Makerere feminists march against gender based violence

Friday 4th November, 2017 shall go down in Makerere University history as the kickstart of a feminism movement advocating for equal rights of all gender and united against all forms of gender based violence.

The students, who code named their movement 21AV to mean 21st Century Against Violence, have declared that they will wear black and orange every Friday as a form of solidarity against gender based violence in Makerere and the nation at large.

These students, majority of whom were from the School of Law, marched from Senate in the heart of the university whilst engaging everyone that cared to listen about their cause and movement.
They wore black shirts and jeans as a signature with orange caps to supplement their look. The colour orange has been for a long time associated with programs and movements to do with gender based violence and the students believe it is key in their struggle too.

Charllote Ahabwe, the leader of this movement said feminism has for long been misinterpreted.

“Most people believe that feminists are a bunch of bitter women that are against men’s prosperity, which is very wrong”, she said.

She added that even men can be feminists because feminism is about gender equality and anyone that advocates for such is a feminist.

Bob Ethan Matsiko, a fourth year student of law is one of the gentlemen that we encountered in the march and he said very many men have actually suffered gender based violence too.

“The challenge is that very few men come out to say that they have been victims of this violence because our society tends to judge them”, Matsiko said.

He cited an example of socialite MC Kats who allegedly suffered violence at the hands of his girlfriend then, singer Fille.
“When he came out, people criticised him for that act instead of looking at the underlying problem that is gender based violence”.

The students said they have a line of other activities that they have put up to help advocate for the above and that it will not just be marches.

“Once in a while, we may organise car washes and other activities as long as such activities get us to the public and we sensitize and alert them about the danger that is in gender based violence”, Ahabwe said.

She also vowed to engage the university’s Gender Mainstreaming Department to be able to iron out issues like sex for marks and rape that have long tampered with education of the girl child at university level.