03 Jul We are NOT Tired, we are Tied
With the support of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP) is implementing a project which seeks to avail empirical data on the trends and magnitude of Violence Against Women in Politics (VAWP) in Zimbabwe. The purpose of collecting this empirical evidence is to use it as a basis for engagement with parliament, media and civil society so that corrective action can be taken.
Sextortion is a subtle form of VAWP where those in power demand sex and sexual favors as payment for assistance/services rendered.
By availing empirical data on the trends on VAWP in Zimbabwe, ZPP intends to generate public debate on the need to eradicate VAWP in Zimbabwean politics in the media, in civil society and in parliament. These public debates will in turn result in a closer understanding of the plight of women in politics which is critical to trigger policy and legislative changes on VAWP. The project aims to equip Women’s Coalition of Zimbabwe (WCoZ) and Women’s Academy for Leadership and Political Excellence (WALPE) with knowledge products that demonstrate the magnitude of VAWP in Zimbabwe that they can use to engage with parliament, the media and the Zimbabwean civil society.
Using empirical data, ZPP intends to demonstrate that VAWP is a big issue that warrants the immediate attention of Zimbabwean policy and legislative makers. Ultimately, ZPP envisages a downward trend on cases of VAWP as a result of this project, which will in turn create space for more women to come forward and avail themselves as voters and candidates in elections. This will ultimately result in gender equality in public decision-making positions in Zimbabwe. ZPP reached out to the
women in politics who experienced VAWP from all the 10 provinces of Zimbabwe (Harare, Masvingo, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Midlands, Bulawayo, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Manicaland and Mashonaland Central), listened to their stories and experiences with VAWP and how the latter affected their participation in politics as voters or as candidates, documented these experiences and produced this report. This report is thus a compendium of the experiences of women in politics from across the country. It documents the physical, emotional, psychological, structural and cyber violence that the women in politics experienced on account of their participation in politics and the ramifications of such violence on their participation in politics.
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