KIGALI - The Minister of Justice, Tharcisse Karugarama has said that violence against women and girls in African countries is an enormous challenge that rests in the hands of regional security organs.

Karugarama said this, yesterday, while opening the ‘Africa Regional Security Organs’ capacity building workshop on violence against women and girls; prevention, response and peacekeeping,’ held in Kigali.

The workshop is in line with the implementation of last year’s declaration adopted by a similar meeting that also took place in Kigali.

The four-day workshop aims at strengthening the role of African security organs in ending violence against women and girls by scaling up sensitisation, capacity building and training at the regional level.

"Violence against women, girls and children is a product of unequal generations manifested through physical and psychological abuse and economic exploitation,” Karugarama said.

He noted that security organs are responsible for taking up the challenge to fight the vice, which he said, is a violation of human rights and also hinders development.

"When we put the future of women, children and girls in the hands of security organs, we have raised an emergency call. They are the best people to handle such a challenge,” he added.

Karugarama stated that reducing violence against women requires a holistic approach for change of society’s attitudes, appropriate legal and policy frameworks and coordinated service delivery.

"A traumatised mother and the basis of abuse represent a traumatised nation. A traumatised child represents an uncertain future. We need stable nations, a future that is certain and clean,” said Karugarama.

"Protecting our women and children against abuse and violence is protecting our own future and the future of our nations”.

The establishment of the national gender policy, national gender strategic plan and the implementation of the UN resolution 1325, he said, led to the reduction of GBV cases in the country.

The UN Security Council Resolution 1325/2000 is aimed at protecting women and girls during and after armed conflicts, and to fully involve females in conflict prevention, management and resolution, peace building and reconciliation.

Currently, Rwanda has the highest number of women parliamentarians and the biggest number of females in peacekeeping operations in the world.

The country’s constitution also guarantees a minimum of 30 percent threshold of women representation at all levels of leadership. Karugarama said this was done to give women a voice and visibility in fighting against violence, abuse and other forms of injustice.

He urged the participants to identify possible approaches for prevention and respond to GBV at national and international levels.

The Chief of Defence Staff, Lt. Gen Charles Kayonga, commended the government’s commitment to support security organs to prevent all forms of violence.

He said that the establishment of gender desks in both Rwanda National Police and Rwanda Defence Forces are some of the initiatives that contribute a lot in fighting violence against women and girls.

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