The Eye On The Future Initiative Foundation, a Non-Governmental Organization based in Asaba with offices in all 25 local government areas in the state with focus on promoting sustainable equity, Justice and resistance against gender violence and discrimination, has taken their awareness campaign to the Otovwodo-Ughelli Market in Delta State, Nigeria on Tuesday, December 3.
The initiative aims at educating women on the need and importance of rising against gender violence, intimidations, exploitations and support their female counterparts suffering from one form of domestic violence or the other and, to as well reach out to concern bodies and agencies if such needs happened.
Speaking to Journalists, Executive Director, Eye On The Future Initiative Foundation, Josephine Omodior, (Mrs.) said; they came to the market to mark the Sixteen Days Activism Against Gender Base Violence which began in November 26th and to end of December 10th.
“We are here to create awareness about what is happening to our women and to encourage them to speak out and join hand in fighting violence against women in the society.
“And the responses so far shows that it does happened as so many Violence’s against women are endured even as they die in silence.
“Violence against women is real. There are intimidations, exploitation and depravity in women empowerment, all these are injustice, inequality and discrimination for the women, hence Eye on the future initiative is out to encourage women to speak out especially against gender base violence”.
Josephine Omodior who is also the Assistant Secretary, Nigeria Union of Journalist NUJ, Delta State Council, disclosed that many women in Nigeria today, are are abused by their spouses, but yet some have refused to speak out for fear of being victimized by their fellow women and the society. She said some endured pains and brutality even to the extent of loosing their lives, adding that, Eye on the future initiative is out for this purpose of educating and creating massive awareness on the need to stand by victims and to ensure they all have equal rights with their male counterparts.
” Most a time the ratio of men in politics as compare to women is always 90 over 10 or lesser, whereas, in the time of campaigns and struggles for political positions, it is the women that they use to front for their different positions, but to empower the women becomes a problem after using them to climb. It is wrong and we are out to create this awareness that the woman is not just a tool that is to be used and dumped. She is a human being and needed life just as the male counterparts.
“Women are exploited daily in their work places, in the schools and every where they find themselves and some times violently. We hear cases of rape here and there, but most of the victims or sufferers are scared to speak out or expose their violators so that they can be prosecuted. Some are intimidated and even threatened not to speak out of fear or stigmatization. It is wrong because it has enabled the trend continues and culprits evade justices”.
Omodior called on the women not to be afraid and be ready to stand firm to defend themselves by providing information that could lead to the prosecution of any of their violators and bring justice to them.
Responding, some of the market women testified that most women are suffering from domestic and gender base violence, despite their supports to the family and being industriousness at all time. They admitted that some of them are the bread winners in their various homes, yet they are being abused daily even as they suffers brutality in the hands of their spouses. They called on the body to ensure they have offices across the state to enable them accessed to the right authority that can prosecute such persons.
A cross section of the women express happiness and joy for the initiative and enjoined the body to frequently come out to educate victims of gender base abuses as some of them are scared of reporting their spouses for fear of what may happened to them.