On Youths and Gender-Based Violence (1)Our Security, Our Peace By Prof. O.E Bassey

The female gender has been known to be on the receiving end of this scourge disproportionately, with various forms of it inflicted on them. And this is in no way abetting the promotion of peace and security.

For clarity purpose, gender-based violence is an act of physical, sexual and psychological harm or suffering to women, including the threats of such act, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life.

There is one underlying denominator of the spread of gender-based violence amongst women in Nigeria and that is down to the gender inequality quite resounding in the country. Nigeria can be said to be a fully patriarchal society even in the 21st century as we are only just seeing the emergence of movements of feminism and gender equality in the country. The crusade for equal rights accruable to women and men in corporate and otherwise world has only been in the limelight recently.

In cognizance of that, such evinces why in this part of the world, the female gender has been treated with so much cruelty and unfairness.

When one talks about gender-based violence today in the country, what sharply comes to mind in the recent of cases we have seen is the death of popular gospel artiste, Mrs. Osinachi Nwachukwu. She was reported to have been a victim of unending assaults from her husband and died as a result of the attacks she suffered from him.

This is just one of the innumerous cases of gender-based violence that have sprung up in the country, depriving us of great women who would have gone on to improve our fate in the various fronts they come.

From psychological violence to stalking to physical violence to forced marriages down to sexual violence, gender mutilation, forced abortion, sexual harassment, threats, verbal abuse, women have been inexorable recipients of these ills and unjustly so when one considers that the larger society approves of it only on the premise that they are women. In other words, the society is contemptuous of the human rights a woman has just like a man does have all on the fact that they are humans.

And this has, you will say expected, trickled down to the younger population as the boys who grow up watching elderly ones violate ladies, and the girls who watched helplessly how their aunties and mummies took it as their fate, as such, take it as normal, and do not speak up even if their lives are at stake.

This is why you find some young ladies who despite being victims of abuse from their partners will stay put in such relationship, and even ready to get married to such partner without dealing with the issues because they have come to believe that abuse to a woman is normal.

What about the deprivation of education to some girls as we see still thriving in the Northern region of the country? Ladies over there are instead pushed into marriage as against their will at a very early age. Reports have claimed that these ladies as a result of being too young do not cope with the demands of marriage as you could as well imagine the burden a pregnant 14 year old will go through, not to talk of the high chances of death such child is likely to encounter upon delivery.

Some will call it an attitudinal problem, while some will posit that it is more of an institutional rot, whichever it is: the fact is that we cannot afford to allow the next generation of Nigerians perpetuate these happenings from a skewed perspective of gender. The older generation might have been culpable of stoking this, thereby causing untold harms that could have been avoided, but it is expected that as a progressive society we evolve, learn from our mistakes and correct them for the prosperity of posterity. While we are bedeviled with myriad of problems in the country, a radically sinister disposition towards a gender in the country would do no good to whatever development we seek to pursue on other fronts. This is why it is critical this becomes an issue to beam the spotlight on and see how we can concertedly and effectively stomp out this scourge from the country.

Proverbs 3:31 – Do not envy a man of violence. And do not choose any of his ways.

Prof. Ofonime Emmanuel Bassey is a Security, Peace and Conflict Resolution Coach with decades of experience in the practice and promotion of Law Enforcement, Peace and Security through the Nigeria Police and the United Nations.

He is an advocate of Peace Leadership and Child Protection.

He has served and interacted at the top level management of the Nigeria Police as well as internationally as a United Nation’s Monitor/Mentor in Kosovo, Europe.

A professor of Peace Advocacy and Conflict Resolution, Dr. O.E Bassey is a certified United Nation’s Trainer, and currently the Director of ICOF Institute of Leadership, Peace and Conflict Resolution in Africa.

With his marks well-established in Peace Leadership both in Nigeria and Africa. Currently, he is the President, NISSI Safety Management Institute: An Institute of Peace Leadership.

Presently, he is spearheading a campaign tagged “The Next Peace Leaders”, a campaign that is billed to run from 2022-2023 with a target of training 37,000 young peace leaders.

For peace and security tips, consultations and trainings, reach him via:

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