Restore hope to sexual abuse survivors in Zambia

Community Workshops

What we did

We facilitated three workshops in a local community in Lusaka of: youths (10 male and 10 female), men (10 in total) and women (12) in total. The main purpose of the workshop was on helping this community understand and identify different forms of abuse in the church. These were financial abuse, physical Abuse, emotional/psychological abuse, spiritual abuse and sexual abuse

It was also an opportunity to hear from the community and their views in this area. There were different interactions with the different groups. Whilst most of the men admitted the present of abuse in Churches and the need for interventions, when discussing about sexual abuse, there was suggestion of indecent dressing as the leading cause of the different forms of sexual abuse. This showed that there is a lot of work needed to change the mindset of men regarding victim blaming and generally around sexual violence.

For the women, there was a view that when one is abused in the church they should not leave the church but rather pray to God to forgive the perpetrators because all churches are the same. This highlighted the need for a better understanding of the impact of abuse and need for safe spaces for survivors to thrive.

The Impact

As the workshop went on and more discussion happened, there was progress in understanding amongst the men that so-called indecent dressing should not be an excuse to sexually abuse someone. The group concluded that if it were so, little children and women in hijabs would not be abused.

For the women, an understanding of the need for safety for survivors was the main takeaway. The conclusion was that people should not stay in an abusive environment and they have to report and separate from the abusers.

We got good engagement from all groups and  hope to return with further workshops focusing on the impact of abuse and helpful ways to support survivors.

Survivor Support

What we did

We have been speaking to two survivors who have reached out for support to Restored Hope Zambia. We provided a listening ear and a platform for them to share their stories in their journey to process what happened, how it has impacted them and to find healing. One thing that stood out and was highlighted by both survivors is how the healing journey is not a straight road and it takes time and has a lot of ups and downs. We were also able to signpost a survivor from one of the workshops to our counselling service following discussions on abuse definitions. This highlighted the need for information on what abuse is and a platform for survivors to be able to speak and share their stories, something that is often helpful for healing to begin.

The Impact

With the survivors’ consent, we will be sharing their stories on our website and in tailored resources for other survivors. The aim is for other survivors to see that they are not alone, to see that it’s ok to struggle and for healing to take a long time.