President Cyril Ramaphosa. Picture: The Presidency. President Cyril Ramaphosa says it is “a shame” that South Africa has the dubious distinction of having one of the world’s highest levels of violence against women and girls.
Ramaphosa made the remarks as the country and the world observe 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence (GBV) from 25 November to 10 December. “At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, I characterised violence against women as a second pandemic. But its impacts are arguably even more corrosive.
“Gender-based violence destroys families, has an economic cost, causes instability and fear for women and girls, and reproduces inter-generational trauma,” Ramaphosa said. Last month, the government classified GBVand femicide as a national disaster, recognising that dealing with this scourge demanded exceptional measures. Ramaphosa said this classification strengthens the mandates of the respective government departments, such as Social Development, Justice, Health, Police and Basic Education, to tackle GBVF.
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“The classification will allow for expanded access to shelters, safe spaces, psycho-social counselling and community-based prevention programmes. It will enable faster emergency resource allocation for survivor services, enhanced monitoring and reporting mechanisms, and strengthen oversight.” Ramaphosa said prevention is an integral part of the national anti-GBVF effort, and far greater efforts must be made to include men.
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