The Sunday Mail
Fatima Bulla Musakwa
FOR a long time in Zimbabwe, many cases of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence remained unsolved on account of the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) not having deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) equipment.
As a result, there was an unnecessary backlog and delays in solving cases as samples were taken to South Africa.
In some instances, SGBV survivors could not afford the more than US$200 that was required for a single test, resulting in some cases falling by the wayside.
The recent donation of DNA analysis equipment to the ZRP Victim Friendly Unit has been hailed as a major milestone towards accessing justice for survivors of SGBV.
Donated by the European Union (EU) in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) under the Spotlight programme, the initiative is part of the global aim to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls by 2030.
The ZRP’s forensic science department is now capacitated to collect, analyse and present all forensic evidence that is collected in sexual violence cases.
In addition, the machine is expected to act as a catalyst that will provide hope to survivors to come out of their shells and report SGBV crimes perpetrated against them. Victims of SGBV can now have trust that forensic evidence will help connect perpetrators to the crimes.
After Rape Clinic (ARC) communications officer, Ms Floridah Mapeto, applauded the initiative noting that the equipment tallies with their mission to have a victim-centred approach in supporting SGBV victims.
“We believe survivors can now finally get the justice they rightfully deserve.
“The conviction rate in our courts currently is discouraging and overwhelmingly low because usually there is a lack of sufficient evidence to link the perpetrator to the crime,” Ms Mapeto said.
ARC has been lobbying behind the #72 campaign, centred on encouraging survivors to seek emergency treatment within 72 hours.
The campaign, which started in 2019, highlights the urgency in collecting evidence through a forensic medical examination that is crucial for court processes and access to justice.
The forensic examination needs to be done before a survivor has taken a bath or shower.
With the DNA machine now available, Ms Mapeto said the reporting process which involves the survivor seeking emergency treatment to have post exposure prophylaxis for the prevention of HIV, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), emergency contraceptive pill as well as forensic medical examination, has been enhanced.
“This speaks to our mission as an organisation that we can achieve a society where sexual violence is unthinkable and once perpetrators start noting that they can no longer get away with it, this will hopefully send a strong message to protect our women and girls.
“The donation also comes ahead of the commencement of 16 days of activism against Gender-Based Violence annual campaign which is used as a strategy by individuals and organisations around the world to call for the prevention and elimination of violence against women and girls.
The campaign commences on November 25 under the theme “Orange the world: End violence against women now!”
In Zimbabwe, evidence shows that one in three women and girls will experience SGBV in their lifetime yet only 4 percent of women will report to the police. The Spotlight Initiative is working to bring perpetrators of SGBV to book by improving the capacity of police, health and justice personnel to collect, analyse and present forensic evidence in SGBV cases.
Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions gender expert, Ms Fiona Magaya, hailed the donation.
“The equipment identifies the DNA of the perpetrator either on clothing or on the body of a victim and also to a baby if the violence results in pregnancy.
“Either way there is positive identity of perpetrators so this should in a way teach perpetrators that they can’t always get away with a crime,” she said.
Head of Governance for the EU Delegation to Zimbabwe, Mr Patrick Lambrechts, said the development would help Zimbabwe to achieve the SDGs in line with the gender parity dictates.
“Spotlight Initiative is one of the programmes that demonstrates the EU’s unwavering commitment to the achievement of SDGs and particularly SDG 5 which aims to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls,” he said.
The initiative speaks to conventions like the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, the 1995 Beijing Platform for Action and Sustainable Development Goal 5 (SDG) which all advocate for protection of women’s rights.
