Zambia police officers under the Victim Support Unit (VSU) have been urged to provide professional services to victims of Gender Based Violence (GBV) regardless of gender.
This is because male GBV victims are some time not attended to professionally because of cultural serotypes associated with gender.
Inspector General of police Lemmy Kajoba is however, saddened that women and girls remain the majority victims of GBV in the country.
Mr. Kajoba said there is need to raise awareness on gender based violence and encourage victims to report cases to the police and deter wound be offenders.
He disclosed that a total of 26, 370 cases of GBV were reported across the country in the year 2020 compared to 25, 121 recorded in 2019.
He further disclosed that for North western province In 2020 alone, about 2,459 GVV cases where recorded.
“And this year, the province has so far recorded 708 GBV cases,” said Mr. Kajoba.
Mr. Kajoba said this in a speech read for him by Western Province Deputy Commanding officer Charity Munganga during the simultaneous code named BASADI operation in Solwezi.
He revealed that the objectives of the operation are to prevent gender based violence crimes, receive reports of GBV, provide pyscho-social support to victims of GBV and investigate and arrest offenders.
He urged the VSU in the province to enhance data collection on GBV cases if the vice is to be eradicated.
“And as police command, we remain committed to accelerating gender mainstreaming in the Zambia Police Service by ensuring that both men and women officers have the right treatment and opportunities.
