Don't keep the abuse and mistreatment to yourselves- Bishop

By Kofi Mensah, GNA
Obuasi, July 27, GNA - The Catholic Bishop of Obuasi, the Most Revered John Yaw Afoakwa, has encouraged widows to be bold to report any form of abuse or mistreatment by the family of their deceased spouse to the appropriate bodies for support.

He asked them to refuse to keep their pain and suffering to themselves.

He indicated that there was legal protection for them under the Intestate Succession Law and the Domestic Violence Act and that they should take advantage of these laws.

Bishop Afoakwa was speaking at the International Widows Day celebration held at Wawase in the Obusai Municipality.

He said they could to go to the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and the Police Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) for help when treated badly and unfairly.

He appealed to the politicians to focus on making things better for the weak and the vulnerable.

Bishop Afoakwa used the occasion to remind the political parties and their supporters not to do anything to stir trouble as the nation headed for the polls, later this year.

They should not throw the country into turmoil - bring sorrow and pain to the people in their desperate bid for political power.

Mr. Moses Dunyagina, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Scan Life Ghana, an NGO and organizers of the event, said it was meant to put a spotlight on the plight of widows.

He made reference to the findings of a study by the United Nations (UN) in year 2010, which showed that 245 million widows and 115 children worldwide, lived in extreme poverty and said that needed to change.

GNA