Female DASSO officers tipped on GBV fight

The Minister of State for Community Development and Social Affairs, Alvera Mukabaramba has urged female DASSO officers to partner with all stakeholders in ensuring a collective and holistic approach to eliminate gender based violence. The Minister made the remarks during a one day training workshop aimed at empowering female District Administrative Security Support Organ (DASSO) officers in the fight against domestic and Gender Based Violence. The training yesterday, was organised by Rwanda National Police in partnership with the ministries of Local Government, and Gender and Family Promotion. Alvera Mukabaramba (L) , the Minister of State for Community Development and Social Affairs, speaks during the workshop opening ceremony as CSP Sam Rumanzi, the coordinator of DASSO listens. “We must eliminate these vices in our societies but to achieve that we need to work closely with communities and other institutions concerned,” Minister Mukabaramba said. The training was attended by 210 female DASSO officers from across the country. The Minister told the officers that they are the people who get first hand information whenever there is a case of violence. So they need to be equipped with response skills like preservation of evidence and counseling. Participants were briefed on handling GBV victims, first aid and evidence protection, counseling of victims and reporting. CSP Sam Rumanzi, the coordinator of DASSO speaks during the workshop opening ceremony. Other topics discussed during the training were about monitoring of homes with conflicts and crime prevention mechanism. “Any domestic violence case that leads to death starts with a simple misunderstanding that can be resolved if people reported it early enough, go out and sensitise people to partner and share with you information about abuses and conflicts in their homes,” said Mukabaramba. The coordinator of DASSO, Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) Sam Rumanzi, said female DASSO officers had requested for the training to acquire skills in fighting GBV and domestic violence cases. DASSO Female Officers during the workshop. (All photos by Eddie Nsabimana) “The officers have been in service for over a year now and they are familiar with issues related to gender based violence and domestic violence, they now need to be oriented on how best to respond to such cases,” CSP Rumanzi said. He added that DASSO is organising several other trainings for its officers on the same issue to ensure that cases of GBV and domestic violence are well handled. The training came at a time when several government entities are conducting a three-month anti-GBV and child abuse campaign that is scheduled to end in December. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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Female DASSO officers tipped on GBV fight