Feature story
Rev. Dr Benebo Fubara Fubara-Manuel, president of the Christian Council of Nigeria, said many women and girls grew up in patriarchal domestic, cultural, ecclesiastical and political environments, where their fundamental rights were denied.
“Women are still struggling to be educated in many places. They are still being told that they cannot lead the religious communities because they are women, in spite of the fact that the church only survives on their account,” Fubara-Manuel told the opening of the training for women and girls at the Baptist Centenary House in Abuja on 16 December.
“They are still being told that a man can come to God just as he is but that they as women need additional qualifiers….they are still being told that they must be free from their natural menstrual flow to enable them to enter into God’s presence.”
According to the church leaders, some women suffered abuses silently—sometimes at the instruction of their pastors—with those crying out for help facing criticism. But the leader said the issue of women and girls' rights was part of the church’s call to justice, and at the very heart of its preaching and living.
“Our advocacy for women and girls and our training in this advocacy is surely a right step in the pursuit of justice. And there can be no denying that this is crucial in our setting today in Nigeria. Shamefully, it involves us all directly and indirectly,” said the minister from the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria.
The training, held 15-17 December, is organized by the Women Wing of the Christian Council of Nigeria and the World Council of Churches (WCC). It was attended by 50 participants, including women church leaders, lay members and gender advocates.
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Participants of the Human rights training for women and girls in Abuja, Nigeria, December 2021.
Nicole Ashwood/WCC
“This event is the continuation of WCC’s brainchild to encourage awareness on mechanisms for countering sexual and gender-based violence,” said Prof. Dr Isabel Apawo Phiri, WCC deputy general secretary.
Phiri said, in light of the impact of COVID-19 on women, girls and the vulnerable, it is even more critical that we effect training and awareness raising at the grassroots and community leadership levels as well as for decision-making in the church.
“WCC continues to collaborate with ecumenical partners to effect transformation and remain committed to advocating for women’s rights and for gender equality. It is our hope that this training will result in increased impact through ongoing training and advocacy,” she said.
According to the training’s concept document, the basic rights of women and girls in Nigeria are often undermined. Cases of kidnapping and abductions, armed banditry, rape, drug abuse, money laundering, cyber crimes, bribery and corruption, reportedly add to the trauma.
Rev. Dr Uzoaku Juliana Williams, national president of the Women Wing of the Christian Council of Nigeria, said it had become imperative to change the narrative by creating awareness and building the capacity of women and girls as advocates and champions of human rights in a male-dominated environment.
“This training is relevant, therefore, in empowering women and girls to uphold their rights amidst the political and civil walls restricting their personhood and defacing their relevance in the society,” said Uzoaku. “I believe that this workshop will make inroads and open opportunities for women and girls to gain deeper interest and sustain their orientation towards the sustenance of their rights in Nigeria.”
