Salvation Army calls on government for help to stop violence against women

The Salvation Army has called on government to allocate massive resources to stop the scourge of violent attacks on women.

This includes giving substantial financial assistance to shelters for abused women, many of which are run by non-profit organisations.

PR Secretary of The Salvation Army’s Southern Africa region, Major Carin Holmes said, “Apart from the tragic deaths of the young women who have been highlighted in the media, we are shocked that Statistics SA has found that one in five (21 per cent) of partnered South African women experience physical violence. This is indicative of a brutality in society that has no respect for women and children.”

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Holmes noted that Statistics SA reports from its recent 2016 Demographic and Health Survey, released earlier this week, that 26 per cent of women experiencing physical abuse fall into the lowest wealth bracket.

“In other words, the poorest women experience the highest levels of physical abuse. This means that they lack the financial resources to break free from their abusive relationships. If we combine this with the financial pressures on many of our women’s shelters, few though they are, we have a recipe for this disaster to continue and the situation to worsen even further,” said Holmes.

The Salvation Army urgently appealed to men who abuse women to acknowledge that their actions are indicative of a serious problem, and to seek assistance in helping them deal with it.

“South African men need to take responsibility by recognising that something is fundamentally wrong with the models of manhood in our society. They need to engage in some deep soul searching about how they treat women. We need role models who respect and protect our women and who can be examples to their sons of how to do so.

“For as long as women suffer violence at the hands of men, all men must feel the discomfort that women experience in our communities and in their homes.”

She also called on all faith communities to actively teach the men among them to care for, respect, and protect women.