Nobel Peace Laureate Gbowee Urged Stronger Partnership on WOMEN’s Issues
By: Sylvester Cytric Choloplay
Liberia: Liberian Rights activist and Nobel Peace Laureate Leymah Gbowee is calling on women and girls in Liberia to work collectively and intensify their fight against issues affecting them ahead of this year’s International Women’s Day Celebration on March 8, 2023.
Madam Gbowee urged women including girls in Liberia to firmly stand together against threats that are affecting them in their communities and make positive changes.
She also wants women to partner with their male counterparts in dealing with issues like rape, Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and sexual harassment like sex for grades in schools among others. Those issues are common in Liberia and negatively affecting women and girls.
Madam Leymah Gbowee, the Founder of the Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa (GPFA) which is dedicated to shaping a world that welcomes the full participation of women and girls in their communities by supporting the next generation of Liberian peacemakers and democracy builders, is known for rallying women to pressure policy makers to effectuate positive changes in Liberia.
She spoke recently when her Foundation (GPFA) held a one-day match with dozens of young people dominantly males in continuation of the organization’s regular “Breakfast Walk and Talk” program and in commemoration of International Women’s Day with a message to stop violence against women.
Recognizing a few men during her Foundation’s Breakfast Walk and Talk Program, GPFA awarded 20 young men medals while 30 men (mostly youth) received lappers for their active roles they have played over the time in the fight against violence and other issues affecting women and girls in Liberia.
The medals and lappers given to the males were in symbolic representation of their real love and protection for women.
Speaking further, Madam Gbowee disclosed that the GPFA has been assisting women financially, especially for women who give birth but do not able to pay their bills in hospitals, particularly at the JFK Hospital in Monrovia.
While calling on women and girls activists to look into different issues affecting women, Madam Gbowee appealed to female human right activists to direct their strength and kind gesture to women in various hospitals who have given births but do not have finance to pay their bills.
She named the issue as a serious threat affecting many women in Liberia. She then concluded that her Foundation’s match on Saturday was in continuation of their 16 days of activism last year by students from the organization in both universities and grade schools.
