Gender-based violence (GBV) remains a pressing issue that requires collective efforts to address. Offering essential support to GBV survivors is a crucial step towards fostering hope and facilitating recovery.

Consider Zilipa, who survived economic and emotional abuse. After more than a decade with her partner and raising three children, he betrayed her by cheating and replacing her with a caregiver.

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Despite building three houses and acquiring land and other properties together, Zilipa’s partner suggested that she leave the house with her kids to start over without any money or share of the properties.

She pleaded with the father of her children to stay and help with house chores as she had nowhere else to go. He agreed, but on the condition that she stayed in the small house next to the main house and cooked for him and his new girlfriend.

Zilipa, a resident of Kinigi, Musanze, and her children crowded into the small house. Due to a lack of adequate child support, she was unable to send them to school.

Zilipa was emotionally hurt, but she didn’t seek help because she didn’t know she could get a share of her contribution if she wasn’t legally married. However, one day during a community dialogue activity in Musanze, she heard about Haguruka, a local NGO that promoted and defended the rights of women and children and decided to reach out to the organisation.

The judge ruled in favour of Zilipa and her three kids, granting them the house. Her partner and his new girlfriend moved to the smaller house. Zilipa also received a share of other properties, and her children have returned to school, leading to her happy life.

Action

The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, a global campaign, kicked off on November 25, which is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and will conclude on December 10, the Human Rights Day. The campaign was initiated by activists at the Women’s Global Leadership Institute in 1991 and is utilised by individuals and organisations worldwide to advocate for the prevention and eradication of violence against women and girls.

According to Ninette Umurerwa, the national executive secretary of Haguruka, it is important to have cases such as Zilipa’s — not only for the victim involved but for so many other women — as they set a precedent and send a message to other perpetrators.

She observed that another form of support that GBV victims need is to listen to them without judgment and provide information on where to seek help.

Umurerwa explained that GBV victims are usually emotionally down, which is why they require the support of friends and family.

"If one doesn’t get the support they need, they may fail to report the case and this upsurges the GBV cases at the community level, thus allowing perpetrators to escape punishment,” he noted.

Umurerwa stressed that when GBV victims report cases and they lose due to lack of evidence, other victims get disheartened to speak up, dreading that there is no hope of winning.

She also emphasised the importance of providing basic legal training to people in communities, so they can offer guidance and support to others experiencing injustice at the community level.

Lilly Carlisle, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), noted that GBV survivors often face stigma and may be blamed, or not believed if they disclose their experiences.

"Therefore, it is extremely important for families and communities to understand what GBV is and to receive a GBV disclosure with support, and non-judgmental attitudes. Communities should be provided with basic knowledge about services available and how survivors can recover from the violence they faced,” she said.

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She also added that GBV survivors require access to comprehensive GBV response services, offered in a survivor-centred way — this includes full information about the services available and are able to choose if and when to access them.

Carlisle highlighted that in particular, survivors may need emergency medical care to mitigate the consequences of GBV, which can include unwanted pregnancy and STDs.

She also added that survivors must also have access to safety services, such as safe shelters to help them mitigate ongoing risks they may face from perpetrators.

Carlisle urges access to justice, including legal assistance, investigative services, and a justice system fully equipped to handle GBV cases.

Survivors also often require psycho-social support to help them recover from the violence and find sustainable ways to move forward with their lives.

"Often, GBV survivors need help to navigate this array of services, and that is the role of GBV case management. GBV case workers are often the first point of contact for survivors and build a healing, supportive relationship with them as they guide them through the needed services.”

Carlisle noted that in Rwanda, UNHCR works with both government and NGO actors to ensure that refugees can access this full range of essential, lifesaving GBV response services.

She also said that it is essential that everyone, especially frontline workers, know how to safely and ethically handle a disclosure by a GBV survivor.

According to Carlisle, receive a survivor with empathy and attend to immediate safety needs — questions to ask yourself, are you in a safe and private place? Does the survivor need emergency medical attention?

"Do not doubt the survivor or ask intrusive questions about the incident. Do not tell the survivor what to do or impose opinions about what should happen next as this disempowers the survivor and can even cause additional harm,” Carlisle stated.

She urges listening to the survivors to know what they need and offer support in any way.

Carlisle added that the survivors should know that they are not alone, as GBV can feel like an isolating and stigmatised experience.

She also said to thank the survivor for their courage in seeking help and ensure that they have the information necessary to move forward before leaving.

Additionally, Carlisle noted that protecting the survivor’s confidentiality and consent — leaking information can seriously endanger their safety.

"In Rwanda, frontline staff working with refugees are all provided with training on these basics of GBV safe disclosure practices, since we never know when a survivor might approach us during our work. We know that GBV affects 1 in 3 women globally according to the World Health Organization, and that forcibly displaced persons are often at higher risk, which makes such training and referral to needed services all the more important.”