Durban-based organisation We Will Speak Out SA lauded KwaZulu-Natal Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli for launching the 365 Days Activism Gender-Based Violence and Femicide campaign on Tuesday.
The organisation advocates for gender-based violence (GBV) survivors.
One of the activists involved, Daniela Gennrich, the co-ordinator of We Will Speak Out SA, said a 365-day focus on GBV would provide the urgent impetus that was needed to deal with it.
“It affects survivors and their loved ones spiritually, emotionally, financially and physically. We welcome the call to focus on gender-based issues every day,” she said.
To curb the scourge, Gennrich said We Will Speak Out SA had joined hands with other like-minded organisations, such as Faith Action to End GBV Collective and several other interfaith partners, to develop the Interfaith GBV Prevention and Mitigation Strategy 2024-2030.
“This enables the faith sector to prevent and respond to GBV by taking appropriate actions every day of the year to ensure that survivors obtain justice and healing. And perhaps even more urgently, to ensure that their teachings and practices create environments of safety, inclusivity, and dignity for all people, which are the most powerful actions we can take to prevent GBV in the future,” said Gennrich.
Ntuli said: “The fight against gender-based discrimination should be something that is championed throughout the year. Women and children are not abused just in December, but throughout the year.”
Ntuli also visited spaza shops in Gamalakhe, on the lower South Coast, as part of governments efforts to crack down on those who sold expired goods that have allegedly led to the deaths of more than 20 people in Gauteng.
“There must be a difference in this community even after we leave today. Because if there is no difference when we leave that will mean that we are wasting the money from the government. That is why I visited a few spaza shops to check if they are selling appropriate goods that are still in good condition,” said Ntuli.
The latest crime statistics for the second quarter, delivered by Police Minister Senzo Mchunu recently, painted a grim picture of GBV cases in the country. According to those stats, 315 children and 957 women were murdered.
Mchunu said GBV had become a “national priority crime that requires our distinct focus, as it continues to devastate families and communities.”
In May, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the National Council on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide into law in a bid to curb the rising scourge besetting the country.
During the signing event, Ramaphosa said: “Corruption and gender-based violence are two scourges that plague our country and corrode our social fabric.”
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