Nonviolent Peace Force team two-day training on curbing gender-based violence gap, ended with the call to do more in order to narrow a big gap between men and women in Western Lakes State in particular and South Sudan in general.
Speaking after the workshop, youth activist, Morin Maker Pat calls for equal job distribution in the community.
He argues that domestic chores should be disseminated equally in the family.
‘First of all, we realized that gender, does not mean a lady or a man. But means the roles assigned to the ladies or men. Our ideology said washing clothes is for a woman. This is not true. Washing clothes is for both. We as men, we can wash our clothes the same as women. But our mindset said washing clothes or cooking is for ladies which is wrong, according to our gender based violence training today. We realized in modernism, there are roles for ladies and men, but they are not there culturally’, said Maker.
Nonviolent Peace Force youth protection officer, John Malou Ater, appeals to men to give women a chance in decision making.
He blames societal cultural practices of harming women by abusing their rights in some communities; he says women are great thinkers and could contribute much in the family.
‘We know very well gender based violence has destroyed our relations with other sex. Not knowing that women also struggle and mobilize resources and bring food on the table. This youth and protection team is going to implement this training in the communities they are living in. So the referral first ways are institutions that give service to the victims of GBV’ Malou explained.
The speakers made the remarks on Friday evening in Rumbek