Lesotho adopted SADC protocol on Gender and development which inter alia, aims to have levels of violence against women by [2015] and achieve gender equality and equity but violence against women continue to be one of the most common and serious human rights violations in the country.
Lesotho ratified the sexual offence ACT known as SOA in [2003], regardless of commendable efforts Women still experience violence perpetrated by men in both their private and public lives .According to report by Gender Links 2015, 86% of women experienced some form of violence at least once in their life time, including partner and non-partner relationships. Police child and gender protection unit reports that from January to July 2022,184 sexual offence and 45 assault cases were reported.
According to Afro barometer survey [dispatch N0. 546/31 August 2022], Despite the sexual act [2003] and the married people Act [2006] providing for equal rights for men and women in marriage, the customary law subordinating women to men is still part of society in Lesotho. The high level of GBV in Lesotho have raised concerns to everyone in the country however some cases go unreported, unresolved or the dockets end up missing under police watch, one common form of violence is domestic violence, Even though may be known many domestic violence cases go unreported or unresolved leaving the victims and families with wrenching decisions, Some reasons for not reporting is that community do not know how to identify, prevent, or report instances of violence and lack of relevant information for tackling the problem of violence in their communities.
There are no measures in place to speedy resolution of GBV cases .No clear sentences for domestic violence and most of the time perpetrators are given official warning ,cases are prosecuted are proceeded slowly in the judiciary. Statistics of successful persecuted cases are not clear as they only stated that they are many undisclosed numbers. Police officers are not well trained to handle GBV issues. There are not enough resources and expertise in police station to support victims emotionally to avoid double trauma. There is lack of resources to carry out investigations to strengthen cases of GBV and persecute cases. In most schools there is no training offered to stuff about GBV. High school and primary schools, there are no safe spaces for reporting GBV. In high school GBV is not part of curriculum. Few schools have clear procedures to report GBV cases. Customary law that subordinates women to men is still common in our communities leading to unfair judgements that favour men by traditional authorities. Domestic violence is still treated as household matter rather than crime, in rural communities there are no safety nets and clear referral pathways. No safe houses in communities. It is recommended that there should be single data system in police stations which will capture and store data to be used by all service providers dealing with victims and perpetrators to tell victims story, with unique application identifier to address GBV concerns. This invention will help service providers to access victim’s information, locate the victim and offer assistance without causing double trauma to victims, this invention will also help to track case progress
The clinics should offer medical examinations and rape Kits to the victims because clinics are mostly accessible to the public, unlike hospitals which are mostly located in townships making them hard to reach by rural people. Government should ensure appropriate and targeted services to be available to all victims for the physical, mental and social wellbeing, as well as shielding them from further violence.
There should be GBV strategy holding policy implementers accountable for safety of girls and women in communities, there should be federal initiatives, coordinating existing programs and laying the foundation for greater action on GBV, this strategy should be organised across this three pillars; supporting survivors and their families, preventing gender based violence and promoting responsive legal and justice system.
