SPEAK OUT RELENTLESSLY AGAINST GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE
By Kagwiria Muturia
Senior Advisor for Justice, Rights, and Gender Equity at World Renew
SPEAK OUT RELENTLESSLY AGAINST GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE
By Kagwiria Muturia
Senior Advisor for Justice, Rights, and Gender Equity at World Renew
Act with courage! Swim against the tide that seeks to silence women and girls, because one life lost to gender-based violence is one life too many.
“There is nothing I can do about it; he will hit me until he is tired of hitting and stops, or I will die from it one day.”
“I heard the cries for help from my neighbour; her husband was hitting her again. I have learned to mind my business because even if I report it, the police will do nothing. Also, this man is a member of a gang; he will come after me. But on this day, my teenage daughter took the courageous step to stand up for this woman. ‘Mom, you go help her, or I will go myself,’ she said. I had to call the police. When they showed up, the woman was bleeding from her forehead, her mouth swollen from the punches she had received. Not surprisingly, she sided with her husband, saying he had not hit her, and that everything was fine. The police did not question her response and try to protect her; they left the poor woman in the hands of her abuser.”
“We consider it a blessing if our young girls make it to their 20th birthday. Every day is a struggle for survival, combating gender-based violence and the threat of gangs.”
-Quotes from World Renew focus group discussions in Honduras
I spent a week in Tegucigalpa this past month. It was my second visit to the beautiful Central American country of Honduras this year. My colleagues and I stayed at Villa Gracia, a retreat center in El Picacho, on the outskirts of Tegucigalpa. On most mornings, we took a run in the hills and valleys. The birds would be chirping, everything perfectly green, with many beautiful and exotic flowers and plants lining up the manicured lawns of the retreat center. Every morning, I gasped—for air too in my unfitness—but mostly at the beauty of this country. How can one place be so beautiful? Perfect weather, mouth-watering tortillas and frijoles refritos, and amazing colleagues! Yet behind the curtains of this beauty are the horror stories of the brave yet battered women of Honduras, silenced by violence. We visited partners and community members in Nueva Suyapa, where some of the most heartbreaking stories were shared. As someone who has been working in the GBV (Gender-Based Violence) space for close to 15 years, I thought I had heard it all, but the stories of these women shook my core, leaving me mortified and helpless.
Honduras consistently ranks among the world’s most dangerous places to live outside of an active conflict zone, especially for women. Gender-based violence is persistent and pervasive throughout the region where crime, gang violence, corruption, and patriarchal culture create the perfect storm for violence against women. In 2022, 297 women were victims of femicide; by June 2023, these numbers had tripled.
But this story is also one of tenacity and hope. On the same hills of Nueva Suyapa is a road built by a group of women who continue to heal thanks to trauma healing support and economic empowerment through World Renew. This complex story of pain and hope is repeated in women’s lives across the globe, reminding us that our voices and actions are needed, today more than ever, to change their story to one of hope and flourishing. We need to work on with prevention, response, and accountability measures, but most importantly on changing the harmful culture of gender inequality and devaluing women that breeds this violence.
Act with courage! Swim against the tide that seeks to silence women and girls, because one life lost to gender-based violence is one life too many.
“There is nothing I can do about it; he will hit me until he is tired of hitting and stops, or I will die from it one day.”
“I heard the cries for help from my neighbour; her husband was hitting her again. I have learned to mind my business because even if I report it, the police will do nothing. Also, this man is a member of a gang; he will come after me. But on this day, my teenage daughter took the courageous step to stand up for this woman. ‘Mom, you go help her, or I will go myself,’ she said. I had to call the police. When they showed up, the woman was bleeding from her forehead, her mouth swollen from the punches she had received. Not surprisingly, she sided with her husband, saying he had not hit her, and that everything was fine. The police did not question her response and try to protect her; they left the poor woman in the hands of her abuser.”
“We consider it a blessing if our young girls make it to their 20th birthday. Every day is a struggle for survival, combating gender-based violence and the threat of gangs.”
-Quotes from World Renew focus group discussions in Honduras
I spent a week in Tegucigalpa this past month. It was my second visit to the beautiful Central American country of Honduras this year. My colleagues and I stayed at Villa Gracia, a retreat center in El Picacho, on the outskirts of Tegucigalpa. On most mornings, we took a run in the hills and valleys. The birds would be chirping, everything perfectly green, with many beautiful and exotic flowers and plants lining up the manicured lawns of the retreat center. Every morning, I gasped—for air too in my unfitness—but mostly at the beauty of this country. How can one place be so beautiful? Perfect weather, mouth-watering tortillas and frijoles refritos, and amazing colleagues! Yet behind the curtains of this beauty are the horror stories of the brave yet battered women of Honduras, silenced by violence. We visited partners and community members in Nueva Suyapa, where some of the most heartbreaking stories were shared. As someone who has been working in the GBV (Gender-Based Violence) space for close to 15 years, I thought I had heard it all, but the stories of these women shook my core, leaving me mortified and helpless.
Honduras consistently ranks among the world’s most dangerous places to live outside of an active conflict zone, especially for women. Gender-based violence is persistent and pervasive throughout the region where crime, gang violence, corruption, and patriarchal culture create the perfect storm for violence against women. In 2022, 297 women were victims of femicide; by June 2023, these numbers had tripled.
But this story is also one of tenacity and hope. On the same hills of Nueva Suyapa is a road built by a group of women who continue to heal thanks to trauma healing support and economic empowerment through World Renew. This complex story of pain and hope is repeated in women’s lives across the globe, reminding us that our voices and actions are needed, today more than ever, to change their story to one of hope and flourishing. We need to work on with prevention, response, and accountability measures, but most importantly on changing the harmful culture of gender inequality and devaluing women that breeds this violence.
