By Priscilla Mafa
Intergenerational relationships,popularly known as blesser-blessee relationships continue to expose young people to Gender Based Violence, Women’s weekly journal has learnt.
SayWhat Programs coordinator Praise God Masunda says due to different power imbalances and hitent jealous among partners, young people end up being abused by their blessers.
This comes at a time when the world is currently commemmorating 16 Days of Activism against Gender Based Violence.
The 16 Days campaign kicks off on the 25th of November with the International Day of Elimination of Violence against Women, and ends on the 10th of December with Human Rights Day every year.
“Young people have continued to face gender based violence but the cases are under reported because of stigmatization and socialisation,” said Masunda.
In blesser-blesee relationships, rich and older men entice young women, sometimes underage girls, with money and gifts in exchange for sexual favours and companionship.
Blessers are more like sugar daddies as they were previously referred to in past generations, except they are richer and are often in positions of power.
The relationship is almost always transactional and driven by poverty, peer pressure and the need to rise over gender disparity induced barriers among other things.
The relationships often end in sexual abuse or in worst case scenarios, death of blessee.
He went on to advise young people to report any case of gender based violence they may encounter.
16 Days of Activism against Gender Based Violence is an international campaign to challenge violence against women and girls.
It was initiated in 1991 by the first Women’s Global Leadership Institute.