GBV ‘continues to rise’ in SA

A horrifying rise in reported rape and violence cases was seen in the recently released crime statistics, days ahead of the annual 16 days of activism against gender-based violence (GBV) campaign.

The global theme for the event is Orange the world: End violence against women now!

On Thursday, the Amnesty International South Africa, in partnership with Constitution Hill, kicked off 16 Days of Activism against Women and Child abuse with the #InterruptGBV campaign.

Lists of names of GBV victims and survivors were written in chalk on the steps and pavement of the entrance to the hill as part of creating awareness.

Amnesty International South Africa’s executive director Shenilla Mohamed said it was sadly an annual international campaign that was still needed.

“Single women are not to be blamed for the violence. We need to look at what are the root causes of South Africa being such a violent society,” she said.

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Mohamed said it was about harsher sentences and deterrence to make sure abusers do not continue to abuse.

“Its about educating men and women on why violence is unacceptable,” she said.

Mohamed said the recent crime stats show that not enough was being done to combat crime, especially concerning GBV.

“South Africa continues to display some of the most pervasive and extreme levels of gender-based violence. It pervades political, economic and social structures of society, cuts across all divides, and impacts all aspects of life,” she said.

“The total number of sexual offences has increased by 4.7%, with 9,556 rapes between July and September 2021. This is an increase of 7.1% from the previous year’s second quarter’s 8,922 cases. Over 13,000 of the 72,762 cases of assault reported were cases of domestic violence,” she added. Mohamed said it was unacceptable that these numbers continued to rise.

“The criminal justice system continues to fail victims and survivors of GBV. Without prosecution, there is no deterrent for perpetrators,” she said.

Mohamed said this was not just about the shocking numbers, but about the women and girls who have lost their lives so brutally and the families that are left devastated and traumatised.

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“As Amnesty International South Africa, we will continue to demand justice for victims of GBV and their families,” she said.

Mohamed said they were looking for a holistic solution without making women feel that they were at fault. MenEngage Africa said the Covid pandemic exacerbated gender-based violence against women and girls in Africa.

“The UN Orange campaign is very important in keeping the focus on this matter globally. As Sonke and MenEngage Africa, we support this initiative, cognisant of its importance in mobilising all of us in society to be engaged in all efforts to turn the tide against (GBVF) [gender-based violence and femicide],” the organisation said.

MenEngage Africa said the recent crime statistics indicated that sexually related violence including rape and GBVF was high.

– marizkac@citizen.co.za