A coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) working in the area of security, justice sector and human rights has urged the Federal and state governments as well as the Nigerian Police to treat the increasing cases of rape and other forms of Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) as a security threat.
The CSOs under the auspices of Justice and Security Dialogue (JSD) made the call on Tuesday in Abuja, urging all Nigerians to see the disturbing trend as a threat to national development.
The JSD Programme Coordinator, Ms. Isioma Kemakolam, said that while incidents of rape are on the increase, and which, has attracted national outcry, was because sexual violence is yet to be considered as a security issue, and when it is, it does not rank high as a priority.
She said that the COVID-19, if nothing, highlighted this issue more, creating awareness on this plague, and that to really see the change, there is the need to see shifts in how the government, police and others understand sexual violence as a security issue that impacts everyone and the society.
“This pandemic has brought to fore this issue and there are increased discussions around it as a ‘shadow pandemic’ during the COVID-19 pandemic, which now proves to be a catalyst for action,” she said.
