Hanan Buhari, the daughter to President Muhammadu Buhari has said rape and sexually related offences have been greatly under-reported.
She made this known at an event organised by the Hanan Buhari Foundation which took place at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villla, Abuja, on Friday evening.
She said, “Report revealed that the rape incidences for women and girls is on an increasing trend from 63 per cent in 2015 to 72.1 per cent in 2016 and 69.3 per cent in 2017.
“In spite of increase in activism, cases of rape are still grossly
underreported.
“According to data from Nigeria’s National Anti-Trafficking Agency, only 32 cases were reported between 2019 and 2020 for fear of stigmatisation.
“Undoubtedly, we need to rise up and break this culture of silence, especially now that more women are beginning to have courage to speak out about their victimisation.
“Women and children’s right to live free from violence is dependent on the protection of
their human rights and a strong chain of justice.
“In spite of acts such as Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act (VAPP) 2015 and various states’ Violence Against Persons Prohibition Laws in Nigeria, which are all aimed at addressing issues of rape and other forms of sexual violence, enforcement of its laws is still sorely lacking in far too many cases,” she added.
