By Marie-Therese Nanlong and Gilbert Joseph

Jos – For decades in Fursum District of Jos East Local Government Area, harmful practices thrived not always out of malice, but often out of ignorance. Many residents simply did not know that what tradition permitted, the law now forbids.

That silence was broken when the League for Women Empowerment and Development Initiatives (LEWEDI), a Non-Governmental Organisation, convened a stakeholders’ engagement to bridge the gap between culture and justice through the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Law.

The engagement was designed to confront a difficult reality because laws meant to protect citizens are ineffective where communities are unaware of their existence.

According to LEWEDI’s Co-founder, Zainab Gbobaniyi, Fursum represents many rural communities where violence persists under the guise of tradition.

She said, “From our findings, there’s low enlightenment on the VAPP Law and it is important for people at this stage to have an understanding about. The VAPP Law is not discriminatory in its implementation but we know that the violence being perpetrated against both genders is disproportionate with women mostly at the receiving end.”

She explained that LEWEDI’s intervention goes beyond a one-off training. “Part of what we intend to do is to follow up on this training to be sure that the leaders step it down to their subjects since they are the gatekeepers. When action is taken against violators you can rest assured that deterrence will hinder these harmful practices.”

For the Traditional Ruler of Fursum District, His Royal Highness, Adagwom Musa Usman, the engagement was both enlightening and humbling.

He admitted that the community’s leaders had operated without adequate legal knowledge saying, “As a matter of fact, we were ignorant of this law even though it is often said that ignorance of the law is not an excuse.

“We thank the organisation for identifying with us in the course of this programme as we have learned a lot. As a leader I’ll do all it takes to make sure that our people are familiar with this legal framework for the betterment of the society.”

Other participants echoed similar sentiments. Bulus Ibrahim, Village Head of Ribun, described the training as transformative.

“We have learned a lot from this training. As a person I’m obligated to sensitise the people of Ribun as I now know much about the Law which was hitherto not the case,” he said, adding that leaders must now champion advocacy against violence.

To Margaret Musa, “This law is not just about women, it is about all of us citizens,” as she highlighted how ignorance had sustained harmful practices such as denial of female inheritance, seizure of property, rape and forced labour.

She noted, “The VAPP is a liberation for us but we didn’t even realise it had been in place. The good thing is that we were not sensitised about this Law to just keep it for ourselves but to teach everybody around us.”

In Fursum, awareness is beginning to replace silence, and knowledge is becoming the first step towards justice.