Lack of empowerment, fear of who will take care of the children and hunger are some of the reasons abused women stay silent and endure violence and other forms of abuse in relationships, as against reporting to the appropriate authorities.
This much was revealed at a recent one-day round-table discussion on Domestic Violence Law of Lagos State organised for community women’s associations by Project Alert.
Guest speaker, Oluwakemi Bello of the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team (DSVRT) informed the women leaders drawn largely from the Agege and Ikosi areas of Lagos State that the department was established to expose and fight everything that constitutes violence against women and girls.
She informed that the law against domestic violence is very strong in Lagos, having been signed into law since 2007. At the moment, she said the department works directly with the governor to provide holistic response to issues of rape, domestic violence and child abuse, and urged the women leaders to intimate their members to take advantage of it.
In the event of silence by the victim, Bello disclosed that everybody is a mandatory reporter, adding that the department’s slogan is, “When you see something, say something.”
The three-part discussion dealt with: “Understanding Domestic Violence: Myths and facts,” presented by Nsini Udonta; the second part handled by Olubukola Olowoyo explained the Domestic Violence Law in plain language, while the third part explained the role of police as well as its commitment and accessibility to the people.
Speaking, Executive Director, Project Alert, Josephine Effah-Chukwuma said the gathering was to appraise the women with the Domestic Violence Law, to enable them deal with the increasingly ‘epidemic’ situation.
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