By Aji Fatou Jammeh
Neneh Touray, the Deputy Director of Gender Equality and Women Empowerment at the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Welfare has noted the role of the media in the fight against gender based violence.
She was speaking at the recently ended three-day training for the Network of Gender Journalists for Women and Cultural Advancement, on gender based violence, child marriage and harmful cultural practices.
Mrs Touray stressed the need for a collective approach to the fight against gender based violence in this country.
Reporting on gender based violence; she said, is critical and requires ethics and understanding of the subject matter, warning that bad reporting can damage a victim’s life unintentionally.
“There are some traditional believes; such as FGM/C and child marriage which have a lot of consequences to the individual and the community at large. We feel it is important to build capacities of journalists on reporting on GBV cases; especially on FGM/C and child marriage,” she posited.
She went on to refer to data from UNICEF, which indicates that almost a third of women in The Gambia, between the ages of 20 to 24 are married off before the age of 18 years and nearly a tenth before 15 years.
“Early marriage deprives girls from quality education, opportunities and increases the risk of death or serious illness during childbirth. Child brides are also at greater risk of domestic and sexual violence”.
Madam Touray explained that FGM/C was criminalised in December 2015 a month after former president Jammeh made a prohibition on the practice in The Gambia, adding that in 2016 Jammeh announced decision to ban child marriage, 20 years punishable in prison by both husband and parents of the girl victimised.
She pointed out that, there is a need to provide adequate information and facts that can be used to disseminate information for public consumption and that media personnel should serve as advocates in the fight against this menace.
Mr Pateh Baldeh, President of Network of Gender Journalists for Women and Cultural Advancement acknowledged the importance of the training, articulating that journalists need to familiarise themselves with sensitive reporting and the issues surrounding gender based violence, child or forced marriage, given the fact that it can be controversial .
Sukai Jallow of DHK Radio, expressed satisfaction over the knowledge acquired during the training. She challenged participants to report cases of child marriage, FGM and gender based violence happening in our communities, in order to put an end to such practices in The Gambia.
Gender Based Violence is any form or act perpetrated against a person’s will as a result of gender norms, roles and unequal power relationships within their social setting. Such unequal power relationships are exploited or abused through violence or coercion against more vulnerable persons. It can occur in physical, sexual, psychological and economic forms to express power and control over vulnerable individuals. GBV is mainly perpetrated against women and children. However, men and boys can become victims as well.