First Person: The Liberian police inspector working to end sexual and gender
Inspector Muna Meah is a Commander in the Liberia National Police Force, and the county coordinator for the Women and Children’s Social Protection Centre in Sanniquille, north-central Liberia. For the past seven years, she has investigated cases of violence against women and children and supported survivors to access the help they need.
We were trained in different areas of handling sexual and gender-based violence and how to work with survivors of rape. Spotlight has a team that can come and monitor us, follow up on cases we have documented and the cases that are forwarded to court. They also collect data on cases.
Through Spotlight, we have seen more women and girls coming up to report cases by themselves. Previously, it would be through other community members who have an understanding of the law and justice processes, but with the awareness created on how to report cases [women and girls] are coming here openly.
Spotlight has also renovated our office building and supplied us with chairs, desks and computers for us to do our work. They gave us a motorcycle for us to follow up on cases from remote communities.
Spotlight provided placards with messages to ‘stop rape’ and others with ‘rape is a crime’. Some placards explain that there are people out there to help victims of rape, and where to report cases of abuse. They also have messages for the offenders saying that ‘if you commit this crime, you will be punished’. People read these placards and change their behaviour. Victims and reporters of cases now know that they are protected by the law if they report. They know that there are people to help them.
