Gendered violence and human rights: An evaluation of widowhood rites in Nigeria

Autor: Lady Adaina Ajayi, Faith Osasumwen Olanrewaju, Adekunle Olanrewaju, Onwuli Nwannebuife
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2019
Předmět:
Zdroj: Cogent Arts & Humanities, Vol 6, Iss 1 (2019)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2331-1983
23311983
DOI: 10.1080/23311983.2019.1676569
Popis: This paper evaluates the connecting fabric between gendered violence and human rights through the dire lenses of widowhood rites in Oshimili-North Local Government Area in Delta State, Nigeria. This evaluation stems from the Sustainable Development Goal-5 whose aim is the eradication of all forms of discrimination against women as well as harmful practices. Hinged on the theories of cultural relativism and universalism, the paper provides information on the existence of dehumanizing cultural practices related with widowhood rites despite the enactment of human rights instruments that are expected to address this form of discrimination targeted mostly against women. In-depth interviews were conducted among widows who voluntarily shared their experiences. Findings show widows’ acceptability of widowhood practices despite their educational and financial status notwithstanding. Also worthy of note is that women are perpetrators of these widowhood rites and they ensure its strict compliance among other widows. It recommends the dire need of the Nigerian government to domesticate the global rights regime into its legal framework, education of the populace through the interpretation, appropriation and the reconstructing of these transnational discourses into the indigenous and ensure that, effective monitoring mechanisms are in place to guarantee the effective protection of this vulnerable population.
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