Members of Advent Hope Seventh Day Adventist Church recently conducted an End it Now march from the Baha’i National Centre to Northgate Shopping Centre.
As Women’s Month comes to an end, the church decided to host such an event to further remind the community that abuse of any kind should not be tolerated.
Dressed in their black End it Now T-shirts, the congregants marched the streets singing songs.
Tsungayi Makota, leader of the event said every year in August, the church members hold such marches to encourage the end of violence against women and children.
She added that acts of either physical, emotional and sexual abuse should not be tolerated. On the day the members listened to talks hosted by various professionals.
“A panel discussion explained what and how abuse is handled. One of the speakers was a pharmacist who explained what is expected of a victim after they might be date raped,” said Makota.
Congregants were informed of the steps one should take after such an experience, what to expect from the doctor, and also what to expect from the police.
Makota said it was important to have the children there for the march as they were taught who to trust.
“Along with that, they were also told about the comfortable proximity between them and another person. They were educated on the type of conduct one should have as a child so they do not expose themselves to abuse. Should they find themselves in that scenario, they were given tips on how to handle it.”
She concluded that such marches are important to teach the children.
“The sooner they are taught the better. The statistics of child abuse in South Africa are too high and once a child is abused it stays with them for life. We must try to safeguard our children from such abuse.”
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