NGO seeks end to violence against women, girls

A non-governmental organisation, the Women in Peace
and Security Network has expressed dissatisfaction over
the increasing level of violence against women and girls in
the country. The group, which linked the kidnap of over
200 Chibok girls to gender-based violence against women,
urged Nigerians to join the fight against such anti-social
behavior. The NGO made its position known on
Saturday during a press conference it organized in
conjunction with the Rivers State Ministry of Women
Affairs to mark the International Day for the
Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls.
Director of Women Affairs in the ministry, Mrs.
Blessing Dienye, who spoke on behalf of the group, stated
that the NGO and the ministry had begun a 16-day
activism against gender-based violence from November 25
to December 10, 2014. Dienye, who is part of the
network’s activities, pointed out that the ministry and the
group would be campaigning against domestic violence,
child sexual abuse, sexual violence against women and girls
during and after conflicts, proliferation of small arms in
cases of intimate partner violence among others. With the
theme as ‘From peace in the home to peace in the world;
let’s challenge militarism and end violence against women
and girls,’ Dienye described violence as an anti-social
behavior that should be abhorred.