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Showing posts from June, 2009
One of the news stories I discussed today was Awoko's "Lawyer locked up for gender-based violence." For those who may not have read it, the article is about a domestic violence case in an east end Freetown community and the debate it has generated on the new Domestic Violence Act; its implementation, and protection it provides women under the law. In the coming days, we shall see how it will play out in court. Another women's issue that, sadly, always makes the headlines is rape. In the 12-month period leading up to March 2009, the local press carried numerous reports of Sierra Leonean women and girls who were victims of sexual violence and rape. One of the youngest victim was only a few months old. Local groups who advocate for victims of sexual violence--24/7/365--say there are so many incidents of rape in Sierra Leone that there is no way of knowing just how many victims there really are. Ironically, because the raped baby and the hundreds of women and girls who