Restless Development (RD), a global advocate for youth-led change, has set up call centres in six districts in Uganda through which women and girls can report cases of abuse.
Development Diaries understands that the six districts are Alebtong, Buyende, Lira, Kamuli, Tororo and Bukedea, with women and girls in Alebtong already using the toll-free call centre to report cases of gender-based violence and economic exclusion during the Covid-19 lockdown.
It was learnt that a volunteer at the call centre in Alebtong, Fiona Amony, has been giving fellow young women an audience to report abuse.
She said, ‘I came to volunteer out of the need to offer fellow girls and women an ear to share their experiences during this lockdown period where many of them have been going through hard times but with no one to confide in’.
It was noted that Amony has filed more than 100 cases mainly from youths, between the ages of 20 and 30, who reported GBV-related incidents such as sexual assault and harassment within a month of manning the call centre.
She said that other cases tied to economic injustice, such as employers failing to pay salaries, making it difficult for women to support themselves, were also reported.
‘Advocacy faces many barriers including government bureaucracy in investigating and addressing cases as fast as possible. Ultimately, delayed justice often becomes justice denied. Nonetheless, we cannot give up on giving young people a voice’, Amony said.
In Alebtong, Fiona is now a well-known icon spearheading the advocacy for workplaces that are free from sexual harassment.
According to media reports, at least 2,300 schoolgirls have been impregnated during the lockdown.
Source: Daily Monitor
Photo source: Reedz Malik
