Don’t treat me wrong…..

    

       Coming on the wake of the say no to rape campaign, WAR (walk away from rape)I decided to put this up,to help bring home this war.
       I personally have 3 friends who have been raped,and heard of  so many more amongst other people. ….These people who have been the victims of this hideous crime are affected variously and take different measures in coping with this,that is for the few who actually cope with it.
        For so long we have recognised rape as a crime against humanity, but for this long considered it a ‘household’ crime to be ‘handled and settled’ at home,we have for this long felt the need to not announce that such crimes have been committed against one of our own.
        Considered a shame to the victims and their families,rape usually goes unpunished as they are mostly never reported,in general,studies on rape are quite limited as rape incidents are rarely reported to appropriate authorities, allowing perpetrators enabling environment to go on in its practice.
         There’d been cases of perpetrators of this act recording them and going ahead to put the videos up on social media, without attempts at shielding there faces from view and what’s worse they go unpunished,with no attempts made at bringing them to face the consequences of their crime.                            The WAR campaign couldn’t have come at a better time, speaking publicly of rape,making it indeed household,but in a very different way,so that now we begin to discard some of the stigma associated with rape,to understand that anyone could be the victim of rape,just like anyone could be the victim of robbery, murder or any other crime with spelt out penalties(in this case,imprisonment for life with or without caning or 14 years imprisonment) and that there’s no need to hide away,and for the perpetrators that the search light’s on them,the era of silence is over.
       If you wonder why we should join the world in this fight,if you think it is not yet a problem too important to talk about in this country, then think again…..think of all the things the world did years back that we are just only starting to do,all keeping us behind,so now we are joining the course early,to tackle it before it ravages us more.
We thought suicide bombings were alien to us only heard,talked about and gravely criticised, look where we are now.
       We can join forces,with everyone doing the little they can in their little environment,individuals, families, groups,medical professionals, the police,the judiciary,the government and the society at large.
        (1) it’s been shown by studies that most rapes are carried out by persons or person well known to the victim,so be mindful of the company you keep.
        (2) be sure not to put yourself in situations that would encourage this act
        (3) rape can happen even in existing relationships, walk away from rape,walk away from relationships with tendency to drift towards forced intercourse
        (4) report to local authorities, be sure to seek medical care as soon as possible after any rape incident.
        (5)do not be silent ..

Images from the WAR campaign in lagos April 11 2015