Started 6 months ago, the impact of the vibrant men’s movement of MIFUMI is being felt across rural eastern Uganda District of Tororo. Men flock the community meetings and testify of their transformed lives and relationships with their spouses.
MIFUMI Vibrant Men’s Movement which also goes by the name Movement Building Men (MBM) has transformed hundreds of lives of men winning up to 240 committed members.
In a conversation with Paul* a former perpetrator of domestic violence, he tried to place his reasons for abusing his wife and what it feels like to today;
‘It is like being born again, I do not know why I was beating my wife… probably because it felt good to show my superiority over her. I did not know that she would hurt and that she had real feelings.
I was raised to believe that if you showed a woman too much love and did not rebuke, scold and beat her regularly, she would stop respecting you…thinking back now, honestly…sometimes I beat her for nothing.’
Speaking to Emmanuel Ochwo, field officer for the movement, he said
‘..Paul is one in the hundreds who are slowly getting on the road to reform.
When we go out to the field occasionally with Paul, his message on abuse has touched hundreds of men whose believes are still shaped around his. ‘
There are men like Paul, who in the bigger picture feel they are not to blame for their actions which are most times shaped by our customs, beliefs and culture. But in this group, there are those who are willing to change.
According to Oguti Athanasius the head MBM, the impact of this project to the community has been double-fold.
Men are readily accessing the counselling services available to them and freely sharing their relationship challenges and fears.
