By Kini Nsom & Clovis Atatah
Governments have been called upon to carry out legal reforms that would help to eschew human rights in general and domestic violence in particular.The call was the main substance of an international workshop that held in Yaounde from March 17-21.
Organised by the German humanitarian NGO, "Bread for the World" and the Yaounde Trauma Centre, the workshop brought together participants from Ethiopia, Germany, Ghana, South Africa, Uganda and Cameroon.
Hinged on the topic: "Overcoming Domestic Violence," the workshop generated heated debates among participants.One of the resolutions issued after the workshop that took place at Hotel Azur in Bastos, Yaounde, noted that domestic violence is the greatest crisis facing women throughout the world.
Though generally downplayed, it was stated that many women die due to domestic violence perpetrated by their partners. That is why the workshop participants resolved to "advocate and lobby governments to carry out reforms in the legal system that enables the issues of human rights in general and domestic violence in particular to be addressed adequately."
During a press conference organised to mark the end of the occasion, participants condemned all traditional practices that fuel violence against women. While outlining the objectives of the workshop, the representative of Bread for the World, Una Hombrecher, said the occasion served as a forum for participants to share information and map out strategies to overcome the problem.
One of the participants, Barrister Betty Luma of the Federation of International Female Lawyers, analysed the phenomenon of domestic violence. According to her, there was physical, emotional, sexual as well as psychological and economic violence perpetrated against women by their partners.
Luma picked holes with the chauvinistic manner in which the Cameroonian law was tailored as far as addressing the issue of domestic violence is concerned.Another participant, Regis Munyaradzi Mtutu from Men's Forum on Gender in Zimbabwe said men should not only be scorned as perpetrators of domestic violence. Going by him, men should be part of the solution to domestic violence through sensitisation.
According to Mrs. Grace Eneme of the Federation of Protestant Churches in Cameroon, many churches do not give succour to women who suffer domestic violence. She said the church is supposed to shoulder great responsibility on the issue. She said violence against any human being is a sin against God.
The representative of the Centre for Domestic Violence Prevention in Uganda, Hope Kellen Turyasingura, domestic violence remains the jinx behind the spread of HIV/AIDS, street children, prostitution, and poverty. According to her, most street children, and prostitutes come from broken homes.
While opening the seminar on March 17, the representative of "Bread for the World," Una Hombrecher, described domestic violence as a social plague that cuts across religion, economic and ethnic boundaries.
She said although focus is on violence that is associated with terrorism, ethnic conflicts and war, violence in the private sphere was a serious threat to mankind. It was because of these, she stated, that the World Council of Churches proclaimed this decade as one in which domestic violence should be overcome.
In a welcome address, the President of the Trauma Centre, Mr. Peter Essoka, said domestic violence is a crucial problem that is silently eating into the very fabric of the society. Quoting the World Health Organisation, WHO, he said violence against women often takes place at home and in family settings.
According to him, almost half of the women who die due to homicide are killed by their current of former partners. He lauded the Social Services Agency of the Protestant Church in Germany with its branches "Bread for the World" and Hope for Eastern Europe for fighting to prevent gender-based violence and also giving assistant to it victims.
"Trauma Centre is a non-governmental institution which as its name indicates, carters for victims of violence, torture, of war and other demeaning baseless abuses that touch on the human person."
Given the upsurge of domestic violence in societies, the world over, the workshop participants advocate the reinforcement of the implementation of good laws and ratified conventions on human rights and domestic violence.
They equally resolved to create a network in order to share information and ideas on domestic violence and other human rights related issues. Mrs. Tilder Kumichi moderated the seminar.
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