Gender violence goes unpunished in Zanzibar

The survey carried out from June to July this year indicates that communities in the Isles still consider VAW as a private matter and discourages victims of gender based violence from taking legal action. The survey undertaken by Tanzania Media Women Association (TAMWA), also established that the way police and hospitals handle VAW cases discourage victims from seeking legal redress.

”Some police officers humiliate women even more when they report cases of VAW and sometimes they are asked to bribe the officers in order for their cases to be processed...,” the survey noted. The survey also found out that some police officers engage in the judicial role of hearing and making decisions on the cases especially from women “who know very little about their rights and legal procedures.”

The survey cited an example of Kumbini case in Southern Pemba where in 2007, a 13-year-old girl was defiled by two men aged over 30 years, but when the case was reported to police, the child’s family was advised to accept a compensation of 800,000/- from the accused and drop the case. As a result, the case never went to court and the family was not paid full amount of money they were promised.

About 1,800 poor women in 30 shehias of Unguja South, 60 from each shehia were found to know very little about their rights.They hardly knew any policies relating to violence and other women empowerment matters. The survey further noted that in courts of law, justice is often delayed or denied simply because the system is gender insensitive. For example, the study noted, in 2007 the Unguja West Regional Court (Vuga) received 30 cases related to VAW but only 10 culprits were convicted.