By Ibrahim Hassan-Wuyo

The Development Research and Projects Centre (dRPC), a local Nigerian non-profit formed in 1993, has engaged Muslim Opinion Leaders (MOLs), to strengthen and position them to communicate, advocate for, and model change to prevent Gender-Based Violence (GBV) in the North.

At the one-day event in Kaduna weekend,
Imam Ma’aruf ,a Chief Imam in Kaduna State and one of the Muslim Opinion Leaders who attended the study tour in Egypt, on preventive measures and discussion with the prominent scholars and Professors at Al-Azhar University,said most importantly they met the Grand Chief Imam of Al-Azhar including the Mufti of Al-Azhar.

He said those that went to Egypt were 12, 6 from Kano and 6 from Kaduna, and were there on Gender-Based Violence (GBV), preventive methods, measures and strategies to prevent violence against women and children.

He explained further that it was a very quite and interesting programme and appreciated the DRPC for the initiative.

He said while in Egypt, a lot was discussed based on different perspectives on the issue of GBV on women and children and how it would be eradicated,and suggested that there should be educational empowerment for women because in Egypt, such was happening.

” There should be legal interrogation of the policy of government especially in the North. Also,there should be strengthening of law,of rules and regulations about GBV because its happening there They strengthen whatever they want to do as a law, there is integration of legal opinion leaders and religious opinion leaders.

He said what they learned in Egypt, if integrated into the social system in Northern Nigeria, alot would be achieved and violence against women and children would be a thing of the past.

The courts been the final place where the common man seeks for justice, he said the step down training was imperative for the Sharia Court Judges because they observed that those who commit violence against women when caught, do go scot free unless they’re taken to the court of law.

“That is making it to continue to perpetrate in our society. So we are hoping from this training, they would be able to interprete what they inculcate and learned here.Yes ,they have it before, but due to the environment, for listening to these experiences from scholars that attended this study tour we are hoping that they are going to translate this into action, by giving the common man justice, ” he said.

Barrister Ai’sha Aliyu Tijjani, one of the women opinion leaders that participated in the study tour to Egypt, said “…when it comes to prevention of Gender-Based Violence, our court system Islamically is the highest place an aggrieved person can address his issues.”

She said that person is expected to get remedy from the Sharia as it’s prescribed by the teachings of the Holy Prophet, Peace be upon him.

According to her, it is legal for victims of gender based violence to go and seek redress, in the Shari’a Court,adding that seeking redress is their right in the Shari’a Court and the Shari’a Court Judges are those charged with the responsibility and charged with the manning of the courts.

“They have the power to punish perpetrators, they have the power to grant remedies to victims and address issues in so many ways,at individual level and at community level. So we are expecting the Shari’a Court Judges to play their roles seriously as ordained to them by Almighty Allah. Right from the inception of Islam to date,their role is to serve as the vicegerants of Allah and their role is to stand firm in the dispensation of justice. Seeing that nobody is harmed and nobody is ready to harm anybody. This is their major role and they play a role of punishing offenders….and giving remedy and redress to victims of gender based violence.”

She said even though Islam has provided full protection for women against violence, she was able to tell the judges that women in.each and every community in the North suffered from one form of violence or the other.

“Those in the Southern part of Nigeria suffer from their type of violence, women Christians suffer from their type of violence and we also suffer from our type of violence. Gender-Based Violence has no respect for culture,no respect for religion and has no respect for geography. All women around the world suffer Gender-Based Violence in one form or the other. So we are able to tell them that we are looking at the issues primarily in our Islamic way.Most of the violence women suffer in Nigeria are violence in matrimony.So the judges are expected by the position Almighty Allah bestowed on them, to address the issue.It’s not always that when a woman goes to court, complaining about her marriage or complaining about her husband, that she’s required to bring witness. It cannot be possible.”

” We also told them that they should open their mind and brainstorm. Whenever a woman approaches the court, let them think who is bringing her out of her marital home, not to start thinking that Islam has already protected her.”

She said they were a 100% sure and comfortable with what was provided but the implementation of Islamic teachings was where they were having issues,because women should be given the treatment Almighty Allah has ordained.

” So the moment the woman is not getting that equal treatment as ordained by Almighty Allah, then she has to seek redress, especially in cases where her marital rights are being violated. When she is sexually deprived or starved, when she is not even fully maintained, when she is treated cruelly, then Shari’a Court Judges have the role to see into her problem and must provide remedy to her since that is what Almighty Allah has enjoined them to do and that is why they’re given that position. “

Barrister Ai’sha Aliyu Tijjani, while answering a question on how most Gender-Based Violence cases ended up through Alternative Dispute Resolution thus negating the effect of deterrence, said:

” Because they are not properly addressed. The judges don’t see them the way they are supposed to see them.If they always see a woman that they would not accept her claim until she has a witness, then how do you expect a woman when she is treated cruelly, then to come to a stage looking for witnesses?When a lot of violence issues in matrimony happen closed doors. When there is no third party to serve as a witness. That is why whenever they go to the court,the judges either strike out the case or tell her to compensate herself out of the marriage ….since she initiated ,she is not interested in the marriage.So if she compensate herself and the case is being struck out,so impliedly what we are trying to say,the perpetrator is not being punished,and the perpetrator is not being brought to book.How would it serve as a deterrence when the perpetrator is not punished and people did not see the law in the society physically?”

