A group Ghanaian advocacy groups and individuals have called on the Akufo-Addo government to implement the Domestic Violence Act and Domestic Violence Regulations to protect Ghanaian women and girls.
The group also wants the government to strengthen agencies responsible for the effective implementation of the Domestic Violence Act.
The group made up of non-profit agencies, advocacy groups and individuals, collaborating with the Coalition on Domestic Violence Legislation in Ghana made the appeal in a letter written to President Akufo-Addo last week.
According to the UN, 24% of women in Ghana who fall under cases of Domestic violence are beaten by a spouse or family member.
The letter said victims of domestic violence, who are mostly women face a lot of obstacles including silencing, shaming and stigma in reporting and are not able to fully take advantage of the services of police and the hospitals are supposed to offer.
The letter said in some instances, the woman because are unable to pay for injuries or rape examination kit
The group said, per the constitution of Ghana, the Domestic Violence Act, 2007 (Act 732), and corresponding legislation are to provide these survivors of domestic violence to be able to get access to justice and supports.
The group stated that these laws been ineffective since it was created.
“Mr. President, the Domestic Violence Act, 2007 (Act 732), and its corresponding Legislative Instrument Domestic Violence Regulations, 2016 (LI 2237), are supposed to provide the framework within which survivors of domestic violence can access justice and supports, however, this framework has been ineffective on the ground because nothing has been done beyond creating the law. The Act was passed 12 years ago and successive governments have failed to ensure that the agencies and organizations tasked with the responsibility to ensure the management of Domestic violence concerns in the country are functional.”
In 2006, a member of the coalition, Martin Kpebu, sued for the activation of the Domestic Violence Fund and the provision of free medical care to victims, as stipulated in Act 732.
The High Court (Human Rights Division-2) gave judgment granting these reliefs on 17th March 2017 and gave the government six months to implement the decision.
It has been well over two years and the government hasn’t done anything worth acknowledging.
The group is conflicted as to whether the government is really committed to solving gender and human rights issue facing women as it has been mentioning in most of it speech since inauguration or it just doing the talking and not committed to actually walking the talk.
Below are a number of actions the group would like the President to look at as a matter of urgency,
- Instruct the Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection to convene the quarterly meetings of the Domestic Violence Management Board (DVMB) in accordance with the stipulations of the Domestic Violence Act, and to present the National Plan of Action against Domestic Violence and the key strategies to prevent and combat domestic violence as directed in the Domestic Violence Act to you for approval before the end of Quarter 2, 2019.
- Instruct the Minister of Finance to immediately fund the Domestic Violence Fund as provided by the DV LI2237 and in compliance with the High Court order of 17th March 2017. A minimum of GhC500 000 per year is required for this fund.
- Elevate the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) to a directorate within the Ghana Police Service akin to the position of other state institutions such as the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB) and ensure that it has enforcement powers. The DOVVSU currently has investigative powers, but unlike NACOB, DOVVSU does not have specialized status and enforcement powers.
- Instruct the Minister of Education to immediately initiate the process for the
establishment of sexual harassment and misconduct policies for schools. These policies will be the first step in ensuring that the 8% of girls and 3% of boys in schools in Ghana, who experience sexual violence perpetrated by a school authority figure, can be protected by the law.
- Direct the Minister of Employment and Labour Relations to immediately initiate the process to ensure that all workplaces draw up sexual harassment and misconduct policies in accordance with Section 15 (b) of the Labor Act 2003 (Act 651). The establishment of such policies would be in line with the first resolution on sexual harassment that was adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on November 20, 2018, to urge all member countries to act to prevent and eliminate sexual harassment.
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By: Farida Yusif | citinewsroom.com | Ghana