No withdraw of case once GBV Act amended-YWCA

Sat, 25 Mar 2017 11:35:30 +0000

THE tendency by victims to withdraw Gender Based Violence (GBV) cases will be eliminated when the GBV Act is passed, Young Women Christian Association (YWCA) president Lucy Lungu, has said.

Ms Lungu said that GBV had many causes among them the fact that many women were not economically independent.

“Most of our women are still not economically empowered, so at the time the violence happens they immediately report because they are feeling the pain but passed and with pressure from the community, families and a realization that they cannot support themselves financially they give in and withdraw cases,” she said

Ms Lungu was reacting to the concerns raised by the minister of gender Victoria Kalima that she is concerned with the high number of gender based violence victims that are withdrawing the cases.

The minister had said that the level at which gender based violence is being perpetuated in the country is alarming.

Ms Lungu has called for concerted efforts from all stakeholders because no one person or organization can deal with the problem.

“As YWCA we will not relent in advocating against the withdrawing of cases as we have always been doing for a longtime now,” she stated

She said that non-governmental organizations present what they find on the ground to the law makers and it is the law makers that can make the laws stiff.

“There is a very high chance for people who go free to continue perpetrating violence because they feel nothing was done to them and it is important to also get firsthand information from them to know why they withdraw the cases, like in the case of the woman who was almost killed had it not been for the neighbors that rescued her, it makes you wonder why she took a decision to withdraw,” she said.