She said there were 100% chances of new occurrence of violence everyday because these issues were not properly addressed because the judges were not seeing them the way they supposed to see.

Barrister Tahir Umar Tahir, the Director General Kaduna State Bureau of Interfaith,who was also part of the delegation to Egypt, described the experience as enthusiastic because they’ve learned what they were expected to be doing for over 2 decades in Nigeria.

He said they met arrangements, documents and others all geared towards non Gender-Based Violence in Egypt, and a lot of laws made to protect women from violence and providing the necessary support to them from all ramifications,which were not in existence in Nigeria and in so many countries in Africa.

He underscored the need for judges to be well equipped with the requisite knowledge and also to be constantly engaged in such trainings and advocacy,so that Gender-Based Violence would be minimally reduced in Nigeria, especially among the Muslims because the Shari’a Court Judges are the first point of call to women.

He however decried the situation that with pile of cases in the courts ,women would prefer to stay at home to avoid the experience in the court.

” Sometimes the treatment in the court is harsher than what is happening to them in the house, ” he said.

Tahir said such kind of training would go a long way in reducing the problem because the judges would be more enlightened and more equipped.

Dr. Taofiq Abubakar Hussaini, Director Centre for Islamic Civilization and Interfaith Dialogue Bayero University Kano, said he was also among the delegates on the study tour to Egypt.

According to him, the contents they got in Egypt really enlightened their knowledge on Gender-Based Violence.

” We discovered that most of the cases on Gender-Based Violence are happening due to either ignorance or mischievous interpretation of the Qur’an and Hadith. Also,part of our culture has also contributed ….Islam has a lot of provisions which protect women and children against any form of Gender-Based Violence,” he said.

Resource persons who presented papers at the occasion were Prof UM Shu’aib of the Department of Shari’a Law,Bayero University Kano, among others.

The Project Coordinator, Ahmad Abdullahi Ahmad said the project/ concept note was Muslim Opinion Leaders (MOLs) for Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Prevention in Northern Nigeria.

“Title of Activity: Sensitization Seminar and Dialogue for Sharia Court Judges on Islamic Perspectives in Protecting Women and Girls from Harm: Understanding Legal Frameworks for GBV Prevention.Background:The development Research and Projects Centre (dRPC), a local Nigerian non-profit formed in 1993, is engaging Muslim Opinion Leaders (MOLs), strengthening and positioning them to communicate, advocate for, and model change to prevent Gender-Based Violence (GBV).”

“The MOLs for GBV Prevention Project is an initiative to address the issue of GBV in Northern Nigeria by leveraging the influence and authority of religious leaders. This project operates on the understanding that religious leaders, particularly MOLs, hold significant sway in shaping their communities’ beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors. Through this initiative, the MOLs are engaged to act as advocates for GBV prevention, using Islamic teachings to challenge harmful cultural norms and practices that perpetuate violence against women and girls.”

“As part of this effort, delegates participated in a Peer-to-Peer Study Tour in Egypt, engaging with esteemed Islamic institutions, including the Grand Al-Azhar and the Grand Mufti. The insights and lessons learned during these engagements will be shared with 20 Friday Mosque Imams in Kano and Kaduna States through a step-down training workshop.”

“The aim and objectives:The sensitization workshop is intent to enhance the understanding of Sharia Court Judges in integrating Islamic teachings with legal frameworks to combat GBV. The objectives:
To provide Judges with insights from Peer-to-Peer Study Tour in Egypt on Islamic Perspective in Protecting Women and Girls from Harm.To improve understanding of how Islamic principles can be utilized alongside legal mechanisms to prevent harm to women and girls. To strengthen the Sharia Court system’s approach to addressing GBV using Islamic points of view.”

” Expected Outcome: Improved understanding of how Islamic teachings and legal frameworks can work together to prevent GBV. Enhanced capability of Sharia Court Judges to deliver informed and just rulings that protect women and girls.addressing GBV. Strengthened partnerships between religious leaders (e.g. MOLs) and legal institutions in Nigeria.

“We have participants:25 Sharia Court Judges from Kano and Kaduna states each.
MOLs delegates from the Egypt Study Tour as co-facilitators,” he said.