adminGibson Mhaka
IT is exactly 8am at the Bulawayo Civil Court at Tredgold, the building which houses Bulawayo Magistrates Courts. Like animals heading for slaughter, scores of women sit on a bench leading to an office which deals with protection orders. Solemn and troubled looks and bruises on the faces of some women is testimony that they are victims of gender-based violence seeking protection orders as a way of cushioning themselves from their abusive husbands or lovers.
Most of them, if not all, state in their affidavits that their lives are in danger because of their violent husbands or lovers. They claim that their partners always verbally, physically and sexually abuse them.
An official at the Bulawayo Civil Court, who preferred anonymity citing bureaucracy, said weekly, the court in charge of protection orders handles at least 30 cases involving victims of domestic violence seeking legal recourse against their violent partners with women making up the largest bracket.
“This year cases of married and estranged men and women dragging each other to court seeking protection orders have tremendously increased as compared to last year with women being the most applicants.
“Although we do not have the exact figures, information in our records shows that presently the court is dealing with at least 30 cases a week unlike last year when the presiding magistrate would deal with less than 10 cases of a similar nature in a week. The increase itself is a testament that many victims of domestic violence mostly women believe that a protection order is the best tool to escape from their violent partners,” said the official.
The scenario at Tredgold is a common phenomenon at all civil courts in Zimbabwe as more victims of gender-based violence, both men and women now flood the legal system seeking protection against abusive partners.
It has been noted that figures of abused men visiting the courts seeking help against their abusive wives are less when compared to their female counterparts. This is so because many of them choose to suffer or die in silence due to societal prejudices and gender orientation which socialises men into a feeling that a “real man” is expected to be able to “control” his wife.
There is no doubt that domestic violence leaves a deep wound in our society that cuts across lines of class, education, religion, race and socio-economics with women being most victims.
Behind every smile and face of a Zimbabwean woman there is a heart that fervently beats for justice after enduring domestic violence which takes the form of emotional, sexual, physical and psychological abuse. Although this abuse differs widely in form and severity, cause and context, the trauma which women generally endure renders them emotionally, sexually, physically scarred for life.
Domestic violence is any kind of behaviour that a person uses to control an intimate partner through fear and intimidation. It includes physical, sexual, psychological, verbal, and economic abuse. Some examples of domestic abuse are battering, name-calling and insults, threats to kill or harm one’s partner or children, destruction of property, marital rape, and forced sterilisation or abortion.
Mrs Sikhathele Matambo, director at Emthonjeni Women’s Forum, which offers counselling, basic legal advice on issues affecting women and girls, said a protection order is a viable tool which victims of gender-based violence can use to cushion themselves from perpetrators.
“A protection order is viable in the sense that victims mostly women find relief since the order goes with a warrant of arrest in the event that the perpetrator violated its contents or grants by continuously harassing the survivor.
The reason why victims, mostly women seek a protection order is because of this issue of cultural interference where they want to run away from being subjected to backlash by relatives and society at large if they cause the arrest of their abusive husbands.
“There is this fear that if the husband goes to jail they will have no one to look after the children. This fear is widespread because most of the victims of domestic violence are not employed. Others choose a protection order for the sake of material comfort and keeping the status of ‘being married’ although sometimes it is being misinterpreted by some male species to justify the abuse of their wives.
“Sometimes relatives, friends and church people who are close to the victim would advise her to apply for a protection order claiming that if she takes her husband to court and in the event that he is slapped with a jail sentence no one would look after the children,” observed Mrs Matambo.
As the nation commemorates 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence which runs under the theme “From Peace in the home to Peace in our communities”, the Government, opinion leaders, gender activists, churches, schools and every self-respecting Zimbabwean should take the commemorations as a platform to condemn gender-based violence and raise awareness to the victims that the perpetrators are not protected by the granting of protection orders but by having them condemned to correctional centres for rehabilitation.
The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence is an international campaign that runs from 25 November to 10 December yearly. It also incorporates the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and Human Rights Day.
Expressing her concern over the increasing cases of domestic violence, Minister of Women Affairs, Gender and Community Development Cde Oppah Muchinguri said: “It is very disheartening to note that cases of gender-based violence remain high. Gender-based violence has been widespread throughout the world and cuts across borders, affecting all people and society, regardless of ethnicity, race socio-economic status and religion.
“The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based violence is a platform for all Zimbabweans to condemn gender-based violence and in a bid to curtail this problem the ministry developed the Zimbabwe National Gender-based violence Strategy 2012 to 2015 and consequently launched it.”
The strategy is based on the so-called four Ps – prevention, protection, programme and for participating.
From Cde Muchinguri’s observation, it is clear that a lot needs to be done to reduce cases of domestic violence and finding ways of protecting and sensitising victims rather than advising them to seek solace from the police, courts, churches and counselors.
There is a need to come up with a public policy agenda on domestic violence and poverty, which articulates that abused women whether they stayed in their relationships or leave them, should have access to housing, jobs and economic support for their families. These benefits and resources would remove barriers that keep many women trapped in abusive relationships as studies have shown that poverty makes violence against women more likely to happen and more severe.
Another issue is also to make men part of violence prevention and intervention efforts in far more significant ways. This is so because men who are mostly regarded as perpetrators of domestic violence are usually excluded in campaigns and organisations dealing with gender-based violence. Their inclusion in these campaigns and organisations would undoubtedly make them appear not as potential perpetrators but as allies in efforts to make the world safe for women and children.
Furthermore, the Government should expand access to services to low income communities where meaningful help is available. Campaigns and advocacy by organisations fighting against gender-based violence should identify the victims of and offer support and services to them. A community-based system of services and support to victims and perpetrators of violence should exist in many places in Zimbabwe.
Another possible solution to reducing gender-based violence is to “denounce” silence and failure by the church to use the pulpit as a tool for justice to end domestic violence which tends to leave some Christian women suffering traumatic stress disorders since domestic violence in its very nature feeds on the silence, like any kind of abuse.
This is so considering the fact that a great proportion of Christians are women and most of them adhere to Christian doctrine. It follows that issues of addressing domestic violence must rank high in religious teachings.
It seems that the lack of sensitisation and “misguided” advice that Christian women often receive from their congregations reflects a lack of knowledge regarding the dynamics of violence. For married women the church generally expects them to be submissive and “bear their cross” for the good of their children and family and must not do things that anger their husbands so that the latter do not respond with violence.
Online Reporter