Rwanda National Police

Residents of Gisagara District have resounded their commitment to promote the rights of women and children, as well as discourage all forms of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) that are harmful to individuals and Rwanda’s socio-economic development.

This was on September 10 in a Community Policing meeting organized by Rwanda National Police (RNP) in Muganza Sector, which attracted over 400 residents and local leaders in the district.

During the meeting, the Mayor of Gisagara, Leadre Karekezi commended residents for taking a strong stance against GBV, noting that GBV should always be considered a human rights violation which brings about public health challenges and stagnation to inclusive growth.

“Our district chose to end violence and to protect vulnerable groups against any harm from individuals or groups that wish to harm them. We should not tolerate such behavior; instead, we should cooperate with law enforcers in order to stop perpetrators of GBV,” he said.

He further commended RNP for its anti-GBV efforts and endorsed community policing as a steadfast strategy through which residents and police can effectively partner to overcome GBV and other common crimes in society.

“Responsible members of community are always helpful in ensuring safety of women and children in society; therefore, if you are a neighbor to someone who indulges in such crimes, do your part and report to police and local leaders so that they are stopped before their actions turn fatal,” he said.

The District Police Commander of Gisagara, Superintendent of Police (SP) Callixte Kalisa, welcomed residents for joining their efforts with police to advance equal rights.

He advised them to look out for victims of GBV and lead them to medical centers for medical treatment and counseling, as well as identify offenders and report them to police before they offend again.

“RNP runs GBV prevention programs throughout the country and supports survivors to attain quality care so that they can once again become productive members of society. We should therefore partner more in such initiatives to ensure that such crimes limited,” he said.

RNP placed Gender Promotion Desks at all its stations countrywide, which advocate for gender promotion and offer immediate help to victims of GBV.

It established the Isange One Stop centre, which has so far been scaled up to 23 hospitals, to offer free medical, psycho-socio and legal services to GBV and Child abuse victims.