Hello I was selected as one of the Ambassadors to receive this year’s small grants to host an event for the International Women’s Day (#IWD2020).
The event I had initially submitted was changed to instead mobilize Gender Activists and Women Human Rights Defenders (wrhds) to host a public March Past to join the Women’s Global Strike in Limbe, Cameroon.
I started working on this and received an invitation from the Chargée d’Affairs of the British High Commission, Mrs Sharon Ganney for the Gender Conflict Analysis Report Validation Workshop in Partnership with the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) at the British Residence, #Yaounde on the 4th of March. I left my home town Limbe that morning to Yaounde having in mind that I would return to Limbe immediately after and make a trip the next day on the 5th out of Cameroon.
The event was a success and I went to church thereafter and went to Bonas to my friend’s house. I later left her place, boarded a bike for the travel agency Finex. And there after the story is one I am still grateful that I am alive. The bike having a knife attacked me, stole my hand bag with everything I had and a struggle with him that night had his way with me.
Alone in that lonely road some 3 young boys came from nowhere. One gave me his slippers to wear while they walked me to the road and one went home and got 500frs ($1) which I used to get transportation back home to my friend’s place.
On arriving and taking the path way to her house another unknown guy with a knife held me acting as to pierce me with the knife. Still I screamed and miraculously he left me and ran off as though he had been burned or something. And there I ran off to my friend’s house.
As I narrated what I had just survived twice after hitting hard on her door, she mentioned having dreamt the night before how someone had hit violently on her door. In the dream she opened up and there was no one outside but she had felt like something had entered her house that night. Not knowing what the dream meant she had prayed and shared with our friend in the US. This friend in the US, I should recount 15 minutes before I left my friend’s house that night though with network challenges had struggled and insisted to get to talk to me on phone. And the conversation we had was of him having a strange and worrisome feeling about me related to travel. I on the other hand had simply recounted to him how all my trips out of the country to Italy and the US had been getting canceled because of the Coronavirus and how maybe that’s what he was referring to not knowing it was a revelation of the attacks against my life a few minutes ahead.
My friends called off work the whole day as they took mee to the hospital after some friends sent some financial support to begin with the health care and legal processes.
On the 7th of March I left Yaounde for Limbe so I could join my fellow activists to March for the rights of every woman and girl. Despite it al I still Marched against rape (now been a survivor myself) and all forms of violence against women and girls and will continue Marching.
#IMarchFor the respect and protection of women and girls.
Join me today in my March as I launch a new project to provide support to victims and survivors of rape and other forms of violence who cannot afford it by making a donation today.
