The Sunday News
Sukulwenkosi Dube-Matutu, Sunday News Reporter
MORE men are coming out to report cases of gender-based violence, a development which has been attributed to increased awareness within communities.
Men have in the past shied away from reporting cases of gender-based violence due to various factors chief among them cultural beliefs. Limited number of facilities and institutions that deal with the rights of men has also been identified as a contributing factor.
In an interview, Gwanda One Stop Centre administrator, Ms Amanda Ndebele said more men were coming out to make reports. She said men were victims of emotional and physical abuse by their partners as well as sexual abuse by other men. The One Stop Centre is a facility that provides medical, legal and psycho social support to survivors of gender-based violence.
“We have more and more men that are coming here at the One Stop Centre to report cases of gender-based violence. In the past we hardly had men visiting this place but there is a great improvement, which is a good thing. The cases we are receiving are mainly of men that are being emotionally abused by their partners. We also have cases of men who are being physically abused by their partners and also men who are sexually abused by other men,” she said.
Ms Ndebele said men were also being emotionally and physically abused by their ex-partners who were bitter over their separation and in some cases wanted them back.
Padare/ Enkundleni Men’s Forum gender office programmes officer, Mr Ziphongezipho Ndebele said in order for the fight against gender-based violence to be successful, there was need for men to be equally involved.
He said some men were abusing their partners just because they were also being abused but were not reporting.
Mr Ndebele said as an organisation they were encouraging men to use nonviolent forms of resolving disputes.
“In some cases, men are being emotionally abused by their partners and instead of reporting they end up physically abusing their partners. When such a case is reported the man becomes a perpetrator while the wife is the survivor. In our campaigns we are encouraging men to use nonviolent forms of resolving conflicts. If a man is being abused, he should report the matter to the police or seek counselling instead of resorting to violence,” he said.
Mr Ndebele added: “More and more men are now coming out to report and seek assistance, which is a good development. All along people had a belief that a man can’t be abused but in actual fact they are being abused. The Domestic Violence Act is there to protect men as well and they should utilise it.”
He said cultural beliefs still remained a hindrance for men to report gender-based violence. Mr Ndebele said some communities still viewed it as a sign of weakness for a man to report such cases. He said as a result some men continued suffering in silence in order to meet societal expectations.
Mr Ndebele said these cultural beliefs could be addressed through continuous awareness. He said there were also a few stakeholders across the country who offer services to male survivors.
“The approach to dealing with gender-based violence is still biased to female survivors. Most organisations found across districts cater for women. Men don’t have access to lawyers that can advocate for their right’s pro bono,” Mr Ndebele said.
He said teenage boys were also not forthcoming in reporting rape cases perpetrated by elderly women as they viewed that sexual act as a sign of masculinity. -@DubeMatutu
