The City of Ekurhuleni hosted a Men’s Dialogue about gender-based violence at the Civic Centre last Wednesday.
“The purpose of the dialogue is to raise awareness and support the 16 Days of Activism Against Women and Children,” says metro spokesman Themba Gadebe.
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He says the aim is to engage and reflect on the role men can play, to eradicate this scourge.
Mbuyiselo Botha, the commissioner of Gender Equality, was the guest speaker and Dr David Molapo gave the motivational talk.
The audience also had an opportunity to voice their testimonials, during which Johan Buitendag from Spartan shared his emotional story of how violence was passed down, from his grandfather to his own father.
“My greatest fear is to repeat the cycle,” Johan says.
Even though he would like a family one day, he realises that he still has many issues from his past to deal with, before he can enter a healthy relationship.
Ward councilor, David Thulani Simelane, also took to the microphone to encourage men to better themselves.
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“Before we can set a good example and teach our children, we must first teach ourselves,” he says.
Lindiwe Khonjelwayo, divisional head of the Women Directorate, announced that she was proud to be part of the forum and that it’s broadened her perspective, of her (previous) perception that violence can only be inflicted upon women.
She says she would like to see forums such as this one, on a quarterly basis in the near future.
