Amai Tanel (27) from Chitungwiza has been abused by her husband for over a year but her family would not allow her to report the matter to the police.
“I have no choice but to get up in the morning and get my children ready for school. I usually struggle to get out of bed due to severe pains all over my body,” said Tanel.
When she fell pregnant with her second child last year, Tanel’s husband said he was not happy about her having a second child without his consent.
“Since then he comes home drunk and shouts at me in front our kids. I got all of these bruises from him.”
Tanel said she couldn’t report him because her family told her not to damage their family name.
“After all, a women has to protect her family secret. That is what my mother told me when I approached her seeking advice, so I bottled everything up for the sake of the family,” she said.
According to CNN senior reporter, Dan Rutz, men abuse women because they can. Rutz was addressing members of the Women Journalist Mentoring Program recently and further noted that, “Women should exercise their rights freely without fear and men (husbands) should be there to support them”.
He said laws and policies had been implemented to protect women against abuse but society was still lagging behind.
The month of November marks the commemoration of 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence. The reason behind the commemorations is to highlight the plight of thousands of women who are abused in the country as well as advocating for men to be responsible.
Post published in: News