International Womens Day

On March 8 2012, I had participated in the International Women’s Day March in Lusaka. It will be a very memorable day for me among my time in Zambia. It was motivational, inspiring, and empowering to witness women coming together to make it clear, that they will not be victims to gender based violence anymore.

The theme for this year’s commemorating walk is “The empowerment of women and girls: Their role in Gender based violence, poverty, and hunger eradication.

15 000 people in Lusaka had participated in the march & many thousand more in rural areas.

This day will leave a lasting impression on my heart because this country, known on paper for being extremely poor and ranking very low on the human development index is not the country I see,I see this country as being beautiful and alive and uniting for a voice. It is inspirational and admirable to see women dancing, singing, and laughing down the march while singing about real issues in Zambia relating to gender based violence.

One of the key note speakers (NGOCC) had declared the gender based violence was a natural disaster and the epidemic of our time. For women to have a voice is not universal and the people of Zambia should have a zero tolerance in regards to gender based violence.

I had local Zambians personally shake my hand and thank me for supporting them on their walk. I had worn a black headband as a gesture of mourning the women who have been victims of gender based violence: rape, defilement, beaten & shot.

Gender Based Violences means any physica, sexual, mental, social, or economic abuse against a person because of that person's gender-Simplified Anti-Gender Based Violence Act No.! of 2011.