IT is a sad fact that the very place in which a woman should feel the safest – her home – is where she is at her most vulnerable.
This is according to a 2018 United Nations global study on gender-related killing of women and girls.
The study shows that a hefty 69% of all female homicide victims in Africa are women killed by their intimate partners or family members.
To address the scourge of domestic and gender-based violence by bringing it into the open and providing victims with access to information, The Warrior Project is a web-based portal providing victims access to information and resources.
Yvonne Wakefield, founder of the project, said one of the biggest problems is the culture of secrecy, which leads to a low awareness of the problem, the rights of victims and the resources available to help them.
‘The first step is to bring the topic out into the open, to have the conversations and to speak about our rights and what should be tolerated,’ she said.
She said domestic abuse and violence is a multi-faceted social problem which will take interventions at many levels to improve, but she reiterated that access to information and talking about the problem is an important first step in addressing the issue.
The Warrior Project, a South African initiative launched in time for Women’s Day, provides access to information and resources, including the police, a free legal helpline, counselling services and shelters.
It was initially released to SweepSouth’s network of 100 000 domestic workers and is now available for free to the public.
For more information, visit www.thewarriorproject.org.za.
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