As part of efforts to celebrate World International Widows’ Day, widows and Orphans Movement in Bolgatanga Municipality have demonstrated peacefully with a march to the Upper East Regional Minister’s Office to complain of abuse of their rights and violence against them in their various homes and communities.
Though International Widows’ Day occurred on Sunday June 23, these widows and Orphans numbering up to 50 in the Municipality observed the day on Friday over this weekend with a call on authorities to ensure that gender data captures widows so as to target them with interventions.
In an interview with the media, Ayine Mary, president of Widows and Orphans Movement at Pwalugu in the Talensi District said, in as much as they appreciate past and current governments and other stakeholders efforts to ensure widows live a dignified life, issues of inequality amongst them are still numerous and ought to be addressed.
“We want authorities to ensure that all districts in the region adequately budget and allocate funds for sensitizations of communities on the rights of widows and their children.”
This year’s celebration was under the theme: “Claiming our rights through amplified voices for societal development”.
According to Ayine Mary, available information from the Ghana Statistical Service indicates that Ghana lost an average of GHc 73.5 millon on violence against women and girls in 2016 alone, which she said can be prevented with intensified public education.
The widows however on their peaceful demonstration, held placards with inscriptions such as “Widows are good decision makers”, “Include widows in all sectors” and “Orphan girls are not brides”.
Assistant Director of Administration at the Upper East Regional Coordination Council, Alhaji Ibrahim Habila received the widows petition on behalf of the Regional Minister, Paulina Patience Abayaga, with the assurance that the minister will act on their plea.
Source: A1radioonline.com | Moses Apiah | Ghana
