TUT students educated about GBV
Students and staff are encouraged to speak up when they see abuse.
Following the ever rising cases of gender-based violence (GBV), the Mbombela-based Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) hosted a seminar aimed at encouraging students to speak up against any form of abuse.
Spearheaded by the Student Affairs and Extra-curricular Development (SAED), this campaign comes after a Cape Town University student was killed and her body hidden in a travelling bag.
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Speaking during this campaign, Siyabonga Ntamo, SAED’s public relations officer, said, “We are conducting a GBV dialogue or campaign in all six of our TUT campuses to raise awareness. We want to use this programme to educate and encourage students as well as the university staff about the importance of speaking up whenever abused. We also want to teach everyone about different types of GBV.
We are here to inform students about accessible help if they are abused, because we want all students to feel safe on our campuses and in their residences.”
Sipho Ngwenya, the president of the university’s student representative council (SRC), also urged male students to respect their female counterparts, especially in residences, and for women to speak up when they are abused so that justice can be served.
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“Women and girls are subjected to many forms of violence on a daily basis. I also want to emphasise that we should respect the LGBTQ+ community, because they are a part of our society and our student body. According to SAPS statistics from 2019/20, more than 146 sexual offences were committed daily, indicating that this is a crisis in South Africa. As males and females, we have a responsibility to help stop this scourge by taking a stand.
“We are against GBV, and as the SRC of the Mbombela Campus, we encourage all girls to come forward if they are ever subjected to any sort of abuse by management or students in residences,” he said.
Sibusiso Mthembu of the South African National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence argued that alcohol was found to be a factor in the majority of GBV cases recorded in South Africa.
