Zomba District Council says there is need to introduce mobile courts in rural areas that should handle cases of Gender based Violence (GBV) as one way to raise awareness on the criminality of violence against children and women and on the constitutional rights that protect women and children.
The Council’s Gender Officer, Ruperth Kamtsendera made the remarks during an interface meeting with Zomba based Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) which was held to discuss ways of addressing rising cases of GBV in the district.
Kamtsendera added that introducing community mobile courts can be one of the best solutions as would be offenders will be conscious never to commit GBV once they see offenders convicted and sentenced to prison on offences against children and women.
“Introduction of mobile community courts will help to end GBV because would be offenders will be conscious enough to avoid commuting GBV seeing fellow community members convicted and sentenced to prison for committing crimes against children and women,” the gender officer added.
Apart from discussing ways of ending GBV through community courts, the gender officer and the CSO interface meeting also discussed ways of empowering women economically to make them self reliance.
Kamtsendera noted that economic empowerment among women has a potential to end violence against women because the women economic empowerment is a shield against GBV.
“Women economic empowerment is crucial because it shield them against GBV,” he added while expressing hope that the interface meeting will find solutions to the rising caes of GBV in the district.
Save the Children, Bwalo Initiative, Youth for Development and Productivity (YODEP), Future Vision, Youth Network and Counselling (Yoneco) Centre for Good Governance Human Rights and Education (CEGORE) the Police, Lidya Foundation, Her Liberty Malawi, FHI 360, Courts and District Social Welfare Office were some of the organisations and public sectors that attended the interface meeting which was funded by the Save the Children and Lidya Foundation.
