Kwatsaduza community commemorates GBV victims
“The foot soldiers in the war against GBV will be going into communities to encourage victims to speak out and seek help”.
KwaThema – “It cannot be normal that we as a society are quiet when we see a man beating and abusing their partner.” This was one of the messages shared during an event on Monday to commemorate victims of gender-based violence (GBV) and femicide. The candle lighting ceremony was held at the Apostolic Faith Mission and was attended by family and friends of victims from Kwatsaduza to reflect, pray and show support to those affected.
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ANC Youth League leader Kgotso Pooe believes it is not normal that we all know of someone who is a victim or that we are friends with abusers and rapist yet we don’t call them out. “We only speak out when the victim is someone with whom we are close. We have held countless marches with people refusing to join us because they are not affected. “The same people turn around and want us to help them when something happens to them or their loved ones. We need to stand together to root out the monster that is GBV. “We cannot live in a society where women are living in fear of becoming part of the statistics,” he said.
mother of little Amahle Thabethe who was abducted by an
unknown man outside her home
in Tsakani last year, was among
those in attendance
Pooe urged residents to stand up and hold government accountable. “We cannot sit back while cases of GBV are thrown out of court when dockets go missing without any clear explanation,” he added. Gauteng MEC for Finance and e-Governance Nomantu Nkomo Ralehoko explained abuse comes in different forms which gives the perpetrators power over their victims.
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“We live in a society where poverty and unemployment are the order of the day. Some of the victims depend on their perpetrators for survival. “We should not still be battling poverty and unemployment in our country. “As government we have to come up with ways to fight this by arming our women with skills that would empower them for a lifetime. We need to create opportunities while squeezing the space for abusers to exist,” she said. Follow us on: 
