By Mustapha Jallow
On Wednesday, Hussein Thomasi, the Solicitor General and Legal Secretary of the Ministry for Justice, said the Gambia government, through the Ministry of Justice, is committed to eradicating sexual violence and strengthening their legal sector—institutions able to carry out this task. He went on to say that it is also essential that they have an honest discussion on how they can tackle obstacles that hinder the effective investigation and prosecution of sexual violence cases.
Thomas made this statement while declaring the consultation meeting opened on behalf of the Minister for Justice at the Kairaba Jawara International Conference Center in Bijilo. The event was supported by the UN Human Rights Council Voluntary Fund for Financial and Technical Assistance in the Implementation of the Universal Periodic Review, the UN Partnership on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNPRPD) Fund, and the UN in The Gambia, including the Resident Coordinator’s Office, OHCHR, UNICEF, UNFPA, and UNDP. He said it is high time Africa thinks critically about how they eliminate gender apartheid and advised that “we should not be condoning gender apartheid in the continent. It’s high time we say no to gender apartheid.”
Thomas further said: “We should also advise our minds that when we condone SGBV, we are guilty of gender apartheid.”
Thomas explained that such a platform allows knowledge sharing on the lapses in their justice delivery system. In that regard, he added, they had conducted several training sessions for law enforcement officers to better understand how to handle SGBV cases.
Finally, the Solicitor General thanked the UN agencies for facilitating this critical meeting, saying UN-the Gambia has been a very supportive and good partner – especially in ensuring that Gambia’s human rights are up to standards.
The consultative discussions focused on enabling the stakeholders to chant the next step in curbing SGBV and the roles each should play to ensure both young girls and boys are safe. It is also part of the Justice Ministry’s top priority to ensure justice for the SGBV survivors.
The long-day consultative meeting brought together representatives from UN-the Gambia, senior staff of the Justice Ministry, Ministry of Gender/Social Welfare, Health Ministry, representatives from the Police Force, human rights organizations, and NAATIP.
Yvonne Masarakufa, Senior Human Rights Advisor at the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office, said this important meeting was also pertinent given the current 16 days of Campaign against GBV. “I would like to thank the justice ministry for the continuing partnership. Our collaboration and partnership indicate mutual trust and confidence to address pertinent issues in the Gambia. And one of these issues is sexual gender-based violence,” she added.
Masarakufa explained how the UN supported many activities this year under the 16-day campaign. As the UN stated, they will continue to pledge their reassurances to the government for their support to the Ministry of Justice and Gender as well as the police and other stakeholders in the battle against sexual violence.
“We are aware that persons with disabilities are also victims of and survivors of SGBV. So, we hope the consultative meeting will offer a way forward in addressing SGBV in the Gambia,” she says.
Speaking on behalf of the Inspector General of Police, Yamundow Jagne Joof, the Commissioner for the gender and child welfare unit at the GPF, viewed sexual and gender-based violence as a severe and widespread problem that continues to hurt civilizations all over the world – including the Gambia.
“To build an environment where every person, regardless of gender, can live free from fear, discrimination, and violence, this is an issue that requires our serious attention, empathy, and collective action,” she said in IGP’s statement.
According to her, sexual assault, domestic violence, harassment, and human trafficking are just a few examples of the various forms of sexual and gender-based violence they continue to battle within the Gambia. “It affects people of all ages, races, social classes, classes, and origins limitations,” she says.
