Unidentified image of a survivor. (Courtesy).

A survivor of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence is calling on women and girls who might have experienced such abuses to speak out and seek psychosocial support.

According to Trial International – a rights body based in Geneva – survivors of sexual violence face deep-rooted stigma.

Speaking on Eye Radio’s Dawn show on the weekend, the survivor of S-GBV who was sexually assaulted in 2019, is calling on women and girls not to feel ashamed if they suffer such atrocities.

Instead, she urges them seek medical and psychosocial help, or even speak out.

The survivor – whose name Eye Radio has withheld – also encouraged other survivors of S-GBV to report the cases to nearby police stations and health centers.

“S-GBV survivors, you have to come out, you have to report your case to any nearest center of GBV survivors or even to any health center, because currently, we have some people who are already trained to handle cases of GBV in the health center.”

“Even if you are affected by GBV case you have to report your cases even to the police because there are some other people there in the police who are trained actually to handle GBV cases.”

Sexual and Gender-Based Violence refers to any act that is perpetrated against a person’s will and is based on gender norms and unequal power relationships.

It can be physical, emotional or psychological, and sexual violence, and denial of resources or access to services.

On March 21, 2022, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan published a 48-page report describing a “hellish” existence for women and girls in the country.

It said widespread rape is being perpetrated by all armed groups across the country, often as part of military tactics for which government and military leaders are responsible, either due to their failure to prevent these acts, or for their failure to punish those involved.