In Uganda, non-profit group uses theatre to raise awareness about domestic abuse
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Transcript
00:00An open-air stage performance, inspired by the daily experiences of women in rural Uganda.
00:08Oreganda, a local NGO, recently launched a campaign to educate communities about domestic
00:16abuse in a country where 95% of women have experienced physical or sexual violence, according
00:22to a UN-backed study.
00:24When people are in the vicious circle of poverty, violence tends to be so rampant because these
00:32people lack basic needs of life and as a result the two have to disagree and from a disagreement
00:39just expect fights.
00:42The NGO offers discussion groups, financial support and a safe space for survivors of
00:47domestic abuse.
00:48We go to court together, we go to the local council one together, then they give these
00:54women the courage to speak up.
00:56But in the region, only a fraction of survivors actually press charges.
01:00The NGO then acts as a mediator by providing so-called reconciliation forms, an informal
01:08contract between the victim and the alleged abuser, but also a record of evidence for
01:13possible prosecution if the agreement is ever breached.
01:18One day I came back from drinking and using drugs and when I got home started beating
01:22my wife and my son.
01:24I was reprimanded for what I did and I'm better now.
01:27I know alcohol is the cause of all evil.
01:31Uganda passed a domestic violence act in 2010 in a bid to criminalise physical, sexual and
01:36emotional abuse, but its implementation has been criticised and the number of domestic
01:41related homicides has almost tripled since then.