Activist condemns GBV by politicians
Political institutions lack independent accountability procedures that can force politician perpetrators of GBV to account for their deeds, says female activist Masego Manyaapelo.
Manyaapelo told The Midweek Sun in an interview that the people in charge of the tools of justice are usually friends and comrades of politicians who know that going into any “accountability” process “their friend” will come out clean.
She said victims of Gender Based Violence (GBV) incidents by politicians simply do not stand a chance unless there is public uproar, adding that in a vast majority of cases, there is no public uproar and victims suffer silently, having to see their perpetrators on television making speeches.
This is the level of powerlessness the victims suffer when taking politicians to account. According to Manyaapelo, politicians who are in positions of power usually feel untouchable especially because they can wield their power and get away with a lot of things that ordinary men and women cannot. They use their status to manipulate and coerce women sometimes even underage girls who look up to them.
“It’s narcissistic tendencies and lack of integrity by some leaders. They abuse their powers for self pleasure and in the process destroy lives”, she said, adding that through social media commentary one can clearly see that a lot of Batswana both men and women - do not understand what sexual offences are.
She worries that Botswana still has laws that do not recognise marital rape; pestering with phone calls, or social media messages or fondling or staring or making unwanted sexual advances, cat calling, as sexual harassment.
Batswana, she said, still believe that victims of sexual violation should behave in the same manner and will perpetuate the violation with commentary if the victim does not fall within their preconceived ideas of how a victim should behave.
This is the reason a lot of victims of sexual abuse do not come forward - the fear of being further violated with words, the fear of not being believed, the fear that they will not get support and the fear of public persecution.
“And we have seen this repeatedly play out”, Manyaapelo said.
Another reason victims do not report is that they think the violence is normal and this is because society has made it acceptable for some sexual offences such as pestering with phone calls, messaging on social media, and fondling.
There seems to be a misconception that sexual violence only happens when there was penetration. Manyaapelo said that victims of sexual violation usually receive little attention when reporting these matters even to law enforcement and when it involves politicians they are told to let it go or to go and talk about it at home.
“Politicians are responsible for complex policy frameworks and their implementation. Those who commit sexual offences are usually keenly aware of their position in relation to their victims, knowing that they will likely get away with it”, Manyaapelo said.
She called on Government to come up with better legislation and also to reform and revise lax sexual offence laws to make them more punitive, adding that reduction and prevention of GBV should be a priority in Botswana.
Manyaapelo said there is need to get leaders actively involved in the fight against GBV instead of being gatekeepers. She advised that Botswana could benchmark from countries like Peru where their relevant ministry is now expanding its violence reduction efforts through a programme called Leaders in Action (LIA).
LIA is a structural intervention that aims to reduce the acceptance and prevent the incidence of GBV by tackling several factors involved in the complex interplay causing GBV.
“Growing acts of violence against women serve as a strong barrier to women accessing their right to participate fully and equally in politics and public life.
“These acts, whether directed at women as civil society leaders, voters, political party members, candidates, elected representatives or appointed officials are designed to restrict the political participation of women as a group.
“This violence reinforces traditional stereotypes and roles given to women, using domination and control to exclude women from politics. Female politicians often must also confront resistance and dangers, even in the physical spaces that should be accessible and safe for them, including political assem
blies, party meetings, their offices, and their homes”, Manyaapelo said.
Manyaapelo said politicians involved in GBV should step down from their roles until investigations are completed.
“To whom much is given, much is expected. As leaders, their burden of accountability is higher than the common man, they must be held accountable for their actions and given the harshest sentences if found guilty of such offences to send a loud message to society that GBV offences cannot be tolerated”, Manyaapelo said.
She added that stepping down by political leaders who are involved in GBV will also serve as a deterrent for would-be oppressors. Politicians would then think a lot carefully about their position and using it to victimise innocent women or men.