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H-Metro Reporter
THE Padare/Enkundleni Men’s Forum has said that almost 500 men approached the organisation for counselling in relation to gender-based violence (GBV) connected with economic and emotional abuse.
The programmes officer for the organisation, Meseli Nyoni, said 483 men received counselling between January and this month.
He said that failing to provide support for families and being denied conjugal rights can provoke abuse against men.
“Men are abused as a result of failing to support the family and are deprived of their conjugal rights,” Nyoni said.
However, the majority of GBV victims, particularly for rape, are women and minors.
Kusowa Kanganisai, a psychologist at the Adult Rape Clinic, said the majority of victims of rape are women and minors with a large number ranging from 0-15 years.
“It is very rare for men to report cases of rape, particularly due to the patriarchal nature of the society condemning them as not brave enough. Men who come to report are minors who are brought by their relatives,” Kanganisai said.
“Victims of rape need a social support system from the community they come from. As long as the environment is the trigger of the distress, the social system has to be looked into. Relatives are the perpetrators in most of the rape cases recorded.”
Kanganisai also appealed to the communities to report rape cases instead of negotiating with perpetrators in their communities.
Online Reporter