Women and girls living with disabilities in Lagos State have been advised not to keep cases of sexual assault or any other violence against them or any other person around them to themselves but to always speak out by reporting such cases to appropriate authorities for help and for action against perpetrators.
The Women’s Rights and Health Project (WRAHP), a non-governmental organisation, gave the advice at a three-day workshop where it trained no fewer than 20 of them last week.
The leadership training is supported by the African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) and held in the Ikotun area of Lagos State was part of WRAHP’s awareness efforts towards increasing response and access to justice-related services on Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) as related to women and girls with disabilities in Alimosho Local Government area, which has the highest burden of SGBV cases in Lagos State.
The group noted that women and girls with disabilities are among the most vulnerable groups in the society susceptible to sexual abuse and other forms of domestic violence with many of them have no knowledge of what to do or where to seek justice.
Speaking at the workshop, Executive Director of WRAHP, Mrs Bose Ironsi, told the participants among whom are visually and hearing impaired, the amputees and so forth to always stand up against any form of sexual assault including rape, sexual harassment, maltreatment and any other forms of violence perpetrated against them or any other person around them on the basis of their gender.
She said keeping silent on any SGBV would not only encourage perpetrators to do worse but would also encourage others to do likewise and the society would suffer the major consequences.
Mrs Ironsi, who spoke through WRAHP’s Communications Officer, Elizabeth Charles, also enlightened participants that both men and women whether living with disabilities or not have equal fundamental rights in law and they should therefore live a normal life like every other person but without infringement on other people’s rights.
She added that WRAHP and its subsidiary, Ireti Resource Centre are ready to offer free legal service to survivors of SGBV.
One of the participants, who is also the Women Leader, Joint Association of PLWDs, Ms Abigail Turkish, told Tribune Online that indeed, women and girls with disabilities are truly more vulnerable to SGBV than their counterparts with no deformity.
She said many men truly take undue advantage of their disabilities to perpetrate evil activities particularly against the visually impaired and those on the wheelchairs with little or no resistance and without knowing how to seek justice.
She said but with the training, participants are more enlightened on what to do to prevent SGBV or where to go in case of eventuality around them.
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