The Sunday News
Andile Tshuma, Sunday News Correspondent
WHILE freedom of movement has often been taken for granted, people are starting to appreciate small things about life in the era of lockdowns.
The raging Covid-19 pandemic has forced countries to effect lockdowns which have seen people being confined to their homes. The confinement has begun to exhibit its own evils such as gender-based violence, intimate partner violence, suicides, stress and depression, among other ills across the world.
Multiple groups in society are vulnerable in such situations and confinement makes matters worse, due to their different demographics. With lockdowns in place, people are cut off from support structures and are forced to remain under lockdown in hostile spaces. Nonetheless, the mechanism of using lockdown to combat the spread of the virus remains the best, and is paying dividends as confirmed Covid-19 positive cases are kept low.
Apart from gender-based violence where women and children have suffered different forms of abuse while at home, the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) community is facing similar challenges. Moreover, their marriages are outlawed.
When people are confined tempers flare, fights can get violent but not everyone can rush to the police and get help. When there is lockdown, options are limited. Domestic violence is not limited to heterosexual relationships and can affect individuals of all sexual orientations and genders. And within the LGBTIQ community, intimate partner violence occurs at a rate equal to or even higher than that of the heterosexual community, but is just less reported.
Intimate partner violence continues to plague society although numerous efforts have been made to rid society of the vice. While a lot of resources and platforms are available for heterosexual couples to seek help when they encounter gender-based violence, very few places are LGBTIQ-friendly considering homosexuality is generally frowned upon in various sectors of society.
While a recent landmark ruling by Justice Francis Bere on the rights of transgender people in the country has raised hope of a possible dialogue on minority rights in the country, access to places of safety and counselling remain limited for some victims of violence, due to issues including orientation.
Regional Co-ordinator of the Gays and Lesbians Zimbabwe (GALZ) Teddy Munyimani in an interview said efforts were being made to bridge the communication gap between members during the lockdown.
“Some members of the LGBTIQ community stay with hostile family members and communities, therefore being locked down in such living arrangements presents challenges in its own,” said Munyimani.
One survivor of intimate partner violence who identified himself only as Sean from Bulawayo said the move to take counselling and helpline sessions online by GALZ during the lockdown had been helpful.
“I have been fighting with my boyfriend. He thinks I am bisexual and does not want me to have any female friends. So, since we have been spending a lot of time together indoors, I have been talking to my female friends a lot and that has not been going down well with him to a point where he assaulted me at some point. I sought the intervention of GALZ and got counselling online. They also reached out to my partner and while things are not yet at their best, we are definitely way better and GALZ officers have been checking on us and it has been helpful,” said Sean.
Lina, a lesbian woman who has had to move to cheaper accommodation in townships said she lives with the daily threat of “corrective rape” as her community feels she is possessed and can be saved by sexual encounter with a man.
“I used to spend my evenings after work in the pub, and would go to the flat if it is the time to sleep. Rentals went up and I had to move to cheaper accommodation in the western areas. I am not free. The youths have threatened to assault me,” she said.
Digital spaces have become a lifeline for the LGBTIQ community. GALZ director Chester Samba in a statement said their organisation had committed itself to availing services to members and described the services as crucial and critical to the well-being of members.
“Sadly, we have recorded and responded to a number of cases of intimate partner violence, gender-based violence and homophobia from around the country. With members having been locked at homes where their being is not affirmed is mentally troubling. The restrictions limit them from accessing safe spaces,” said Samba.
Samba said efforts were also being made to counter fake news around Covid-19 with factual information for the benefit of members and the generality of communities.
“Considering this is a very distressful time, where misinformation has taken over the space, we have in place constantly updated accurate information through various virtual platforms. In addition, we have in place hotlines which members can use in case of distress and a rapid response team to intervene,” said Samba.
