Female artistes call for equality in music industry

Female artistes in the Northern Region have called on government to enforce laws on discrimination and sexual harassment, to ensure the realisation of their full potential in the music industry.

Ms. Memunatu Laadi, a female artiste based in Tamale said the government should support the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA) to protect female musicians against Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) and empower them to promote local music to enhance the economy.

She made the call on behalf of her colleague women musicians during the International Women's day celebration under the “ENOUGH” project organised by Northern Sector Awareness Creation (NORSAAC), in Tamale.

The celebration was on the theme:“I am Generation Equality: Realizing Women’s Rights”.

The project was funded by the European Union (EU) through a consortium, comprising Oxfam and WiLDAF in the Tamale Metropolis and Zabzugu district for the Northern region, and Sawla Tuna Kalba for the Savannah region.

The project aims to create an enabling environment for girls and women to know, claim and exercise their rights to end sexual and gender-based violence in Ghana, Mali, and Liberia.

Ms. Laadi said most women musicians felt that culture was the greatest barrier against reporting abuse, with other factors such as fear of losing work and expectations that the issue would not be handled appropriately.

In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), Ms Amie, a female Artiste based in Tamale proposed to government and other stakeholders to put measures in place to strengthen and clarify the law to provide explicit protection to victims of sexual abuse in the music industry and at other workplaces.

Mr. Abdulai Nashiru, Project Manager of ENOUGH at NORSAAC stated that gender-based violence in the past had been viewed as a female issue with series of projects empowering women and girls to understand, resist and prevent sexual, and gender-based violence.

He urged members of the Public and other stakeholders to demonstrate their commitment towards protection for survivors by investigating and prosecuting cases, punishment and rehabilitation and the provision of reparation to achieve the outcome of end violence against women in the country.

According to him, SGBV and other forms of violence are often perpetuated by people who are either oblivious of the consequences of the act or they are being engendered by societal norms and practices.

Mr. Nashiru noted that “To address this phenomenon, there was the need to commemorate some selected international days tailored to celebrate women and girls, thus highlighting the vital roles they play in our societies”.

He said the celebration of the International Day of the Woman would undoubtedly increase public attention to issues of gender equality, SGBV and elimination of social norms underpinning violence against women and girls.