The recent Johnny Depp verses Amber Heard verdict in the United States (US) saw women movements recount tales of abuse during the trial as more talk suggested that it was an indictment on their movements.
Alas for me, the gender battle is a struggle for every one that needs to give hope to all survivors of abuse, lest the attention is misplaced as we may put a gag in the mouths of so many hopeless victims out there.
Jokes on cartoons and posts about feminism and the gender fight characterised some social media platforms which also saw some women finding their voices in anguish and anger.
The alarming cases of abuse and violence against women, which are virtually global, pose a challenge to society and lessons to learn from what has been drawn by all stakeholders.
As the story of the two popular Hollywood actor and actress unfolded in a sex-week trial, many organisations and groups of women activists and advocates remained silent.
We need to articulate our anger positively as global statistics do not detract from male perpetuated violence and the fact that violence is wrong regardless of who perpetuates it.
Like any form of violence, this must not be entertained but pose as a challenge to continue raising more awareness on GBV and not smear it in the face of gender activists.
The trial was not a win for men, nor should it be for women, but more awareness to encourage both men and women to come forward and report any abuse or violence and allow the law to prevail.
In all regions of the world, women continue to deal with more abuse and are working to confront the violence which threatens their lives.
It is also important to note that women’s rights should not be seen as special rights, but as human rights enshrined in international human rights treaties for everyone to enjoy.
Further, the women’s movement is made up of women and men who work and fight to achieve gender equality and to improve the lives of women as a social group and violations against men are not exceptional.
Coming back to our local scene, it is unfortunate that Zambia continues to record an increase in GBV which, has been largely attributed to failure to handle misunderstandings by partners.
Like any other problem, domestic and GBV should be tackled by addressing both the perpetrators and victims.
Where the disputes cannot be settled by the two parties, counseling or even staying apart until a solution is found has been recommended.
The UN defines gender violence as an act of gender based abuse or suffering resulting in physical, mental or sexual harm or suffering, threats of such acts, coercion and other deprivations of liberty whether occurring in private or public life.
Every case of domestic and GBV should be taken seriously and each individual given access to the support they need. .
It is important to understand that women are considerably more likely to experience repeated and severe forms of abuse, including sexual violence.
They are also more likely to have experienced sustained physical, psychological or emotional abuse, or violence, which has resulted in injury and death in certain situations.
Studies have also showed that violence against women will likely continue despite best efforts to minimize their women’s vulnerability to such acts unless male risk behaviour is successfully addressed.
The defamation case involving abuse of the two celebrities referred to earlier is not different from the domestic and GBV that Zambia continues to witness as evident from the first quarter report by the police.
Like other African communities, violence against women in homes is seen as an issue in the private sphere.
To date, violence against women in most homes is not openly discussed or acknowledged, but is shoved under the carpet by tradition that suggests that “a man’s home is his castle and what he does there is only of concern to him and his family and not the community.”
And since the interest is to preserve the family at all costs and not wash dirty linen in public, women continue to be potential victims of wife abuse.
From the 6,915 different related gender and sexual related abuse reported and common among women as victims of physical violence, there is need for more awareness.
Currently, Zambians are following with interest what would be described as a passion of crime case of a man killed by his partner resulting from a case of domestic violence.
Studies show that women may use violence as often as men do, but their motives for it and the effects of their violence appears to be quite different than for men.
Even in relationships in which women are the aggressors, they usually experience significant violence from their partners and are likely to be more negatively affected by their partner’s violence.
Similar findings can be seen even with women who have been arrested for intimate partner violence.
Families of survivors are also advised to stop sending survivors back to their abusive homes before a matter is resolved.
Because of the continued abuse, it has been established that many women who have perpetuated violence had kept anger due to the abuse they endured for a long time, resulting in irreversible damage to their spouses.
The global reality of all forms of abuse and violence against women today has not made them silent, but their vulnerability has just simply made them assess the situation by trying to turn it to their advantage for their well being.
And implying that women should be apologetic over an act committed by a person should not deter them from advocating and reporting the high number of gender related violence and abuse that threaten them.
For comments jessiengm@gmail.com