Our Afrluencer Woman Sharon Chikwanha, passionately known as Bliss is a Bulawayo based makeup artist and model. Having gone through some physical abuse by her father urged women going through gender based violence to refuse to be victims. Miss Chikwanha emphasised on the fact that it all starts in the mind, hence one should tell themselves that they are not what has happened to them, instead one should choose what they want to become. As a gender based violence survivor, she chose to forget what had happened to her and chose to move on.
The urge is upon women who find them selves in these circumstances to refuse to stay in abusive situations. From time to time life will throw a lot our way but we need to keep going. Women need to dig deep inside of themselves and find the space where there is perfection, where they feel like they are strong enough and worth chasing their dreams, grasp it with both hands, forget their past and focus on their future. Certainly not forgetting the fact that men too, can be victims of GBV, Sharon encourages anyone, to. find it within themselves to not be defeated by a situation of violence.
Sharon told a heart breaking story of how when was eight years old, her father beat her for losing one of her socks on a sports day at school. As if that was not enough, he chocked her tightly until her mother intervened and pushed him away. He abused her, and everyone else in the family. Her father’s abusive tendencies led her to hate home and run for her life after she finished her A’ levels.
According to the UNFPA, in Zimbabwe, about one in three women aged 15 to 49 have experienced physical violence and about one in four women have experienced sexual violence from the age of 15. These statistics call for women to be cautious and take necessary legal action against their abusers. Any form of physical, sexual, verbal, emotional, psychological threats, coercion and economic or educational deprivation, whether occurring in public or private life should be reported to the relevant authorities, to reduce the number of mortalities resulting from GBV.
