Ashley Ncube, who is a survivor of violence, already faced challenges and discrimination as a deaf young woman growing up in Zimbabwe. There are no schools for deaf children in the rural community where she comes from, so she stays with family in town to attend a school with classes for deaf students. Worldwide, women and girls with disabilities are up to three times more likely to be raped, twice as likely to experience other forms of gender-based violence, and more likely to suffer worse injuries and more prolonged abuse than women and girls without disabilities.
They assisted me to visit the hospital. I was accompanied by someone from LCDZ who knew sign language. At the courts I was accompanied by a sign language interpreter. The interpreter also went with Ashley to counseling and supported Ashley with logistics such as transportation during her court case. LCDZ understands the obstacles facing women and girl survivors of violence with disabilities seeking justice, including communication problems, especially for people with hearing difficulties; lack of access to infrastructure such as buildings and transportation; and negative and discriminatory attitudes towards people with disabilities.
In the past three years, the LCDZ project has provided specialist services to girls and women with disabilities who are survivors of violence.
The assistance has included legal advice, support persons, sign language interpretation where necessary, sign language classes, food, transport and accommodation. So far, the project has taught 40 police officers sign language communication and trained police and judicial officers in the basic skills needed when working on a case with a woman or girl survivor of violence with a disability.
The project also empowers women and girls with disabilities to know their rights and to report acts of violence against women in their communities. The UN Trust Fund recently announced the awards of nine new grants for projects working to prevent and end violence against women and girls with disabilities in , worth a total of USD 2.
