Nakuru men vow to end GBV sorrows?

Men stand in the middle of a shaft triggering the pains, anguish and trauma that comes with sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), but can they be the beams to put an end to the sorrows?

Kenya leads in GBV prevalence in Eastern Africa with 45 per cent of its 15- 49 female gender population having experienced SGBV. Uganda is second with 44 per cent and Rwanda, 40 per cent.

Burundi and Tanzania have the least prevalence at 23 per cent and 22 per cent in that order. This is according to the data from respective government agencies.

To bring the prevalence to zero, men ought to become allies in the anti-GBV campaigns, suggests a study published in a Journal of Critical and Applied Sociology.

“That rape prevention strategies that focus on men as perpetrators, potential victims, and/or protectors are less than ideal for reaching men,” concludes the 2001 study on Making Rape Education Meaningful for Men: The Case for Eliminating the Emphasis on Men as Perpetrators, Protectors, or Victims.

Love and hope centre

Mr John Wanyoike, a male champion against SGBV is too familiar with making men an allies in the fight against dishonouring rights of the female gender.

Men play a key role in ending violence against women and girls. They have the means to challenge social norms by standing in solidarity with the women, and advocating for change in their communities.

 “You won’t make progress if you shame the men and disgrace their culture. By doing so, you will be hardening their hearts,” says Mr Wanyoike.

Mr Wanyoike is attached to Nakuru-based Love and Hope Centre, where GBV survivors are counselled and assisted to restart their lives, with trainings on life and business skills.

He says winning men over begins with understanding their perceptions and redefining them in a consensus manner, rather than imposing the supposed ‘ideal ideologies’ on them, he says.

“First, appreciate where they are coming from and engage them from their point of view; then introduce aspects of law…what the law says about harmful cultural practices. In no time, you will have changed their mind-set and won them,” he notes.

Since 2014, the male champion has reached out to at least 300 men in Nyamarocho, Bondeni, Kaptembwa, Murogi and Kwa Rhonda slums in Nakuru where 80 per cent of SGBV cases are reported.

The men include motorcycle taxi operators, village opinion leaders, village elders and youth leaders, he said.

Negative impacts

During the awareness activities, Mr Wanyoike says they talk about the negative impacts of sexual violence on women and girls, and how it affects men and boys.

The men also discuss social, cultural and legal structures that either promote or prohibit rape and defilement. They are then are able to acknowledge that they are part and parcel of either the problem, or solution, and commit to speak against the crime, he says.

The ‘converted’ men have established a network of pro-active agents monitoring incidents of SGBV, sensitising others, and assisting in rescuing the victimised.

Mr Wycliffe Mokua, who operates a motorcycle taxi in Kwa Rhonda is a beneficiary of Mr Wanyoike’s community outreach.

In April 2017, he attended one of Mr Wanyoike’s sensitisation drives in Kwa Rhonda area in Kaptembwa Ward.

“I stopped being a violent husband after attending the sessions and learning that a woman is not inferior to a man,” he says.

In December of the same year, he says he reported two cases of rape to the local chief and accompanied the assaulted to the police because he wants to create an ‘ideal community’ free from violence against women and girls.

“I feel like it has become part of my responsibility to protect girls and women,” he notes.

Kaptembwa Chief Kingi Shillingi says reporting of sexual violence cases, had risen since April 2019, compared to 2017. He attributes this change to increased GBV awareness.

In 2017, an average of two cases would be reported against the ten noted in the past seven months, he says.

He says the cases are reported by parents, Nyumba Kumi initiative representatives and anti-GBV advocates.

“Parents, before, shied away from reporting such cases because of stigma, only to come out later when the child is sickly from an infection,” he says.

“In 2017, for instance, a 14-year girl was defiled by a neighbour and the parents went silent only to report when they realised she had been infected with an STI.”