Hi I am Joseph once again leading the youth of Greater Masaka Region in saying NO to violence. Violence is bad. Violence is abusive. Violence deprives all of us of the respect we deserve as human beings. Violence could be on the roads, streets, communities, schools, colleges, prisons and in our homes.
My dear sister or brother when you are barking at your parents or even not helping them in the different chores at home, you are displaying violence to them.
Dear mother or father, when you shout, beat or throw a large stick at that son or daughter you are violent.
Partner, spouses and fiances when you strike each other, when you abuse each other in any way, then you are being violent.
Community leaders when you allow a person to be beaten or lynched in your community when you are aware of the existing means of legal processes, then all you are violent.
When the police or prisons officers beat up inmates in their cells or handcuffed then you are being violent.
When bosses deny their juniors advancement but continue sending them to unending errands, then you are being violent.
You and I can decide to stop violence in all its appearances. At MAHIPSO, we chose to start with Intimate Partner Violence.
Intimate Partner Violence occurs in our homes. In the spaces where we should expect tender loving care. The use of alcohol and the attendant breaking of Ugandan and international laws, vulnerabilities to HIV, child abuse, evictions from homes, hunger and exposure to elements are some of the consequences. For more: https://www.nap.edu/read/21756/chapter/3#14.
In a study by Iryna B. Zablotska and others (2007) titled: Alcohol Use, Intimate Partner Violence, Sexual Coercion and HIV among Women Aged 15–24 in Rakai, Uganda, it was revealed that physical violence, sexual coercion, alcohol use before sex was associated with a higher risk of physical violence/sexual coercion. Alcohol use in intimate circumstances may not only be a catalyst for IPV, but also may significantly increase the likelihood of HIV transmission. Previous studies in Uganda and elsewhere showed that alcohol use may be a risk factor for HIV because it disinhibits sexual risk-taking and is associated with unprotected sex (Zablotska et al.. 2006); Kalichman et al. 2007). Our previous study in the same Rakai cohort found a significantly higher risk of HIV among men and women who reported alcohol use before sex (Zablotska et a. 2006). Young women are disproportionately affected by HIV and are more exposed to physical and sexual violence, preventive interventions which focus on factors instigating IPV and consider interventions focused on changing male behaviors, particularly alcohol use will go a long way in addressing IPV. Innovative interventions are needed to work with partners of young women and with men in general, to challenge their norms and behaviors regarding alcohol use and IPV. For more: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10461-007-9333-5.
According to the Uganda Demographic and Health Survey 2006, more than two thirds of Ugandan women experience violence from their partners. Sixty eight percent had been harassed or beaten by their partners during the 12 months preceding the survey. Methods used included beating, pushing, dragging, forced sex, arm twisting, threatening, insulting and choking. Rural women suffered more violence than urban women. Likewise, uneducated women suffered more than their educated colleagues. Structural, resource and wealth inequalities are also cited to be fueling vulnerabilities to intimate partner violence according to Emmanuelle G. Ogland and others (2014) in their study titled:
Intimate Partner Violence Against Married Women in Uganda. For more: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/269040117_Intimate_Partner_Violence_Against_Married_Women_in_Uganda.
Let us join hands to address Intimate Partner Violence. Come and support our organization as we strive to take this message to the grassroots.
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