By Erharuyi A. Joe
The Coordinator of Edo State Agency for the Control of AIDS (EdoSACA), Mrs. Evelyn Suleman has urged the Gender and Human Rights State Response Team (GHR-SRT) to sustain the tempo of increasing consciousness of residents in the State to seek redress when their rights are infringed upon.
Mrs. Suleman gave the charge in her welcome address during the GHR-SRT meeting for the third quarter of year 2023, in the Conference Room of EdoSACA, in Benin City. She appreciated the Team for its consistent effort in the protection of the rights of residents in the State especially in the areas of HIV Responses.
While suing for a fruitful deliberation, Mrs. Suleman challenged the Team to expand its activities of interventions, education and persuasion of especially residents who prefer to keep mute in the face of gross violation of their rights, assuring that there are several interventions in the State to protect them. She stated such interventions to including the Violence Against Persons Protection (VAPP) Law, the Edo State Committee on Gender Based Violence (GBV), headed by the wife of the State Governor, her Excellency, Mrs. Betsy Obaseki, amongst others.
In pursuant of the above, the Community Prevention Care and Support Officer, Mr. Ikponmwosa Adagbonyin, revealed that the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) was perfecting plans to do wide publicity through jingles and other media contents on HIV Responses in the State as well as information of what constitute violation of human rights.
The meeting featured some presentations by stakeholders including that from a clinical psychologist, Abraham Naibo, who spoke on “Mental Health is a universal Human Rights: the impact on the spread of HIV/AIDS”. In it, Naibo posited that human rights violation often increases people’s vulnerability to HIV infection particularly for women, young people, and other marginalised groups.
Other presentations include “Roles of Edo GHR-SRT in Influencing Media Reportage of HIV Responses” by Erharuyi A. Joe; Principles of LIVES for Post GBV Support Services by Charity Choji, NAHI CLM/ GHR Project Edo NEPWHAN 2023 Report by Friday Osayande,
GBV on women who inject drugs by Magnus Ebimietbhor
It was the consensus of the Team that there is the urgent need for an aggressive publicity on HIV Responses in Edo State as there seems to be some level of aloofness which may have resulted from the COVID-19 outbreak. The Team wishes to maintain that HIV has no known cure yet and that residents must stay safe at all times by avoiding harmful practices which could lead to exchange of body fluid especially between or among persons who are not couples.
The session was attended by representatives of line ministries and community based organisations (CBOs) including Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Social Development and Gender Issues, Ministry of Communication and Orientation, Ministry of Health NEPWHAN, Hartland Alliance, One Stop Shop (OSS), ECEWS, ARFH, IPs, ASWHAN , Ministry of education and other organisations which were represented at the meeting
