By PALANG KASMI
APPARENTLY concerned by the high rate of inability to conclude Gender Based Violence (GBV) litigations due to the role of negotiators, the Plateau State Gender Commission and the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) have called for arrest of negotiators.
This, they said, would deter the negotiators from the practice.
Speaking during a press briefing organized by the Plateau State Ministry for Women Affairs and Social Development in Jos recently, both bodies condemned the practice where religious and traditional leaders, family members and others who usually view GBV as ‘private’ or ‘family’ matters and spearhead negotiations or out-of-court settlements.
It would be recalled that a press conference was held recently to condemn a domestic violence incident where a police officer, Mr. Ibrahim Shagari, from the Plateau State Command, cut off the wrist of his 7-month pregnant wife following an argument over money.
Speaking at the forum, Chairperson of the Plateau State Gender Commission and Special Adviser to the Governor on Gender, Olivia Dazyam, called for laws to halt the practice of negotiating crimes which she said was a major challenge in the dispensation of justice for GBV victims.
“We cannot keep on negotiating crimes to make the laws ineffective. We have the right legal frameworks but there is no impact. These are things that happen in homes, not outside,” she emphasised.
Dazyam advised that for GBV to be addressed in the country, everyone must be a stakeholder.
“We can’t overlook it and always fold our arms to say domestic violence are problems in their own family, so let them settle it. No, if it becomes violent, certainly, it is a community issue,” she pointed out.
Also in her remarks, Chairperson, FIDA, Plateau State Chapter, Mrs. Obioma Ngozi Achilefu, said negotiators of GBV should be tagged as perpetrators of the crime.
The FIDA Chairperson lamented: “I see the negotiators as perpetrators. As it is now, there is no law in place to punish crime negotiators, whether they are traditional rulers, religious leaders, or whatever status they acquire.
She stated: “I think the time has come that we have to engage the legislature to come up with laws that will clip the wings of these negotiators, so that if somebody proposes negotiation, support or suggests it, such a person should be arrested.
“Such suggestions should be criminalised. Because that’s the problem. That’s why we are not moving forward with the GBV laws, the laws are there.”
Speaking earlier, Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Caroline Panglang Dafur, who led a team to visit the victim, Mrs. Hauwa Shagari, at the Plateau Specialist Hospital where she was receiving treatment, promised to ensure justice was served.
She condemned the high level of silence, secrecy and shielding of perpetrators, adding that citizens had a responsibility to speak out against such injustices by defending the victims.
