Local organisation fights GBV scourge
FOURWAYS – Green Door Women's Shelter will double its efforts in August to educate women about gender-based violence.
A Diepsloot-based non-profit organisation saw a significant decline in the number of people coming to the facility when Level 4 restrictions were in place.
Brown Lekekela, founder and chairperson of the Green Door Women’s Shelter, said the shelter – which helps victims of gender-based violence – normally deals with more than 30 cases of gender-based violence monthly, however, when adjusted Level 4 were introduced, it received only eight victims at the shelter.
“Our shelter has seen a dramatic decline of people coming to seek help in the facility during lockdown adjusted Level 4. We assume that restrictions on social gatherings and the alcohol ban during adjusted Level 4 might have contributed to the decline. We also hope that education and awareness campaigns from different organisations about gender-based violence are starting to yield good fruits to help people understand more about the scourge,” he said.
Lekekela added that the non-profit organisation will be hard at work to educate the community about gender-based violence this Women’s Month. “Last year President Cyril Ramaphosa declared gender-based violence as one of the two pandemics faced by the country. As we celebrate Women’s Month in August, our organisation will double its efforts to help equip community members, especially women, with necessary information and knowledge when it comes to gender-based violence.”
He concluded, “We hope to see less of this trend continuing – not because people are not reporting it but because there are no cases of gender-based violence in society. We will host a number of workshops to help bring the scourge to the spotlight.”
