Domestic Violence: Woman, 37, escapes husband’s lynching

A 37-year-old mother of four, Donkor Margeret, is battling for her life at the Tamale Teaching Hospital after her husband inflicted machete wounds on all parts of her body for demanding her share of proceeds from the sale of their cocoa farm.

According to the victim, her husband sold their cocoa farm to relocate to Tatale with the family.

Before the sale of the farm, the husband reached an agreement with her to give her GH¢10,000 from the sale of the farm to start a business.

“He told me one day we needed to relocate to the village and that he was putting our farm out for sale and will give me GH¢10,000 as my share of the sale to start a business which I agreed.”

She said after 10 months of relocating to Tatale, and upon several demands for her share of the money, the husband failed to honor his side of the agreement and became abusive.

She narrates how her husband attacked her with a machete.

“I realized he has been making some secret calls after the money was paid to him and when I enquired, he got angry and locked me up in the room and started inflicting cutlass wounds on my body, saying he wanted to kill me so I don’t enjoy the money.”

She was rushed to the Tatale Polyclinic unconscious with blood oozing from all parts of her body.

Health officials at the Tatale Polyclinic who could not handle the situation immediately referred her to the Tamale Teaching Hospital, where she is currently receiving treatment.

She has since undergone surgery at the Tamale Teaching Hospital and responding well to treatment.

The incident, which was reported to the Tatale police, has since been referred to the Yendi Divisional Command for further investigation.

Meanwhile, efforts to get the Yendi Divisional Command to respond to the issue has since yielded no positive result.

According to the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU), as of August 2020, 31.9% of Ghanaian women have faced at least one form of domestic violence – physical, economic, psychological, social or sexual.

In February 2007, Ghana’s Parliament voted to enact the Domestic Violence Act (Act 732).

The efforts against domestic violence reflected the global momentum in pushing for women’s rights to be recognised.

This has prompted advocacy from Civil society organisations (CSOs), women’s rights organisations and international bodies.

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These actions resulted in the Government of Ghana enacting a number of national laws to protect women’s rights and outlaw violence against women and girls.

Source: 3news.com