South Sudanese leaders have been urged to restore peace in the country in order to reduce the rampant cases of gender-based violence.
Speaking during celebrations to mark the last day of Sixteen Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, officials and locals said human rights abuses, including rape, defilement, early pregnancies, forced and early marriages, increased in times of conflict..
State deputy governor Augustino Kiri Gwolo admitted that sustainable peace would reduce the rising cases of gender-based and sexual violence in the state.
Kiri said the only way to prevent further occurrences is for South Sudanese authorities, citizens and development partners to work together to bring lasting peace.
“If there is peace, there will be no such reports of rape and looting everywhere. We need to work out collectively to find sustainable peace so that all this violence is stopped,” he said.
He blamed traditional customs of resolving cases of rape with compensation or marriage, which are parallel to the demands of the law, for promoting sexual or gender based violence.
“With sexual survivors and their families feeling ashamed, human rights violations and abuse continue to occur,” he said.
Speak out against violence
He mentioned an incident which happened in Lutaya residential area of Yei town involving the rape of a woman, which was reported to the authorities after seven days.
“We should all speak out against the violence that is done against them (women). If you keep silent, that person (abuser) will keep pushing you down,” he warned.
Kiri said keeping silent will abet the acts and authorities won’t be able to hold perpetrators to account.
Mohammed Tahr from United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) called on South Sudanese to adopt the spirit of resolving grievances through non-violent means.
“When there are conflicts or issues, we should resolve them without using physical or psycho-social violence,” he said.
Celebrated under the theme, ‘Healthy Relationships at Home, in Schools and in the Community’, with special focus on young people, the sixteen days of activism against gender based violence ran from November 25th.
According to the acting director of Yei state hospital Michael Lugala, insecurity has crippled efforts to reach social services, including health, for survivors of sexual abuse.
He said their work was hampered because many victims neglect or delay reporting sexual abuses to authorities for immediate intervention.
Testimony
The event, celebrated at Yei Freedom Square, featured performances and speeches, and brought together women, school children, youth, churches, representatives from non-governmental organizations and government officials.
“We have committed sin. Our Father, God forgive us. We are mourning our children who have been killed, killed with pangas, slaughtered with knives and shot with guns. We are now left as widows, we are left as orphans,” sang members of a church-based women’s group.
Charity Dudu of Yei River County Women Association said rape cases had increased while other forms of gender violence had reduced since the outbreak of clashes in Juba last July.
She revealed that many women and girls faced rape attempts as they went to harvest their crops and to cultivate their gardens.
“In times of conflict, when women were trying to get out to collect their harvests and gardens, we find that the issues of rape cases have been so many,” she said.
Dudu said many women ended up been raped due to lack of self-defense, while those who committed the crimes used guns to intimidate them.
Dudu narrated her story of attempted rape while she in Khartoum during the war. She said women can personally use self-defense to protect themselves from being raped, stressing the need to shout and use any nearby tool to defend themselves.
However, Dudu said many women and girls have been raped after being threatened with a gun, rendering them vulnerable.