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Talent Gore Arts Correspondent

It is now half way through the 16 days of activism against Gender-based Violence (GBV) and to mark the day, Poet Brighton Chinembiri has penned a poem which speaks against the vice.

The poem urges men to take their roles as providers and protectors seriously and create a safer Zimbabwe for women and children.

Chinembiri said gender-based violence was robbing the nation of vibrant  hard-working people, thus contributing to the under performance and struggles of many.

Chinembiri believes that arts can speak to people about social ills.

“My poems cover a range of issues such as displacement, socio-economic issues, GBV and more,” he said. “I would like people, especially men, to see the damage they have caused women and the implications thereof on society.”

Chinembiri said it took brave men and women to speak out and end rape and violence against women.

“Rape is affecting many people,” he said.

“Some choose to keep quiet because the perpetrators are bread winners. One has to be brave and speak against the ill practices bedevilling our society.

“The rich seem to be evading justice and that has to stop.”

Chinembiri said GBV was not against women and children alone, but against men as well.

“Gender based violence is tearing our social fabric, leaving us with a toxic environment where no one cares or considers the impact of their action on others,” he said.

“The general thinking is that it is perpetrated by men only, but we have cases where its woman against woman, man against man.”

Chinembiri said he wrote the poem to bring awareness on issues of GBV.

“Knowledge is power, there is need for more awareness and consistency in law enforcement,” he said.

“It is worrying that we continue to witness cases of gender based violence, with women constituting the majority of the victims.”

“Apart from laws, there is more that needs to be done. Laws can be broken, unfortunately. So an arrest is only a reactive measure.”

Chinembiri said it was worrying that some people would actually protect the perpetrators of abuse.

He said there was a high possibility that females in the arts industry were subjected to GBV.

“There is a higher probability that female in the arts industry are subjected to gender based violence than any other industry,” he Chinembiri.

“Financial support in terms of a music career is promised and because of desperation a newbie jumps at the offer only to discover she has been taken for a ride that damages her whole being. She then perishes fast.”