Time has come to put all our hands on deck and fight the fretting gender-based violence (GBV) scourge as a nation. We have now lost count of corpses that are incessantly recovered blood-soaked from murder scenes.
Botswana for the longest time was known for her virulent peace with family being an enviable institution.
As the media, we are also scared to be incessantly reporting on these bloody scenes where women are brutally murdered and worse, sometimes in front of their children and loved ones. Yes, we have reported cases where men were also brutally murdered by their loved ones, but such cases are a drop in the ocean.
For the past two weeks, Botswana was painted red with blood of poor women in clear cases of love relationships that had gone awry.
Men in particular, should pause and make proper reflections before stepping forward to stab women who want out of a relationship that does not serve their interests anymore. In most cases, it has been proven that the poor women are killed for their pleas to exit abusive relationships.
Men should take their time and manage anger which in most cases slips out of control leaving them with animalistic behaviour that propels them into action to chop to death someone they once claimed they loved.
Whilst some claim that they had spent their fortunes on women, in most cases they would not be coerced to spend on them. We urge the menfolk to set their priorities right in their love relationships.
We want to appeal to men that killing women doesn’t provide a solution to domestic disputes. We also want to encourage relatives, neighbours and friends who are aware of any love relationship that is souring or has gone sour, to take proper and immediate action by reporting it to the police.
It’s time that neighbours reawaken the spirit of neighbourhood watch just like in other anti-crime activities and alert authorities to deal with fresh love-related disputes before they morph into a disaster.
There is no doubt that as Batswana we are generally a nation of copycats and when one incident of GBV is reported many follow that route as if it offers a long lasting solution to problems.
We therefore, appeal to the nation to eliminate the GBV, as it has become a main killer with women being the main targets. Men, we repeat, get the right therapy and accept that a love relationship can end against your wish.
A word to the womenfolk: You have a right to choose men who suit your interests. When you feel you no longer need a man, sit him down and present your case to him in the most decent manner, if there is anything like that.
The state of GBV has the likelihood of scaring potential investors away if we don’t nip it in the bud. Let’s fight the scourge as a collective!
“Nothing good ever comes of violence”– Martin Luther King
