As 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children Campaign kicks off on Monday, there are nagging questions on whether South Africa is achieving the goals set out to eradicate gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF).
This year’s campaign, according to the government, has the theme: “30 Years of Advancing Collective Action to End Violence Against Women and Children” and aims to address the “root causes of GBVF, promoting positive masculinity, promoting gender equity, and creating economic opportunities for women and children”.
But the government needs to be frank about how much has been achieved in the past 30 years.
Startling findings from the first South African National Gender-Based Violence Study undertaken by the Human Sciences Research Council reveal just how far the country has to go to ensure that women and children can feel safe in their homes and on the streets.
The study revealed that 7.3 million women, aged 18 years and older, in this country have experienced physical violence in their lifetime. An estimated 2.1 million women nationally had experienced sexual violence in their lifetime. The data, the researchers noted, showed “deeply ingrained gender norms, with strong cultural reinforcement of traditional gender roles and a troubling acceptance of male aggression and dominance”.
The men surveyed as part of the study also justified violence in some circumstances. These findings highlight the endemic nature of GBVF, suggesting that campaigns like the 16 Days of Activism, while noble, may not significantly change the attitudes of perpetrators.
The whole-of-society approach that is needed to tackle GBVF requires the government to work with communities across the country to empower women and to show would-be perpetrators the error of their ways. Citizens, too, need to play their part and speak up against violence when they are aware of it. If young boys continue to grow up in homes where they witness male aggression and violence, the cycle of GBVF will not be broken.