Mpumalanga Men’s Sector takes on fight against gender-based violence

The Mpumalanga Men’s Sector has called on men to tackle gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) from the grassroots level.

This was during the provincial traditional dialogue and men’s parliament event held at KaMaqhekeza Community Hall on September 18. The dialogue was held under the theme ‘Changing cultural mindset to fight GBVF’.

According to the provincial secretary, Edwin Sedupane, its campaigns have not been effective in changing the behaviour of men.

“We have so many programmes, including marches and dialogues, but we still see the behaviour of men unchanged. Hence, GBVF incidents are still continuing to rise. We have then taken a stance to go to the local level where we will get to interact with men on a closer range. The message should begin at home where everything begins. The children who continue to perpetrate this pandemic do not listen to what we say, they copy what we do, which is why we have made the decision to focus more on structures from a local level,” he said. He also said that they have chosen to host this year’s provincial dialogue after learning that the GBVF scourge is prevalent in the area.

ALSO READ: Nkomazi men gather to fight the scourge of GBVF

Sedupane has called on more men to join local structures in order to change the status quo. “We cannot have so many people suffering at the hands of men. We need to be role models in our families and communities. We need local municipality ambassadors who will be our channels in the wards and involve the young people even more. This programme should start from the grassroots level up to parliament, and not the other way around. As part of the programme, we have declared Wednesdays as Men’s Day, where we will sit down from wherever we are and talk about men’s issues,” he added.

The programme was also supported by Moral Regeneration’s pastor, Micah Nthali, who also encouraged the men in attendance to be responsible fathers. “Before anyone goes out to the community, they come from a family. All the horrific things we see in society today are a result of dysfunctional families. We need to go back to our values where we teach our children respect and morality. If all families do this, we will be able to win the fight against GBVF.

“As family leaders, we need to teach ours about our cultural values and where we come from. Jesus said He did not come to take away, but to add to us. It is only when you know who you are as a person that you will know where you are going,” said Nthali.

ALSO READ: Two-day indaba in Mbombela addresses various issues related to traditional leadership

He added that these programmes should be done continuously in order to achieve the desired results. “They are very helpful, because we get to shape one another as men. However, they should not end inside the walls of the community halls, we should also take them to places such as the taxi rank and wherever the men are. In that way, they will be more impactful.”

The men in attendance also made a call for a men’s clinic in the province and more male nurses in the health sector.