The Same Energy Used In The Fight Against Covid19, Must Be Used In The Fight Against Gender Based Violence .


By Phumzile Mavimbela

 
Beaten, broken, abused , raped and murdered . These are the present realities which women find themselves in, with the ultimate fear of being brutally murdered while the case is swept under underneath the carpet without  ever being solved.  One in three women have experience either physical or sexual violence in the world.  South Africa has battled crimes against Women and Children for years now. Intensifying the matter this year, has been the national lock-down. In the midst of the  Covid 19 Scourge, the country also faced a Gender Based Violence (GBV) Scourge. 

The lockdown  increased the surge of Gender Based Violence and femicide related cases. Over the past weeks President Cyril Ramaphosa introduced  three key Bill relating to Gender Based Violence . He stated that the introduction of these Bills, is an attempt to honour the promise they made to the protesters last year and to all the women of this country.

"The three amendment Bills are designed to fill the gaps that allow some perpetrators of these crimes to evade justice and to give full effect to the rights of our country’s women and children.The sad reality is that many survivors of gender-based violence have lost faith in the criminal justice system. Difficulties in obtaining protection orders, lax bail condition for suspects, police not taking domestic violence complaints seriously and inappropriate sentences have contributed to an environment of cynicism and mistrust.These Bills, once finalised, will help to restore the confidence of our country’s women that the law is indeed there to protect them". 

The call to not only declare GBV  as a pandemic but to put measures in place that will address this issue is one of the topics which been raised by women across the country. Speaking to the  Director of One Strong Voice foundation, a non -profit organisation aimed at tackling gender based violence and femicide Brian Sithole,he expressed great concerns about how the government and the justice system is handling the matter at hand .
 
Brian Sithole Director of One Strong Voice Foundation
 

 
"I acknowledge the attempts made by our President, however  I still believe it is not enough"

The current attempts demonstrated by the government seem to address what can be referred to as the fruits and not the root cause . The violence , murder, rape, harassment and other despicable issues are merely fruits and not the roots . Sithole believes that if we are ever  to flatten the curve of these inhumane crimes  we must consider grooming and reeducating the boy child  

The issue of gender based violence and femicide does not start where people see it, because it has a deeper root cause.  Such as childhood trauma, male and female power struggles and the role of men in socio-economic matters.  

So in tackling this issue the government will need to look into empowering the boy child. Through various methods that will ensure that by the time he grows up the way he views a women is different from how society has taught men  to look at women today.  A boy child needs to be educated that it is okay for a women to have money more than him, that a woman is allowed to be independent and also a boy child needs to be reintroduced to the  changing roles of femininity and masculinity in social contexts. Currently there are many programs targeted at grooming a girl child on child abuse and raising their voices when ever violated. However more still needs to be done in teaching a girl child that its okay to seek for help when violated. We still need safe spaces that will protect victims of abuse.  
 
 Also the government needs to look into the following measures :

Curriculum centered around GBV education 
The department of Education must consider  creating and introducing a subject that focuses  on education and raising awareness about Gender Based Violence and possible causes in early childhood development.

Educational programs 
 Education television content  "Growing up we used to watch educational programmes that educated on bullying and other social matters such as The Soul Buddies and Soul City" 
Even in these trying times where young people spend most of their time watching television and streaming movies online . The government must look into creating and allocated budget for shows, dramas, edutainment show and movies that will reiterate and educate on issues centered around Gender Based Violence. 

Sithole also added  that when our Country  was exposed to the global war being Covid19 . The government place measures that assured that the local community is reeducated about hygiene measures and protocols. Though hygiene measures come almost as a natural instinct, to ensure that people protected themselves against the virus the government had to put an effort in ensuring that awareness was raised through television, radio, billboards and other platforms that ensured the message is echoed and amplified successfully. 
"The effort used to fight the corona virus pandemic is the same effort that needs to be put in in fighting  gender based violence"
 
Police competency
The competency of the South African Police Service (SAPS) needs to re -assessed . "As we were reeducated on how to wash our hands in the Covid war, they need to be retaught on how to handle GBV cases in this war".
As such Sithole also suggests that  the entire SAPS as an organisation needs to be taken through refresher courses to learn and also brain storm new methods of investigating and solving crime. 
 
We live in the days of the fourth Industrial Revolution which has changed how our view of everyday normality . As such even the justice department needs to looking into adapting to the new technologies fortuned by the fourth Industrial Revolution "We cant have  a Police Laboratory taking  four to eight weeks on DNA tests. That process sets a backlog on the crime investigation and as such  the process of serving justice to victims is prolonged in cases needing DNA as evidence"

To conclude the matter he said "Let public  departments serve without fear, favor and prejudice the purpose of the SAPS is to serve and protect the community ".   One Strong Voice Foundation  a foundation aimed at tackling GBV related issues and giving victims a safe space to raise their voices will be having its official Launch on the 27th of November 2020.

   
 

Article Tags

GBV

Crime

Gender Based Violence

Femicide

Violence Against Women and Children

Cancel

    Most Read