Violence against women.

২৯ শে আগস্ট, ২০১৬ দুপুর ১:২৯

Johora Begum not a renowed name in Bangladesh but still important enough to not be ignorned. I won't blame luck or even her fate. The poor girl couldn’t escape being married off at a young age even though she was vehemently opposed to it. Her family was poor and had found what they considered a promising suitor. At the time of their marriage, Johora was just 16, and the man was almost twice her age. Soon afterwards, Johora experienced the cruel side of forced – and unequal – marriage in Bangladesh.

“I was too young and didn’t know what it is like to be a bride. He used to beat me during the day and assaulted me publicly,” said Johora, a girl from Gaibandha district in northern Bangladesh. Her husband was an alcoholic and beat her up whenever he got drunk. Within two months, Nirmola became pregnant. But that didn’t stop the abuse. “His intention was to leave me, so that he could have a second marriage.

Stories such as that of Johora are all too common in Bangladesh, but rarely are complaints filed to authorities. This really breaks my heart into pieces.

One day, Johora’s husband kicked her so badly that she had to be hospitalized and two days later she had a miscarriage. Instead of returning to the home of her in-laws after leaving the hospital, she fled to her parents’ home. Later, she was rescued by one of the Community Paralegals appointed under Good Governance sector of Friendship. The Good Governance sector of Friendship resolved the issue through the village-based tribunal called ‘shalish’. The Good Governance sector has been steadfastly working to help women like Johora. One of their aims is to empower young women and girls to make meaningful decisions concerning themselves, their families, their community through the realization of their rights, their freedom from violence, and their access to, and influence within, social space. Friendship’s Good Governance sector has dispersed their activities in almost 35 chars under Gaibandha and Kurigram Districts with the support of ERIKSHJALPEN and Friendship Luxembourg. They have trained Friendship Community Paralegals who work very closely with the char community. They usually address and resolve various social problems in the community such as domestic violence, child marriage and dowry. Since its inception, the Good Governance sector has managed to reach around 105,000 char community members and hopes to be able to deliver their legal education and services to more populace through their paralegal activities.

Violence against women and girls is a pandemic of global proportions. A staggering one in three women has experienced physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. Unlike an illness, however, perpetrators and even entire societies choose to commit violence—and can choose to stop. Violence is not inevitable. It can be prevented. But it’s not as straightforward as eradicating a virus. There is no vaccine, medication or cure. And there is no one single reason for why it happens. So i would urge to anyone who is reading this to stand up against women violence and never be hesitant to make a statement when you get to know about any kind of domestic violence like these. Its these kind of small acts that goes all the way through to make a big impact.

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