Nangula Shejavali
1 December 2008
A HIGH-LEVEL inter-ministerial committee on gender-based violence was launched last week, following a 2002 Cabinet resolution to improve monitoring and evaluation on the strategies of gender-based violence.
The launch of the committee coincided with events of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and Children, which took place on Tuesday.
The 41-member committee consists of representatives from the Ministries of Gender Equality and Child Welfare, Justice, Safety and Security, Education, Information, and Youth, National Service, Sport and Culture, as well as representatives of faith-based, community-based and non-governmental organisations.
The private sector is also expected to participate by advising, monitoring and co-ordinating national efforts to combat gender-based violence.
Launching the committee, President Hifikepunye Pohamba said its primary role would be "to advise on the road map for combating gender-based violence at household and community levels, and to develop and strengthen the implementation of strategies aimed at eliminating violence in the country."
He urged the committee to ensure the implementation of the policy and programme recommendations made at the 2007 national conference on gender-based violence, saying: "The fight against violence against women and children is a fight we cannot afford to lose."
Last year alone, more than 12 500 cases of indecent assault, attempted rape, rape with aggravating circumstances and murder were reported in Namibia.
Such incidents of violence against women and children continue to rise, and Pohamba called on the whole nation "to embrace the culture of zero tolerance against gender-based violence and violence in general".
Pohamba also appealed to all stakeholders, including Government offices, ministries and agencies, the private sector, traditional authorities, civil society organisations and churches, to intensify awareness campaigns against gender-based violence.
The launch of the committee coincided with the launch of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, under the theme 'Stand United Against the Abuse of Women and Children, Baby Dumping and Human Trafficking'.
Tuesday marked the beginning of the 16 days, which will continue until December 10, which marks International Human Rights Day and the Namibian Women's Day.
The commemoration of Namibian Women's Day will take place in Oshakati from December 8 to 10, marking the end of the Rural Women's Conference being held in the Oshana Region.
Speaking at Tuesday's launch, United Nations Resident Co-ordinator Simon Nhongo quoted the UN Secretary General in saying: "Eliminating violence against women remains one of the most serious and urgent challenges of our time.
Everyone has a responsibility to act when confronted with violence.
Each one of us has a duty to support and sustain a political and social environment where violence against women and girls is not tolerated; where friends, family members, neighbours, men and women, intervene to prevent perpetrators to go unpunished."
Nhongo referred to the Joint Programme on Gender recently signed between the Government and the United Nations, with funding to the tune of US$8 million to raise awareness of gender issues in Namibia.
He said one of the three focal areas would be "addressing food insecurity and livelihoods issues, because sometimes women remain in abusive relationships due to issues of livelihoods".
Marlene Mungunda, Minister of Gender Equality and Child Welfare, said that internationally, violence against women and girls in the form of murder, acid attacks, ritual rapes, murders, body mutilation, gang rapes, abduction, defilement, forced early marriages, military sexual slavery, rape as a weapon of war, trafficking in women and girls, and the ill-treatment of widows has become more widespread.
"The fight against violence is everyone's concern, everyone's business.
The boys in our lives need our time and energy.
Your son, grandson, nephew, younger brother, your male colleague.
The boys you teach, coach and mentor.
All of us need to help them grow into healthy young men," Mungunda said, calling on men to join the fight to eliminate violence.
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