By Gabriel Olawale

To stem the tide of Gender-Based Violence, GBV, in Nigeria and ensure survivors of the act get appropriate services and legal representation, the Centre for Women’s Health and Information, CEWHIN in partnership with the National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, Lagos State Team has trained Legal Aid Counsels, Pro bono Lawyers and officers of the Lagos State Ministry of Justice on integrated approaches to justice.

Speaking during the 2-day workshop in Lagos, Programme Officer for CEWHIN, Ms. Judith Agada said cases of violence against women and girls are on the rise and in most cases when survivors approach the legal system, they are confronted with many challenges, hence the need for a coordinated response and referral pathway for handling cases of GBV.

Agada admonished legal practitioners to work towards GBV prevention, protection and prosecution, as ending violence against women and girls requires the involvement of everyone at all levels in society.

ALSO READ: Strike: FG not opposed to higher pay for lecturers — Ngige

Corroborating her views, on the adoption of the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) on prevention and response to GBV in Lagos State, Executive Secretary, Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency, Ms. Titilola Adeniyi said that the idea behind the SOP was to serve as a guide for legal practitioners in response to incidence of GBV.

“We discovered there was a gap in responding to issues of GBV in Lagos by legal practitioners so CEWHIN in partnership with DSVA jointly developed this SOP to serve as protocol response in managing cases of GBV especially as it relates to provision of legal support.”

On his part, the Lagos State Coordinator of NHRC, Mr. Lucas Koyejo admonished Nigerians to desist from blaming survivors of GBV, adding that they deserve all the support.

Vanguard News Nigeria