41% Of Gabonese Think It is Right For A Man To Beat His Wife – Survey

Afrobarometer, which carries out studies on women rights and gender-based violence, in its ninth survey on Gabon, found that “a majority of Gabonese judge as satisfactory, the government’s performance in the promotion of equality of rights and chances in favour of women.”

Out of 1,200 Gabonese interviewed between Nov.15 and Dec. 6, 2021, 57 per cent estimated that women must have the same opportunities as the men in the domain of employment while 82 per cent of those spoken to are of the opinion that men and women must have the same rights in land matters.

While the country has adopted a new judicial dispensation to best protect women, 75 per cent of public opinion feels more still has to be done but, “a large majority of Gabonese still feel that it is justified for a man to beat his wife if she does something that the man does not like.”

The study found that 24 per cent of Gabonese said gender-based violence is justified while 41 per cent feel it is right to beat a woman when she does something bad.

Six out of 10 (63%) of the people interviewed affirmed that “the men do not utilize violence against women and girls in the house”.

For 56 per cent of Gabonese, domestic violence constitutes a penal affair rather than a family affair that must be treated within the family, while 51 per cent of the people think it is probable for a victim of gender-based violence to report to competent authorities and 41 per cent think resorting to relevant authorities is not probable.

Concerning the consequences when a female victim reports gender-based violence to the relevant authorities, 60 per cent of those interviewed were of the opinion that “it is very probable that the women who make the reports would be criticized or harassed”.