Support for victims of gender violence and AIDS urged

Women affected by gender violence are at greater risk of contracting HIV/AIDS, a Ghanaian human rights foundation has said. The executive director of the Ark Foundation, Angela Dwamena Boakye, said while much had been done in national HIV/AIDS awareness creation, little emphasis had been put on gender violence and HIV/AIDS. A recent Human Rights Watch (HRW) report said reduced HIV/AIDS rates in countries like Uganda could be short-lived if African governments failed to protect women whose husbands raped and attacked them. Boakye said women were still physically abused and sexually assaulted by male counterparts, who often kept multiple sex partners. The local Ghanaian Chronicle quoted Boakye as saying: "There is a need to educate and support people who seek our assistance."