Violence Against Women
Source: Daily Independent (Lagos)
On the night of April 14 and 15, 2014, about 276 female students who were quietly sleeping on their school dormitory at the Government Secondary School, Chibok in Borno State, were kidnapped and till date, 219 of the girls are still missing. Boko Haram claimed responsibility for the kidnappings.
Before the April kidnap saga, on February 26 in Buni Yadi, Yobe State, 59 students were massacred in their sleep in their dormitories at a Federal Government College.
Nigerians are daily exposed to all forms of violent acts, from domestic violence against women, rape and incest, to political assaults, medical and social violence among several kinds of violence; and in almost all of these occurrences, there are no prescribed laws or guidelines to ensure that victims or their families are adequately compensated.
However, the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Bill, first introduced in 2003 and re-introduced in 2007 and 2011, seeks among others: To eliminate or reduce to the minimum the occurrence of gender-based violence in the Nigerian society, protect the rights of Nigerians against violence, especially violence against women, address the gaps in current laws on violence in private and public spaces.
The bill also seeks respond to old and emerging forms of violence in particular, gender-based violence, redefines rape to include penetration of any orifice of a woman such as vagina, anus and mouth, which is an improvement on the penal/criminal codes' definition. This means a man or woman can commit rape.
The uniqueness of the VAPP Bill:
Gender neutrality: The bill affirms the fact that all persons suffer some forms of violence.
Extension of locus for reporting and seeking prosecution of GBV offences: A witness or others can report and prosecute on behalf of victim.
Identifying and defining all forms of violence in line with the reality and experiences in Nigeria and the country's obligations under international and regional treaties.
Providing for institutional arrangements to facilitate and enhance access to justice and support for survivors of violence.
Clearly allots specialised roles for line institutions such as social welfare departments, hospitals, religious institutions, the police, and other law enforcement agencies in enforcing the law when operational.
In the last 13 years, the country has witnessed series of attempts to pass the bill at the National Assembly but till date it has not sailed through due to lots of hiccups.
But on Monday, March 2, the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights & Legal Matters has once again called for public hearing on the bill which had on October , 2014, sailed through second reading on the floor of the Senate, after it had enjoyed the passage by House of Representatives on March 14, 2013.
It is believed that as the world celebrates the International Women's Day on March 8, with the theme: "Make it Happen," the passage of the bill by the Senate and final accent by the President before the expiration of the current administration on May 29, would be a special package to make Nigerians, especially the women, happy to have a law safeguarding their dignity to violent-free life.