Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth, and Persons with Disabilities, Sindisiwe Chikunga, says the alarming high rates of gender-based violence and femicide make being a woman in South Africa more dangerous than being in war-torn areas.
During the final three months of 2023, 285 children and
1135 women were murdered, and 18 474 women and 2281 children were violently
assaulted.
Gender-Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF) is a phenomenon
that drives numerous acts of violence against women, children and persons with
disabilities.
Chikunga welcomed the Presidential GBVF Pledge as a
persuading Message to men to lead the call to end GBVF.
‘’Globally, Gender-Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF)
remains a multifaceted social issue in the 21st century. Despite the ratification
of international treaties and national laws, South Africa continues to have
alarmingly high levels of GBVF, which were worsened during the COVID-19
national lockdown.’’
“The Criminal Justice System cannot end GBVF, but it is men
who can end it, we urge all men in the country to attach their signatures to
the Presidential GBVF Pledge as a demonstration of their commitment to end the
scourge of GBVF,” said Minister Chikunga;
‘’The government has over the years brought forward several
strategies to fight against GBVF by introducing Extensive legal reform; Support
for survivors through the provision of evidence kits at police stations;
Psychological and social services; The establishment of a GBVF Response Fund
and Support for Thuthuzela and Khuseleka Care Centres, which provide vital
services for GBV survivors. The broader spectrum of gender-based violence is rooted
in interrelated patriarchal inequities, political economy, power relations, and
social reproduction. With now National Council on Gender-Based Violence and
Femicide Act in place it calls for the establishment of the National Council on
Gender-Based Violence and Femicide which will be responsible for providing
strategic leadership on the elimination of GBVF in South Africa,’’ concluded
Chikunga
President @CyrilRamaphosa leads the signing of a Pledge for South African men to end gender-based violence and femicide. The President has called on all South African men to make a pledge to be part of the solution. #endGBVF #WomensDay#WomensMonth2024 pic.twitter.com/aj8vbohQqM
Done By: Mitchum George
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