Liberian Women Stalked by Rape
http://dervishcom.blogspot.com/2011/11/liberian-women-stalked-by-rape.html
MONROVIA, - As a young girl Garmar Murphy was forced into a child soldier’s life, serving as a sexual plaything for Liberian rebels between battles — a tragic norm in the country’s savage conflict.
She was 13 years old, and rape was not criminalised. A decade later, her country boasts Africa’s first female president, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who in October won a Nobel Peace Prize with Liberian activist Leymah Gbowee for their struggle to boost women’s rights and safety.
But if women have taken some steps forward in the eight years since a peace accord ended Liberia’s civil war, they haven’t left behind the threat of rape. Rape became endemic as a weapon of fear during the 14-year-long conflict and is still rampant, going unpunished more often than not.
Murphy, now 23, her eyes downcast, tells of the day she went to fetch water when her village was attacked and everyone fled or was killed, leaving her at the mercy of invading rebels.
“I was a kid ... I lost my parents, I never had any choice at all. All I need to do is to satisfy their desire. If I didn’t join there, they gonna kill me,” she tells AFP.
“If you blessed, the general see you and love you, you only be for that general alone. If you not lucky ... it means you will be for all the soldiers.” A mention of her country’s joint Nobel win brightens Murphy’s face with a bold grin.
“Liberian women, we are moving forward. It encouraged me that we women shouldn’t sit down, you can still make it.”
Murphy is now a peer counsellor at THINK, a women’s organisation that runs a safehouse for victims of rape and domestic violence. Victims are also enrolled in a rehabilitation programme to learn a trade and life skills.
THINK founder Rosana Schaack says that while the spotlight on Liberia’s women has boosted spirits, it has not changed the harsh realities of a society in which rape and gender violence remain commonplace.
“Looking at where we came from, we can say we have reached one milestone, but we have 10 more to go. The perception from outside that all is well, that Liberia is a shining star, that all of the women are experiencing their rights. It is far from that...” Sirleaf has overseen the enactment of harsh new rape laws, the creation of a dedicated rape court, and a women’s police unit launched in 2009.
Women now are increasingly likely to come forward to report rape and seek treatment, which experts say may be one of the reasons it appears as if the number of cases is increasing.
“Now rape is a big crime, you go in jail, so the men are afraid. At that time the men were in power, they rape you at anytime, they just hold you in the bush, do what they want to do,” says Murphy.
She was 13 years old, and rape was not criminalised. A decade later, her country boasts Africa’s first female president, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who in October won a Nobel Peace Prize with Liberian activist Leymah Gbowee for their struggle to boost women’s rights and safety.
But if women have taken some steps forward in the eight years since a peace accord ended Liberia’s civil war, they haven’t left behind the threat of rape. Rape became endemic as a weapon of fear during the 14-year-long conflict and is still rampant, going unpunished more often than not.
Murphy, now 23, her eyes downcast, tells of the day she went to fetch water when her village was attacked and everyone fled or was killed, leaving her at the mercy of invading rebels.
“I was a kid ... I lost my parents, I never had any choice at all. All I need to do is to satisfy their desire. If I didn’t join there, they gonna kill me,” she tells AFP.
“If you blessed, the general see you and love you, you only be for that general alone. If you not lucky ... it means you will be for all the soldiers.” A mention of her country’s joint Nobel win brightens Murphy’s face with a bold grin.
“Liberian women, we are moving forward. It encouraged me that we women shouldn’t sit down, you can still make it.”
Murphy is now a peer counsellor at THINK, a women’s organisation that runs a safehouse for victims of rape and domestic violence. Victims are also enrolled in a rehabilitation programme to learn a trade and life skills.
THINK founder Rosana Schaack says that while the spotlight on Liberia’s women has boosted spirits, it has not changed the harsh realities of a society in which rape and gender violence remain commonplace.
“Looking at where we came from, we can say we have reached one milestone, but we have 10 more to go. The perception from outside that all is well, that Liberia is a shining star, that all of the women are experiencing their rights. It is far from that...” Sirleaf has overseen the enactment of harsh new rape laws, the creation of a dedicated rape court, and a women’s police unit launched in 2009.
Women now are increasingly likely to come forward to report rape and seek treatment, which experts say may be one of the reasons it appears as if the number of cases is increasing.
“Now rape is a big crime, you go in jail, so the men are afraid. At that time the men were in power, they rape you at anytime, they just hold you in the bush, do what they want to do,” says Murphy.
