NHRC Appeals To Rape Victims To Speak Out

The National Human Rights Commission, (NHRC) on Wednesday, advised rape victims to always speak out with the truth regardless of how hard it is.

The NHRC Executive Secretary, Tony Ojukwu, disclosed this to journalists at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja.

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He noted that the purpose of speaking out is to help persecute offenders and make people come out of stigmatization.

He said, “The fact that the rape victims are speaking after a long time does not mean it did not happen.

“There is no expiration time for crimes. But what happens is if you report late, it makes it difficult to prove. There may be a need for a DNA test on the semen of the suspect, and once the victim takes her bath before reporting, all of these will be lost.

“NHRC encourage people to speak out. The fact that you can even speak out is a discouraging factor for suspects of SGBV and rape.

“Even if it is 50yrs ago, speak up and give us the evidence you have. People must account for some of these actions.

“The sensitization we are doing now is to make people come out of stigmatization. We know that the victim may have a sense of loss of dignity, but we are here to support you.”

Ojukwu also appealed to government and corporate organizations to donate to the Human Rights Fund