Monrovia – The political leader of the Collaborating Political Parties, Mr. Alexander Cummings has hailed organizers of a three-day peaceful protest against rape in Liberia as heroes for raising awareness about the rapidly growing crisis wreaking havoc and damaging scores of young boys and girls across the country.
In a statement Wednesday, Mr. Cummings said for the past two days, Liberians from all walks of life have gotten in the streets to peacefully protest against rape and all forms of Sexual Gender-Based Violence (SGBV). “This makes me happy and proud of our young people. Change can only come when you demand it, and it is never too late to start. It is my hope that this government and the President will listen to the cries of his people and take action, the CPP leader asserted.
Mr. Cummings said he will accept the numerous recommendations made through the petitions on how to address this alarming situation. “About a month ago, we declared RAPE a pandemic in my nation-wide address. Today, we have had about 992 cases of rape reported since January with only 22 convictions. This is not just a statistic. It’s lives. It’s people. Something must be done. Liberians can no longer accept this. I say hats off to all you young people. You are the true heroes. You are doing your part. It’s time the President does his part.”
The rape protests kicked off on Tuesday with protesters chanting anti-rape slogans, marched through Tubman Boulevard unto Capitol Hill and presented their petition to the Chairperson of the House Committee on Claims and Petition, Rep. Rustonlyn Suacoco Dennis (District #4, Montserrado County).
In their petition, the group laid out several recommendations they believe when implemented by the Government of Liberia will help end this nightmare for the people of Liberia.
“Our mothers and daughters are under attack daily by predators that have no fear of bearing the full weight of the law. These outrageous acts are only persisting because our justice system has been so weak that perpetrators commit these atrocities and go scot-free; because our laws have been made lax and created loopholes for these criminals to exploit.”