Namibian minister speaks up against women abuse

WINDHOEK, Nov. 22 — Namibian Minister of Gender Equality and Child Welfare, Doreen Sioka on Thursday castigated the growing cases of violence against women in her country and the African continent in general.
Speaking at the ongoing African Women Conference in Windhoek, Sioka expressed her dismay at any forms of violence against women in an African set up.
“Violence against women is a violation of fundamental human rights and a social cost, and it represents a cross cutting issue and collective burden to society. The whole society need to be committed to the fight against disruptive phenomenon and priority needs to be given to prevention, protection of survivors, rehabilitation of perpetrators as well as strengthening coordination of efforts,” Sioka said.
The Namibian minister also called on African countries to continue accelerating the participation of women in decision making positions across all sectors as a way of empowering them and dealing with suppression of their rights.
Sioka added that African women have a bigger role to play in the political, social and economic spheres.
“Increasing opportunities for women in the labour market, especially young women need to be an integral part of every economic and labour initiative in order to support the sustainable development of our communities.
“Multidimensional approaches are therefore needed for the promotion of female entrepreneurship at the local and continental levels and harnessing the power of innovation to transform the lives of women in the continent.” Sioka said.

Xinhua