By Ikenna Orioha
A humanitarian group, Centre For The Right To Health (CRH), has kicked against violence on vulnerable persons: girls, pregnant women, poor widows, women with disabilities, orphans, the less-privileged, among others, in Imo State.
Hence it called for the protection, safety and preservation of rights of these vulnerable persons by government, village heads, traditional rulers, religious leaders and opulent individuals.
CRH listed that women, girls and even males have been several raped, domestically violated and are more likely to live with or experience these abuses for a longer time.
Speaking in Owerri on Tuesday, the Executive Director of Centre For The Right To Health, Dr Stella Iwuagwu, said women with disabilities and vulnerable persons in Imo State have always been violated sexually, emotionally, spiritually and physically by those who ought to have protected them due largely to culture, social/financial status or background and dearth of gender rights laws.
Iwuagwu who regretted that gender-based violence is prevalent in Imo State, condemned the lackadaisical attitude of rulers in implementing laws that punish those who abuse the vulnerable especially women with disabilities, poor widows and orphans, champions their cause, protects their rights and humanism.
She called on religious (church), cultural heads (traditional rulers, presidents general, youth/women leaders), influencial individuals, including the media to often speak for the voiceless, protect, uphold their rights and interests to make them have good sense of belonging in the society, saying social justice, care in dignity, love and affection should be shown to vulnerable persons to dignify them and make them happy and comfortable at all times.
“Supported by the Ford Foundation, Centre For The Right To Health is implementing a project aimed at building the capacity of disability and women’s rights organizations and engage cultural and religious leaders to prevent Gender-Based Violence against Women With Disabilities in Imo State. The project covers nine LGAs across three Senatorial Zones to ensure both rural and urban representation”, Iwuagwu stated.
Iwuagwu who added that women and girls with disabilities are always affected by gender based violence given to intersectionality, multiple layers of vulnerability, religion, culture, access to quality education, economic security, limited access to social facilities, among others, noted that CRH has concluded plans to hold an expository Documentary Premier on Persons With Disabilities at Rockview Hotel Owerri on Thursday.
“One way to create this awareness is by using audio-visual documents as advocacy tools and that is what CRH hopes to achieve with this video documentary which will share the live experiences of women with disabilities who have been victims of gender based violence in Imo State”, she added.
She noted that some of the vulnerable persons are going to be trained.
