By Petronella Sibeene WINDHOEK The main event in Windhoek yesterday to commemorate International Women’s Day was poorly attended despite the fact that the day is significant in the sense that it connects and inspires women around the world to achieve their potential. This did not, however, discourage speakers from sending the message of the day to the nation. Celebrated under the theme, “Empowering Women and Girls to Eradicate Gender-Based Violence,” Minister of Home Affairs and Immigration and also Acting Minister of Gender Equality and Child Welfare, Rosalia Nghidinwa, said women and children are under siege in society. Reports of incidents of sexual assault, abuse, murder, domestic violence, threat and harassment against women and children, abound. “Reported cases of rape have more than doubled in the past decade, with an alarming increase in rape of children, many as young as five years,” said Nghidinwa. The minister added that surveys have shown that most Namibian men view their partners as their property. “Forty-four per cent of men surveyed in 2000 agreed that wife-beating is justified, while in the Caprivi Region the proportion was an overwhelming 91 percent”. Although legislation exists to protect women and girls from violence, most communities regard this subject as a taboo. Studies by the ministry have shown that 73 percent of gender-based violence is perpetrated by those known to the victim. Anti-social behaviours are disturbingly high. Children as young as 10 are exposed to alcohol abuse, drugs and gun threats, Nghidinwa stated. While Namibia’s combating of Domestic Violence Act, the Combating of Rape Act and the Child Status Act has been heralded internationally as being progressive in protecting women’s and children’s rights, Nghidinwa suggests that awareness of these provisions should be extended to rural areas as well. She sees a great need for empowering women economically by engaging them in income-generating projects and to confidently occupy decision-making positions both in government and the private sector. Girls should also be empowered to take their education seriously. Furthermore, gender-sensitive support programmes should be initiated to ease the burden of care placed on girls and women as a result of HIV/AIDS. Namibia can also “pat” herself on the back for slowly but successfully making great strides in the area of gender, power and decision-making at the political level. Statistics indicate an increase in women representation from 22 percent in 2001 to 27 percent in 2005 in the National Assembly. The percentage of women in decision-making in the public service also increased from 24 percent in 2001 to 33 percent in 2005. United Nations resident coordinator, Simon Nhongo, stated at the same platform that violence against women fuels the spread of HIV/AIDS and destroys women’s ability to break through inter-generational cycles of poverty. Already horrific in times of peace, violence against women takes a huge toll both on individuals and societies at large. Until persistent gender inequality and discrimination are eliminated, both human security and development will remain a distant dream, he said. “Let us seize this day to spread the message that gender-based violence is not only a crime perpetrated against our mothers, sisters and daughters, but it is a direct violation of the very fabric of society, and shall not be tolerated in Namibia”, he added. Nhongo also conveyed the message of United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon who said empowering women is not only a goal in itself, but a condition for building better lives for everyone on the planet.