Staff Reporter
Women have been urged to acquire livelihood skills and become financially independent to help them cope with difficult family circumstances and reduce vulnerability to desperate decisions.
Zimbabwe Women for Gender Equality executive director Dr Edwick Madzimure said women should be empowered economically so they can support themselves and their children when faced with difficult situations in their marriages.
Madzimure was speaking to journalists on the sidelines of the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace Zimbabwe (CCJP-Z) Stakeholders Engagement and Programme Ownership Meeting at St Edwards Catholic Church in Kwekwe.
Her remarks followed the death of Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission commissioner Dr Martin Muduva, who was allegedly attacked with an axe by his wife at their home in Dzivarasekwa Extension, Harare, on Tuesday night.
Muduva reportedly died at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals on Wednesday after sustaining injuries in the attack, while his wife reportedly died after ingesting poison.
Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the deaths and have not publicly established a motive.
Madzimure said economic empowerment could give women greater options when facing marital or family difficulties.
“We are always talking about women who are failing to leave their marriages because they don’t have anything to sustain themselves and their families,” she said.
“At the end of the day, it leads to such a desperate situation because you are in a situation that you know is not conducive but you can’t leave because you can’t look after yourself and you can’t look after your children.”
Madzimure said women should be equipped with practical skills that could enable them to generate income and become self-reliant.
“Let’s encourage women in our communities and societies to gain skills so that they can be empowered, so that we can avoid such devastating situations,” she said
