Public statement   modifié le 06-12-2021 12:31 par Tournons la Page

"No to rape! Break the silence! Go to the health centers at your disposal and receive the necessary care", these are the messages launched by the women leaders of TLP-Burundi during this campaign. Indeed, since November 25, the whole world has been following the 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence campaign. TLP-Burundi has been highlighting what is happening in the country in this regard.

The goal of this campaign on social networks is to raise awareness and stimulate a change in mentalities. Indeed, violence against women and girls is one of the most pronounced, persistent and devastating human rights violations in the world, according to UN Women. According to the institution, every day, 137 women are killed by a family member worldwide. They also remain one of the most underreported because of the impunity, silence, stigma and shame that surround them. In Burundi, sexual violence was used as a weapon of repression against the opposition in 2015. during the period of peaceful protest against the third term of the late president Pierre Nkurunziza, several cases of rape were committed by the forces of law and order and by Imbonerakure youth affiliated with the ruling party. The modus operandi of the latter consisted of breaking into houses under the pretext of searching for weapons caches and then separating the men from the girls and/or women before raping them.

Jeanne d'Arc Zaninyana, a lawyer and president of women leaders of TLP-Burundi, added that "Burundi has one of the highest rates of domestic violence in the world. According to a government report, "48.5% of Burundian women have been physically or sexually abused by their partners and more than 70% of the total victims are women. Many of these women have fled after suffering violence of all kinds and continue to suffer in the refugee camps.

The national coordination

TLP-Burundi