Reflecting on the legacy of Nelson Mandela, United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed called for investment in women and girls, decrying gender inequality as perhaps the most pervasive disparity around the world.
“Sadly, the long walk to freedom for women and adolescent girls globally remains unfinished,” Mohammed says.
Marking the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against women, Mohammed issued a call to action for the international community “to invest in the missing 50% of human asset base, the potential of our women and unleash their power for good.”
While Sierra Leoneans may generally be enjoying political stability and peace, the same cannot be said for a high percentage of women in the country that are routinely experiencing gender based violence on a daily basis, the Ministry of Social Welfare says.
According to the UN’s Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women in Sierra Leone’s Women Global Database on Violence against Women, lifetime physical and sexual intimate partner violence accounts for 45%, physical and sexual intimate violence in two months is 29%, child marriage 39% and Female Genital Mutilation/cutting accounts for 90%.
The UN urged for inspirational policy needed to address gender equality, which is putting people at the centre to reduce inequality through inclusion and sustainability.
Although Sierra Leone has been classed as one of the top 50 most peaceful nations in the world yet Global Index report says women suffer disproportionately from gender-based violence because of societal values and the general acceptance that violence women and children is fair.
Hawa Tejan (real named withheld) had to flee from Bonthe District last year because a group of secret society men claimed she interfered with their society. The societal violence against that woman in Bonthe municipality was condemned by Ministry of Social Welfare.
While there are adequate laws in the country guaranteeing the rights of women and girls in Sierra Leone, gender-based violence cases are being reported on daily basis, the Family Support Unit stated.
The report by the Institute for Economics and Peace Think Tank warned that the global economic impact of violence totalled $3.6 trillion USD in 2016
“Just as the world came together to support the end of subjugation of other forms of inhumane activities, we need today to birth a new movement that calls for true equality, everywhere,” Mohammed urged.
“Nelson Mandela had a very long walk to freedom,” Ms. Mohammed said. “Most of us could not even fathom this journey. At the end, he said he ‘discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds there are many more hills to climb’. Leadership at all levels is the key.”
SV/28/11/17
By Sylvia Villa
Wednesday November 29, 2017.
ADVERTISEMENT