BY BETELHEM BEDLU
Even though Ethiopia has seen rapid political and social changes in recent decades, that has significantly impacted adolescents’ freedom from age-and gender-based violence, the Gender Adolescences Global Evidence(GAGE) midline reports shows that gender inequalities and age -plus gender-based violence remain key challenges for many young girls and boys living in the country.
Making its core on two pillars: ‘age- and gender- based violence’ a research was done on 8555 adolescents-boys and girls (aged 10-19 years)- living in rural and urban settings, in South Gondar, East Hararghe, Zone 5 of Afar State and Dire Dawa City Administration, to identify the magnitude of the problem.
Accordingly, age-and gender-based violence is still very common in both urban and rural parts of Ethiopia. However, the types of perpetrators of age–based violence are many, including caregivers, teachers, peers and the community members.
In his presentation, Workneh Abebe, GAGE Ethiopia Research Uptake and Impact Coordinator mentioned that violent disciplinary measures taken by parents remain common, and many have reported experiencing violence in the past year.
Young people living in urban areas report more violence at the hands of caregivers than their rural peers.
The other key area of age-based violence is the one perpetrated by teachers which have also remained endemic both in rural and urban schools resulting serious injuries physical damage, permanent disability and permanent school drop outs.
Among schools enrolled students, boys’ especially younger adolescents are more at risk than their older peers and girls, according to him. Similarly, Extreme forms of physical violence that includes serious injuries, especially in rural areas, were part of the findings.
Despite the improvements over the past years, peer violence remains common across study files in which boys and younger adolescents are more at risk than girls and older peers respectively.
In some areas, peer violence took a form of religious and ethnic conflict which is sometimes devastating in terms of costing lives and injuries. Moreover, adolescents with disabilities are also at heightened risk of peer violence.
To the worst, both adolescents with disabilities and their parents under reporting are being bullied by peers who prevent to understand the real experiences and impacts of peer violence on adolescents with disabilities.
Presenting the other major area that the midline research on adolescents’ experience of gender based violence, Fistum Workneh, GAGE Qualitative Researcher noted that Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) or cutting, sexual violence, child marriage and intimate partner violence were amongst the challenges.
At macro level, the survey findings found that 47percent of girls; aged 15-19 had been cut, with significant regional variation.
To exemplify this, in Zone five (Afar), 85 percent of older girls, and 23 and 89 percent of older girls had been cut in South Gondar and in East Hararghe respectively.
The major reason behind the difference in patterning was said to be regional investments in eliminating harmful practices.
Having the most developed network of health extension workers (HEW) who actively communicating the ill effects of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in maternal and child health, enables the Amhara State to reduce the number and standout conspicuously, said Fistum.
It also has the most networked and active Women’s Development Army, which organizes groups of women at neighborhood level to address local development needs.
The State is also rich in having gender focused NGOs and active school based clubs that teach adolescents about their rights and specifically, gendered topics however, these kinds of investments in eliminating harmful traditional practices are very limited in East Hararghe and Zone five, Afar State.
It is a surprising fact that there are 25 percent of adolescents but mostly in rural areas who believe that a woman who has been raped should be blamed for the assault.
Despite being illegal, child marriage remains common. Underscoring the importance of focusing on the most disadvantaged adolescents, child marriage is markedly more common among GAGE participants than it is among more representative samples.
According to Dr. Guday Emire, Associate Professor of AAU and Senior Qualitative Researcher of GAGE, the finding primarily reflects the reality that violence within the marriage is seen as customary while mentioning girls in all the three States reported being beaten by their husbands, for trivial reasons ranging from losing of livestock to talking back.
The survey also identified that adolescents knowledge about where they seek support in the event of violence has improved over the past years.
With very few exceptions, adolescents experiencing violence inside the home only reported assistance from friends and family. Other adolescents relied on neighbors to intervene when household violence became too extreme, as to her.
She emphasized that Ethiopian adolescents have highly uneven access to bodily integrity and freedom from age-and gender-based violence, with large disparities between girls and boys, those living in urban and rural areas, and across regions.
Harmful gender practices being the primary risk factor, which impact both girls and boys, it leaves girls more vulnerable to be in more forms of violence than boys.
Workneh recommended that developing parenting education classes, following children experiencing abuse, using mass and social media and community meetings, promoting social cohesion and national identity, and fostering friendship among young people are important to tackle the challenges.
Establishing safe house, working with boys and men to target masculinity, participating religious leaders and elderly, and providing ways for students to anonymously report violence were suggested.
It is also important to tackle the significant gaps in knowledge about reporting of violence, in order to overcome the disadvantaged faced by girls and rural adolescents, invest in tailored outreach efforts in person and also via behavioral change communication messaging through media and social media.
The report calls for the government and partners to restrengthen efforts, policy dialogue and interventions to ensure that all young people can be protected from age- and gender-based violence.
The Ethiopian Herald December 25/2020
