“I was raped, got HIV from the rape, and when I tried to tell my family, they told me to shut my mouth.”
Those chilling words were spoken by 20-year-old Maureen Phiri from Lilongwe, Malawi. As one of the speakers at Together for Girls’ (TfG) “Every Hour Matters for Post-Rape Care” event, which was in collaboration with the World Health Organization at the United Nations Women’s Commission on the Status of Women in March, Phiri courageously spoke about her sexual assault at age 11 and her advocacy to end sexual violence in Malawi and beyond. Sitting alongside representatives from various governmental and UN agencies including Malawi’s Minister of Gender, Children, Disability, and Social Welfare, the Honorable Patricia Kaliati and United States Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues Catherine Russell, Phiri told the audience that the man who assaulted her took advantage of her because her family was poor.
“Madame Minister [Kaliati], that man took advantage of me because my family was not well-doing”, she said, her voice breaking, as she was overcome with emotion.
“I was only 11 years old, Madame Minister, only 11,” Phiri said. “He would buy my family food, and I lived with him and his wife, but when she would leave, he raped and harassed me.”
“I kept it to myself, and did not tell anyone but then I was found living with HIV,” she said. “I did not get HIV anywhere else but through rape.”
Every Hour Matters is a global campaign, launched by the Together for Girls partnership to raise awareness awareness about the critical importance of post-rape care to prevent potentially lifelong health problems. The campaign aims to inform both the public and community leaders that survivors of rape have 72 hours to receive post-exposure prophylaxis that can prevent HIV and 120 hours to receive emergency contraception to prevent pregnancy. Together for Girls also shares information on other care that should be provided, including mental health support, prevention and treatment for other health issues such as sexually transmitted infections; and treatment for physical injuries depending on the circumstances.
Data shows that in every country where its Violence Against Children Surveys (VACS) have been conducted an estimated 25 percent of girls’ first sex was forced, and the majority of cases happened before the age of 16. In the United States, an estimated 11 percent of high school girls report that they have been raped.
Gary Cohen, founder of Together for Girls and the executive vice president of BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company), echoed Moloney-Kitts’ point that the prevention of rape is important, but also the critical need for survivors to have access to services to prevent other health issues such as HIV.
“The first reproductive right is the right not to be raped,” said Cohen.
Cohen said girls who experience sexual violence are almost at four times greater risk of getting HIV than girls who don’t experience such violence.
“We need to make sure our girls get access to these services as soon as possible to ensure that they get all the help they need.”
“We need to end the stigma and discrimination surrounding rape and we need to educate our communities about where to get help and access to post-rape services.” said the Honorable Patricia Kaliati M.P., Minister of Gender, Children, Disability, and Social Welfare. “One stop centers for post-rape care can be critical. Phiri added that it’s also important to provide more information that post-rape care exists, particularly to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS. She said we need this message “at every corner, at every health facility in every community to prevent HIV in that window period after rape.”
Masthead Photo: Ambassador Catherine Russell and Maureen Phiri
