Inspector General of Police Lemmy Kajoba lamented that more than 8,000 incidences of gender-based violence (GBV) have been reported this year as opposed to the 4,000 cases reported in the third quarter of the previous year.
In contrast to the previous year, when 4,042 criminal cases of GBV were recorded while 900 were non-criminal, he claimed that last year there were around 6,303 reports of criminal cases and approximately 2,487 cases of non-criminal cases.
Since then, he has urged police officers—whom he has referred to as the first responders in such cases—to make sure that accusations from both female and male victims are handled seriously.
During the simultaneous launch of the 13th Basadi Operation with other SARPCCO member States, Mr. Kajoba was speaking.
“It is sad that the country continues to record the rising cases of GBV reports in the country as evidenced by the 2022 Third Quarter report in which 8,790 reports comprising 6,303 criminal and 2,487 non-criminal reports were recorded countrywide as compared to 4,042 criminal and 900 non-criminal reports recorded during the Third Quarter of 2021,” he said.
He stressed the importance of gathering accurate, timely, and gender-disaggregated data in order to ensure that victims of GBV receive treatment that is gender-sensitive.
Police officers, whom Mr. Kajoba referred to as first responders, were urged to make sure that both male and female GBV reports were taken seriously and that all victims received the necessary assistance at the Front Desk as they made their way through the frequently complicated court system.
“It is important that there should be clear unbiased communication between the victim and Police officers.Reporting GBV cases can be extremely upsetting for victims. It takes a lot of courage to make the initial decision to report a GBV complaint,” he said.
Mr. Kajoba further urged law enforcement officials and all other interested parties to improve anti-GBV sensitization campaigns through all available channels.
