The tragedy behind closed doors

Dominant cultures continue to fuel various forms of violence against women.

Photo credit: Photo | Pool

Gender equality is an integral part of economic growth and social development. However, there cannot be equality without safety. Women have always played a fundamental role in development yet they have been subjected to various forms of abuse.

Gender-Based Violence (GBV) has become a deeply rooted weed in the society. It is one of the most notable yet socially condoned forms of human rights violations.

It transcends social, ethnicity, class, economic and national boundaries. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) estimates that one in three women globally experience some form of violence in their lifetime.

Despite GBV being a serious global health and development issue, it is one of the least visible human rights violations, possibly because we tend to look at it as a private matter. In fact, most acts of violence against women are usually committed by intimate partners and occur behind closed doors. GBV remains a silent affliction despite it being deeply rooted in the society.

GB violence is, however, prevalent where rigid concepts of gender still exist. The societal practices and dominant cultures in different parts of the world continue to fuel various forms of violence against women.

Although both men and women are at risk of gender violence, the majority of victims are women and girls. In Kenya, GBV has resulted in negative impacts on families, society and the entire nation. It has now reached to a point where violence against women has become a daily occurrence. Violence cases are highlighted every day in the mainstream and social media, yet all we do is express our disappointment, sympathise with the affected families and eventually forget until the next case. We can do better.

The public should join the fight for women’s rights and expose any form of violence, show solidarity with survivors and possibly draw government attention to the issue.

Further, community dialogue can challenge notions and attitudes that condone gender-based violence. We should all endeavor to promote and uphold values that support peaceful, respectable and gender-equitable relationships for children, adults and the vulnerable.

However, to effectively combat violence against women, concerted effort from various stakeholders is critical. Although Kenya has made significant steps towards turning the tide against GBV within its legislative framework, a lot still needs to be done. For instance, there is a need to strengthen community systems in order to deal with gender-based violence cases at the community level.

Lastly, violence should be the sole responsibility of the perpetrator who must be held accountable and prosecuted as per the law. The shame and stigma faced by victims should be eliminated as well. The tendency to blame victims for the violence that happens to them reinforces a victim-blaming discourse and gives power to the perpetrators as it absolves them from any form of responsibility regarding the crime.

To echo the words of Jackson Katz, it is imperative that we normalize talking about how many men raped women, but not how many women were raped. This will bring the perpetrators to the limelight and possibly prompt the government to strengthen legislation to criminalize such acts of violence and take legal action against the perpetrators.