Rwanda National Police

Last week, Rwanda launched a three-month nationwide awareness campaign against gender based violence and child abuse to further bring the general public together in one voice against the vices.

The campaign came as an enforcement of the other existing mechanisms – Rwanda National Police Gender Desks in districts is  among other initiatives.

 The Kicukiro Anti-GBV block inaugurated in October 2013 is among those desks established by Rwanda National Police as ‘focal points’ to advance the equality and the rights of women and children.

Since its establishment, the desk has grown to serve the district efficiently, whereby, it handles an average of 380 cases of GBV every year.

“Most of the cases we receive range from defilement, rape, spousal violence and child neglect among others. When the cases are on behavior that is not deemed violent, we have counselors who talk to the couples and give them advice on how to reconcile their differences,” Assistant Inspector of Police (AIP) Carmel Intijumurerwa, the Head of the Anti-GBV Desk in Kicukiro District said.

“But when the reported case is violent in nature, say rape, defilement or buttery, we have a team of qualified investigators who collect evidence, apprehend the suspects and prepare case files for the prosecution. When the GBV cases are deemed civil in nature, we advise the victim to seek legal counsel.”

At least 50 of the registered total cases are classified as “criminal” and their case files have been referred to prosecution.

She noted that the GBV desk, like those in others districts, in also charged with carrying out sensitization campaigns, through which all schools in the district have been reached out to with a strong message against GBV and child abuse.

“Residents in the area especially women and children, have been sensitized on their rights, which has broken the silence of victims to report injustices they face, and usually collaborate with partners in crime prevention such as Community Policing Committees (CPCs) and Youth Volunteers in Crime Prevention to discourage GBV and report suspected offenders.”

“We are in touch with other GBV Desks in other districts, and also work with Isange One Stop Centre, where we send victims who need serious medical-legal help… Our campaigns have led to arise in the number reported cases of domestic violence cases involving women and children. It is no longer a silent issue because many people are no longer scared to talk about it,” AIP Ntijumurerwa said.

“We highly value confidentiality, every case, whether small or big, we have it privately. By doing this, we are sending the message to empower women, to believe they’re not alone and that we are here for them,” she said.

"When such a message is delivered, victims of GBV usually take it upon themselves to partner with police and volunteer to fight GBV in their neighborhoods."

At the national level, Rwanda National Police established the Anti-GBV and Child Protection Unit in 2005 with an aim of embarking on sensitization campaigns, empowering the vulnerable and address cases related to GBV and child abuse.

With combined effort on the ground, figures indicate that GBV cases have reduced by 10.6 percent in the last four years; from 2527 cases in 2010 to 2258 cases in 2014. Those cases included defilement rape and physical abuse.

Statistics further indicate that 271 women were battered by their husbands while 22 men  were  assaulted by their spouses in 2014.

One of the initiatives to respond to GBV  and child abuse was establishment of sange One stop Centre,it started in July 2009 at Kacyiru Police Hospital, as a pilot project to provide free integrated medical, psycho-social and legal support to GBV victims.

It has since been scaled up to seventeen district hospitals, namely; Nyagatare, Ngoma, Kirehe, Nyamata, Rwamagana, Kabgayi, Nyanza, Kabutare, Munini, Gihundwe, Mibirizi, Gisenyi, Muhororo, Musanze, Nemba, Byumba.