By Joanna Howarth | Board Member
Sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) remains prevalent globally. In Sierra Leone, 45% of women aged 15-49 report having experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner at least once in their lifetime.
AdvocAid's 2020 report - Women Wahala Na Prison - reports that women survivors of SGBV are more likely to come into contact with the law. Our research for the report found that the vast majority of detained women interviewed reported suffering at least one form of violence once in their lifetime.
This was the case for Amie*, who received constant financial, pschological and physical abuse from her husband. When she caught him with another woman in her home, she reacted, wounding the other woman. Amie was arrested and sentenced to two years in prison. At the time she was three months pregnant. She describes her period in incarceration as "painful" - lacking the services she needed as both a pregnant woman and a new mother.
When she and her then child were released, she could not return home as her husband rejected her and refused to accept the child as his. Amie was homeless and on the streets with her daughter.
Amie learned about AdvocAid's post-prison support and we were able to give her the care and support she needed.
This included housing support to pay for rent for a year, and a business start-up grant, which Amie has spent setting up a small business trading "fry fry" - various fried snacks and meals. AdvocAid has also linked her up to the Go Bifo women's group (a support group meaning 'moving forward' in Krio), and one of our social workers meets with her monthly to follow up on her progress, and provide continued mental and emotional support.
Amie told us: "Life for women in this country is really hard, we suffer a lot at the hands of men. But I will make sure this doesn't define me, as a single mother, through AdvocAid's support."
AdvocAid can only provide this kind of support with the generosity of donors like you. We complement it with longer term interventions that focus on systemic change in Sierra Leone, such as changing law and attitudes. Thank you for continued support.
*this is a fictional name to protect the woman's identity
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