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Life Onboard |
LAST UPDATE
November 1, 2005
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| October 15, 2005 |
Dr. Loice Achieng - Joining the fight to stop violence against women – Loice Achieng |
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| Medical doctor from Kenya, Loice Achieng joined Peace Boat to discuss issues of violence against women. |
Loice Achieng is a doctor from Nairobi, Kenya who has worked extensively on female victims of violence, particularly from a medical perspective. She came onboard to participate in Peace Boat’s Gender Project [insert link once this report is uploaded], which focused on raising awareness about the universal problem of violence against women. Onboard from Egypt to Morocco, Loice joined guests from the United States, Palestine, Morocco and Japan to share her experiences and expertise on this issue, and to help educate Peace Boat participants. Loice is a member of several NGOs, including ‘The Association of Physicians and Medical Workers for Social Responsibility’ Kenya (PSR) and the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW). PSR Kenya is an organization of 75 medical professionals who work together with a common concern for issues of social responsibility, including the elimination of violence against women. |
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| Loice discusses violence against women with participants as part of Peace Boat’s “Gender Project.” |
Peace Boat web reporter Jane Easton asked Loice a few questions about her involvement with issues concerning violence against women in Kenya.
Jane: How did you become involved in violence against women issues?
Loice: As a medical doctor I have become involved with many different NGOs, including PSR. As a member of PSR I work with women who have been sexually and physically abused. We try to assist them in getting free health care and assistance. I have also performed surgical corrective operations on women who were victims of sexual violence so I have seen firsthand the effect of these crimes.
Jane: What do you think are the main concerns for women in Kenya?
Loice: Sexual crimes in Kenya are a big problem, and more and more common is attacks by opportunists, who rape women during a robbery or car jacking. Every woman is afraid of being attacked while walking alone. There is always that fear of rape and it is frightening.
Jane: What do you think needs to be done to reduce (or ideally eradicate) violence against women in Kenya?
Loice: I think education is so important. We need to make sure all women are educated, not just formally, but on issues of human rights as well. In the past, if a family couldn’t afford education for all of their children, boys were usually given first access to education, especially in poor areas. Over the last two and half years, primary education for children has been made compulsory and free. But after primary school many people drop out, and they are often female. Education will also make women more powerful economically, so they can have better knowledge and access to all social amenities.
Another issue is access. Some structures are in place to support women who have been abused, but the people affected often live in rural areas, and knowledge of, as well as access to these support structures is a problem.
On a government level, I think government policy needs to be changed, so that more women are involved in the decision making process. A bill was recently passed in parliament to increase the criminal sentence for those convicted of sexual violence. Legal procedures need to be put in place to protect women, and punishment for perpetrators should be quick and sure.
Jane: What do you see for the future of violence against women and women’s rights in Kenya?
Loice: At the moment the government is in the process of creating a new constitution, which aims to address women’s rights issues very clearly, such as equality of ownership, and providing for at least 30 percent of members of parliament to be female. If the new proposal is passed, I think the situation for women in Kenya will be in a much better place.
Jane: What do you hope Peace Boat participants learnt through your workshops and discussions?
Loice: I hope that participants now understand that violence against women happens everywhere. Many initially thought that it was something that happened to poor people in other countries, but it happens all over the world – and it won’t go away on its own. We need to be aware of this, and work together to make society better for women all over the world.
Links:
ASSOCIATION OF PHYSICIANS AND MEDICAL WORKERS FOR SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, PSR KENYA |
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