The Rainbo Initiative Centre, a non- governmental organization that gives free medical and psycho-social support to victims of Sexual Gender-based violence, has indicated that 94% (i.e.3,339 ) of the persons who had been treated by the Initiative are survivors of sexual assault.
The Initiative made the revelation at a news conference on Friday February 5, 2021, during its launching of the Survivor’s data for the year 2020.
The analysis also shows that the GBV survivor data from the five Rainbo centres in Freetown, Makeni, Kono, Kenema and Bo recorded 3,584 cases of which ( 6% )209 of the said figure were survivors of physical assaults.
According to a data published on the organization’s website, in 2019 alone, there were at least 3,695 cases of sexual assault and 196 cases of physical assaults reported to Rainbo Initiative Centres across Sierra Leone – indicating more cases than were officially reported to police the same year, in addition to cases that likely occurred, but were not reported to either authority (and are therefore not included in any of these numbers).
The organization stated that, they had heard and seen horrible stories of survivors including a three-months-old baby as its youngest survivor, and a hundred-year-old woman, its oldest for the year 2020.
“It is unfortunate that despite many measures, including the declaration of national state of emergency on rape and sexual violence by the President in February 2019; we continue to witness soaring cases of GBV, with most of them going unreported and survivors suffering stigma, discrimination and worse still loss of life,” it stated.
The Deputy Executive Director of Rainbo Initiative Centre, Gibril Kargbo, said over the past years, their institution has helped more than 45,000 women and girls of which 93% were below the age of 17.
He added that in 2020, they were able to provide life-saving and age appropriate services to more than 3,500 survivors of GBV.
Kargbo furthered that the Centre provided training for over 200 personnel from the Family Support Unit, community stakeholders, medical doctors and other health professionals on clinical care for sexual assault survivors countrywide.
He continued that they also provided training for Magistrates and Lawyers on the Rainbo Initiative’s medical certificate which is used during prosecution.
He added that it is unfortunate that despite the COVID-19 measures, the Initiative continues to witness soaring cases of GBV with most of them going unreported and survivors suffering stigma, discrimination and even lose their lives.
By Isabella Cassell
10/02/2021. ISSUE NO: 7999