The European Union and the United Nations organization weekend warned parents against seeing the girl child as object of amassing wealth.
This they identified as the major reason for violence against women and girls.
The international organizations disclosed this during an advocacy dialogue with the executives of women Faith based organization for the elimination of violence against women, girls and children in Ezza South local government area of Ebonyi state.
The programe was organised by the National Orientation Agency with support from EU-UN spotlight initiative at Ezzama Civic center, Ezza South.
Speaking at the occasion, the state coordinator, National Human Rights Commission, Onyekachi Nworie, warned parents against seeing the girl-child as object of amassing wealth.
He said, “the major reason why girls and women are being raped is the objectification of the human person. It is because a woman is seen as a sexual object, any man that sees a woman or girl as sexual object ones he sees a girl he sees the vagina. So a rapist does not see a girl or woman as human being or a dignified person but simply as vagina.
“We need to teach our youths not to see women as objects and also teach the girls, women not to see themselves as objects. Because most of our women see themselves as objects and present themselves the same way to others that will use them as they like.
“Another thing that causes violence is the commercialization of the human person.
“It will be necessary to abolish pride prize because that is were this commercialisation begins.
“Parents see their girl children as means of amassing wealth. When a girl child is born she is seen as an asset, property to be marketed. This leads to objectification and commercialization.
“In the same way we see our children as objects, most parents train their children for them to look after them when they are old, but that should not be our basic aim of training our children.
“Our major aim should be to train the children to be independent, to be able to withstand the feature first and to take care of themselves and family before taken care of us”.
Participants of the programme were overwhelmed by the teaching and promised to step down the message in other to reduce violence against women and girls
Mrs Ngwoke Anthonia, President Catholic Women Organisations(CWO), St Camelus Catholic Church Idembia, was delighted to have received the teachings and said, “we’ve learned so many things from this seminar today and when I go back to my parish I will inform them all that I have gathered.
“At times it is the way you take yourself that people will address you, as we go home now we will try to counter the motion that we are not objects, we are human beings and need to be respected, nobody should take us as property in the house, or a group that can be taken anyhow, we need to be handled with care.
“We equally learnt that when training our children there are certain things we must bear in mind, we are not training the child so that he will look after you tomorrow though we know that it is a must that they will do that but we will not have that in mind thereby forcing the child to do what is not right, we have to handle them with care, take them as your responsibility a duty that you must perform.
“I have being hearing of how children are being maltreated hare in Idembia, it is commonly identified, but now that we have been informed whenever we see such violence done against anybody we will stand up against it”.
Her counterpart at the Assemblies of God Church Usokara 1,Mrs Nwokwor Chikaodiri said, “today’s lesson is very interesting because some of us that are staying in the village have seen a lot of things which I have a lot to go home with, at least going door to door , community meeting to tell them that what they think about children is not what it should be, that they should train them and make them prepared for the feature and not to see them as an object to amass wealth.
“Government has done a lot and should continue with this kind of teaching for our generation needs it”.
