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Last month in the highland of Malawi ,a 20 year old mother of two was stripped naked and beaten up by her husband and tortured until she confessed of practicing sorcery.
Then she was buried alive at a local rubbish dump in front of a crowd of fellow villages.
Although horrific, this event was not unusual. Meanwhile, in Zimbabwe three sister aged 5, 9 and 11 living in a remote area were raped, killed and flung done well.
And not far from saying, in South Africa, a 17 year old girl was found horribly mutilated on a building site. She had been raped and died hours later.
In recent months, in these three countries that have few features in common but have a pervasive difference towards violence against woman has at least momentarily given way to outcry across Zambia, as many as one in three woman have been beaten, coerced into sex, or abused in some other way –most often by someone she knows, including by her husband or another male family member, one woman in four has been abused during pregnancy, studies conducted by the ministry of gender have indicated.
“Violence against women both violates and impairs or nullifies the enjoyment by women of their human rights and fundamental freedoms.
In all societies to a lesser or greater degree, women and girls are subjected to physical, sexual and psychological abuse that cuts across lines of income, class and culture.
Public demands for actions to end the routine atrocities so often experienced by woman and girls have inspired government leaders spearheaded by the first lady of Zambia, Mrs. Christine kaseba sata to make important statements of intent, and stung apathetic police service into launching investigations and taking action against the offenders.
This wave of public repulsion has spread, not just within Zambia and to neighboring countries, but further afield including Namibia, all in all gender based violence has generated anger from the public.
Gender based violence in women is one of the most pervasive violations of human rights. And yet the authorities responsible for protecting and prosecution of offenders are often met with indifferences.
It is not enough to pass legislation; almost every country in the world has some form of legislation in place towards gender based violence. Government knows very well that they have obligations under international law to prevent these crimes against humanity by working to eliminate underlying attitudes that discriminate against woman and girls.
Yet in many countries, politicians, police, the judiciary and ordinary men and women too collectively shrug and look away when their hear of gender based violence.
BY:GANIZANI MOSES TEMBO.
