The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Lagos state, Adeniji Kazeem, who is also the chairman, of the Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team, DSVRT, yesterday disclosed that since January 2017, the state government has received reports from a total of 55 husbands resident in the state whose wives have been subjecting them to acts of domestic violence.
Kazeem who disclosed this at a press conference in Ikeja, the state capital, said more men are now becoming free to speak out and not die in silence. He said 852 cases of domestic violence have been reported since January this year and that out of the 852 cases reported, 564 were on domestic violence, 60 defilement cases, 30 rape cases, 11 attempted rape, 123 child neglect and abuse cases, and 84 other cases.
According to Kazeem, the data so far collated by the agency shows that acts of sexual defilement were mostly carried out in the afternoon during weekdays and that most of the offenders are usually people who the victims know or have close relations with.
He said efforts of the agency is gradually helping to break the barrier of silence in many victims as they now have the confidence to speak out because they know they would get justice as well as good medical care from professionals that they would be referred to.
“There is a growing confidence urging people to speak out more, there is an astronomical increase in reporting of cases in the media. Lagos has indeed revolutionized the way sexual and gender based violence is being tackled in Nigeria with all the pioneering initiatives of Governor Ambode,” Kazeem said.
Kazeem said there is need for an intense sensitization campaign for parents on parenting skills and child abuse prevention tips as well as training for children on child’s rights, child abuse, safety and how to preserve evidence.
Posts
