Gender-based violence is a serious violation of the human rights of people who are subjected to abuse and deprivation based on their gender.
Experts in international relations, policymakers, and advocacy campaigns have been relatively successful in combating the global threat of gender-based violence. Meanwhile, gender-based violence continues to be a problem in many societies, particularly in Africa.
The United Nations defines human rights as rights that are inherent in all human beings. As a result, rights are available to all people, regardless of ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender, race, religion, or any other status.
Human rights are inalienable and universal. This means that all people, regardless of their status or gender are entitled to their rights and that no one can give them up voluntarily, nor can others take them away from him or her.
KEY issues of Gender-Based Violence in Africa
Female Genital Mutilation
Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a serious violation of women’s rights all over the world, but especially in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Female genital mutilation is when the female genitalia is removed or injured for non-medical reasons.
This practice is widely regarded as a violation of victims’ fundamental rights around the world. In most African countries, female genital mutilation is common, preventing girls under the age of consent from making decisions about their sexual preferences.
Female genital mutilation affected 27 percent of Nigerian women between the ages of 15 and 49 in 2017.
Females who are subjected to these procedures are frequently forced and denied the right to choose whether or not to participate.
They are not aware of the consequences of female genital mutilation. As a result, as young girls grow into women, they begin to suffer from a variety of diseases and fertility issues as a result of FGM, which is a violation of their human rights.
Denying the girls’ rights in this way has serious consequences for their freedoms and liberties, and it should be condemned.
Intimate Partner Violence
This is abuse or aggression that occurs in a relationship or marriage. This involves violence, mostly against women which is understood as a violation of human rights and a form of discrimination against women.
This has serious consequences for women’s fundamental human rights in African countries. Even though there are institutions in place to address these forms of abuse, the majority of women continue to be abused and their rights are being curtailed.
As a result, women are more likely to be subjected to severe forms of gender-based violence from their partners, which has resulted in the deaths of some women
Forced Marriage
Unlike men, women are often forced into marriages by either physical pressure to marry or emotional and psychological pressure. It is closely linked to child or early marriage, when children are wed before reaching the minimum age for marriage.
Forced marriages has a number of negative consequences. Individual human rights are denied, and the rights of the child or woman being married off are restricted. This is reflected in the woman’s inability to make decisions about their own future, which causes anxiety and depression.
Available evidence suggests that denying a girl child the right to marry the man of her choice at an eligible age leads to many of them contemplating suicide. Child marriage is a form of violence against young girls because it increases their vulnerability to sexual, physical, and psychological violence.
Forced marriages are a significant violation of the girl child’s rights because they impose adult responsibilities on the child at an early age, which is unhealthy and dysfunctional for the child’s growth and progressive transition from one stage in life to the other.
Any form of gender-based violence is evil and should not be tolerated in any society. More girls deserve to be educated to know about their rights and power to seek legal action when violated. Women and girls deserve better too!
