When staying home is not staying safe

• How lockdown takes toll on Sokoto housewives, raises GBV risk For some women in Sokoto, staying home to stay safe from coronavirus is not safe as the state records raising rates of gender-based violence and destitution amongst women cut off from their husbands due to the lockdown   Aisha Bello reclined on a spread […]

• How lockdown takes toll on Sokoto housewives, raises GBV risk

For some women in Sokoto, staying home to stay safe from coronavirus is not safe as the state records raising rates of gender-based violence and destitution amongst women cut off from their husbands due to the lockdown

 

Aisha Bello reclined on a spread on the floor staring vaguely into space in a state of profound melancholy.

The broken and dispirited mother of seven is at a loss as to what to do over her prevailing situation, having lost contact with her husband following the lockdown in Lagos where he conducts business.

“My husband is a trader in Lagos. Usually, he sends money to me through the commercial vehicle operators for the upkeep of the family. We had exhausted the last one he sent and were expecting money from him when the government imposed a lockdown on Lagos,” the fulltime housewife said.

In a disconsolate tone, she revealed how the situation had turned them to beggars, surviving at the mercy of others.

“I don’t know how to get in touch with my husband. The only way we communicated was through the transporters and they have stopped coming because of the movement restriction,” she said.

It was the same story for 35 year old   Mallama Maryam, mother of four, whose husband is in the South-western state of Oyo.

“It was in February that I received a message from him last. I should have received another one since last month. We are now going to the end of a second month, no message, all due to this COVID-19 movement restriction,” she said.

“I have been borrowing here and there but many are no longer  ready to loan money to others,” she lamented.

There are several women in situations similar to Aisha and Maryam as confirmed by Dr Adamu Kasarawa, Sokoto State Commandant of the Hisbah Commission, where a number of them had lodged complaints.

“The women complained that their husbands travelled far away to other states where they do business, and they find it difficult to send them the little things they used to send to them to take care of their families. That has made them fall into serious financial crisis to the extent that they cannot even feed themselves, they cannot take care of their children and many other issues,” he said.

“Mostly the messages do come through most of these drivers coming from Lagos, Ibadan and other states; they would receive their messages through road transport workers and their drivers. They don’t send money to cater for their families through banks,” he said.

He mentioned the case of a woman who has developed psychological problems when she could not communicate with her husband and their plans to take her to the Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Kware.

The Hisbah Commandant said aside from this peculiar problem, they have been receiving cases of various other marital issues, some of which have led to domestic violence.

“We received over 1,000 cases altogether and 90% of the marital cases have led to physical, psycho-social and economic violence against women,” he said.

Collation from 70% of the 122 Hisbah divisional offices showed that in January alone, there were 316 cases, February 423 cases, March 511 cases and the first two weeks of April, 379 of gender-based violence.

“If you go to my office now, you will find many married women with complaints. I treated about seven cases of physical assault, and it is a serious issue,” Kasarawa said.

He also said there have been a spike in the rate of sexual abuse including rape, harassment, exploitation, unwanted pregnancies associated with minor girls between  February 1 to 15th of April with 72 cases reported in total.

“In February, we recorded 18, March 23 cases and April, 31 cases,” he said.

For this rise during this month, the hisbah boss has an explanation.

“In the month of Sha’aban, (which coincides with April) preceding Ramadan, many marriage ceremonies are held so during these ceremonies, there is the intermingling of male and female youths and this has caused a serious problem. We noted that it is one of the times we witness a high prevalence of rape.”

With the COVID-19 lockdown in place, Kasarawa said it is difficult to prosecute offenders because courts are not in session.

Kasarawa urged wealthy individual to assist indigent families in cushioning the effect of measures to curb the spread of coronavirus.

While applauding government palliatives, he urged it to do more to ensure the gestures reach those in dire need across the state.

Dr Musa Auwal of the Project Alert Initiative, PAI an NGO implementing the Spotlight Initiative Project, noted an increased risk of gender-based violence during the COVID-19 lockdown.

He said it was in consideration of this that PAI recently trained members of some women and community-based groups to tackle such concerns in Sokoto.

Permanent Secretary, State Ministry for Women and Children Affairs, Hajia A’isha Dantsoho had also called for the utilisation of the sexual assaults’ referral centre recently established in Sokoto to provide immediate and long term remedies for survivors of Sexual Gender-Based Violence (SGBV).

She added that the ministry had been implementing strategies towards tackling gender-based violence in society.

But many have continued to express concerns that COVID-19 had compounded existing sexual gender-based violence issues in the society.

“Incidentally, this issue of staying home in the face of COVID-19 pandemic may translate to staying safe from the coronavirus but not from perpetrators of sexual gender-based violence,” a mother of six, Hajiya Ramatu Faruk observed.

“It rather takes those being assaulted or abused closer to the offenders. The situation creates a fertile ground for such abusers and decreases chances of those being abused to access external support.”

She called for the prioritisation of the protection of the rights of women and girls more than ever before.

For the people in dangerous domestic situations, the next few weeks will be tough ones.