Yesterday i was invited to attend an event by the Arupe Jesuit University Harare together with #IOM. They were commemorating 16 Days of Activism against Gender Based Violence. I must admit, my knowledge of the #16DaysofActivism is amateurish but definitely not zero. Each time i learn new things about activism and yesterday was no different. Yesterdays topics were safe migration and human trafficking, something that i am very comfortable talking about. In-fact, on other days i do consider myself an unqualified expert on domestic worker issues including safe migration and human trafficking. I thus had a few points to share with everyone for sure. We are still a long way from safe migration as a country.

Fast forward to today, i got into the office and hoping to write about the dead rat in my bedroom that had been giving me sleepless and smelly nights. But as they say ,we have our plans but Gods plans prevail. Shortly, as i sat down , i received a message from one lady i had placed. She went on to explain how her male boss was making sexual advances towards her. She was sending me voice notes explaining how it started and i could feel her pain. As i was listening , there was a knock on the door. Another lady got in , i remembered i had also placed her in Borrowdale and how her boss had never paid for my services ncxah or did she? I therefore had to pause the voice notes for a while. The lady in my office explained how her boss had accused her of being a thief and had reported her to the police. She then spent a night in police cells only to be released after they drove to her place to search for items stolen but could not find any. I then asked her if she was paid her salary and she told me that when she called her boss, she was shouted at and told all dirty insulting words and phrase…ok i am exaggerating but you get the picture right? Being a mini legal expert , i gave her my legal opinion and advise. As we where concluding our chat, she then told me how her boss had beat her!!!! That made me sit upright….

Gender Based Violence against domestic workers is real…..