the form of a denial of resources or access to services. The costs and impact of gender-based violence (GBV), have far reaching consequences on Uganda’s ability to achieve inclusive sustainable economic development, gender equality, and women empowerment.

As estimated by Uganda’s Demographic Health Survey (DHS) 2016, many women in Uganda 56 per cent of married women have experienced physical, sexual, or emotional violence by their current or most recent spouse/partner.

Based on these high statistics, we remain challenged at what still needs to be done to effectively end GBV in Uganda. In 2020, the world will mark the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995) and a five-year milestone will be attained by countries towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda.

GBV is the worst expression of gender inequality and it does indeed perpetuate inequalities, which in principle goes against the development agendas cited above. The 16 Days of Activism, therefore, present an opportunity for the government to evaluate its performance, including challenges that impact its implementation of the Beijing Declaration and other international and regional human rights instruments aimed at ending GBV, including in post-conflict and humanitarian settings.
We recognise the efforts the government has made in addressing GBV by passing legislation and policies, such as The Domestic Violence Act 2010; The National Policy on Elimination of Gender-Based Violence in Uganda; and The National Plan of Action on Elimination of Gender-Based Violence in Uganda (2016), as well as the ratification of international human rights instruments, including The Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, (Maputo protocol).

There is, however, still an existence of adverse cultural norms, practices and traditions, patriarchal attitudes and deep-rooted stereotypes that perpetuate violence against women. This has remained a key barrier to the realisation of meaningful approaches to addressing the different forms of GBV. In addition, digital online platforms present new forms of violence that target mostly women and girls. There is an increase in sexual harassment and body shaming, which, however, remain largely unreported for fear of further retaliation by the perpetrators.

FIDA Uganda’s trend analysis shows that one of the biggest hurdles in addressing GBV, especially against women in Uganda, is the continued weak State response to different forms of violence that undermines women’s effective protection from abuse. The lack of government shelters to offer protection to GBV survivors increases women’s vulnerabilities and subjects them to re-victimisation.

Many women survivors of violence live in poverty and are unable to afford legal services and costs associated with formal justice systems, such as legal representation, filing fees, and transport to formal courts. As a result, some of the survivors resort to reporting to customary dispute resolution mechanisms that may not be well equipped with sufficient knowledge and requisite expertise to handle the cases reported to them.

The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence that runs until December 10, Human Rights Day, therefore, presents a great opportunity for the government of Uganda and other stakeholders to renew their efforts to addressing GBV.

As the leading women’s rights organisation in Uganda, The Uganda Association of Women Lawyers (FIDA Uganda) remains dedicated to working closely with the government and other stakeholders to ensure perpetrators of GBV are held accountable, that legislation on violence against women and girls are updated and work effectively, and that survivors have access to support services, including psychosocial support, medical services, and access to justice.

During these 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, FIDA Uganda reiterates that violence against women will not end until the government and other stakeholders commit to strengthening and prioritising efforts to end GBV.

That is, the government must ensure that police officers and other professionals handling cases of violence against women receive specialised training on how to effectively respond to survivors of violence, including female survivors of Internet violence. FIDA Uganda also calls on the government to strengthen its efforts in establishing State-run shelters to provide protection, secure accommodation, and support services to survivors of violence.

The government needs to strengthen efforts to establish specialised courts specifically to prosecute GBV cases and remove social barriers that discourage survivors of GBV from reporting abuse to the police or other justice actors. For Internet-related forms of violence against women, the government should work with Internet companies to develop quick response protocols.
Government should also prioritise gender responsive budgeting aimed at addressing GBV; treat gender equality as a business issue as it has significant impact on the country’s ability to achieve economic development; train relevant stakeholders, such as officials from the Equal Opportunities Commission on effectively handling GBV. FIDA-Uganda believes that the above recommendations will enhance government and all stakeholders’ efforts to ending GBV.

Ms Adriko is the CEO of FIDA Uganda