Stakeholders decry low reportage of SGBV cases in FCT communities 

Stakeholders person expressed interest implicit mediocre reportage of Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) cases astatine the grassroots. They noted that a batch of incidences spell unreported due to the fact that victims are often threatened and dissuaded from reporting to the authorities and seeking justice.

The stakeholders spoke astatine a assemblage advocacy dialog connected SGBV successful Kwali Area Council, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja. Expressing displeasure implicit the development, the Director General, National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking successful Persons (NAPTIP), Prof. Fatima Waziri-Azi, noted with dismay, attempts by household and assemblage members to screen up SGBV offences, particularly cases of rape, incest and bodily harm.

She said the bureau had witnessed a fig of SGBV cases getting withdrawn by complainants who were pressured, coerced, and adjacent threatened to bash so, to support the perpetrators.

“There is thing incorrect with assemblage colony of SGBV cases by assemblage leaders. However, grievous offences similar rape, incest and battery, inflicting of wounded and pistillate genital mutilation, among others, should not beryllium settled astatine the assemblage level.

“The crushed wherefore we are reaching the communities is that we realise each assemblage has its circumstantial needs and issues that person to beryllium addressed with respect to SGBV. Our extremity is to bring unneurotic each stakeholders wrong Kwali Area Council including traditional rulers, religious leaders and instrumentality enforcement agencies to sermon and reenforce our assorted roles connected issues of SGBV successful the FCT,” she said. 

She said pistillate genital mutilation, which is seen arsenic acceptable civilization successful immoderate communities, is simply a crime, and the Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act (VAPPA) frowns astatine it due to the fact that it is harmful.

Waziri-Azi said according to the VAPPA, “incest is simply a crime, and pistillate genital mutilation, which a batch of radical look astatine arsenic a bully culture, is simply a crime.” She said the largest SGBV ailment that NAPTIP receives is spousal battery, hence the request for collaboration by stakeholders due to the fact that “everybody is important successful ensuring that victims are protected and perpetrators are brought to book.”

Also, Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Kwali, Muhammed Ranga, said cases of intersexual abuse, defilement and battle are SGBV issues that the Area Council Police Command has recorded and has been handling successful liaison with NAPTIP. He lamented that Kwali has a superior occupation of SGBV but the assemblage and its leaders ever screen up cases.

“We person challenges with the chiefs and parents; they person ever refused to admit cases of rape, particularly that of minors. Even cases of incest; they don’t privation to bring it to the authorities. And aft bringing specified cases to the authorities, they volition inactive extremity up begging the authorities not to spell up with the matter. They volition halt cooperating, leaving the authorities with nary prime but to permission the victim.

“The begetter volition travel begging, the accepted rulers volition travel begging, and adjacent assembly heads volition travel begging, alternatively of supporting that justness is served to the unfortunate and the perpetrator is punished. This is not good.”

Recall that NAPTIP had earlier revealed that lone 2 SGBV complaints were received from the country assembly retired of 143 that were reported to NAPTIP extortion officers successful the FCT. The agency besides urged assemblage members to travel guardant with and study cases of SGBV done its confidential numbers.