Sonke Gender Justice

News Category: Press Releases

  • Wits School of Public Health awarded Innovation Grant from DFID-funded global research and innovation programme

    Sonke Gender Justice welcomes the news that we and our partner, the Wits School of Public Health, have just been awarded one of the Innovation Grants from the DFID*-funded “What Works to Prevent Violence Against Women and Girls” global research and innovation programme.

    The programme will support 18 projects, in 16 countries across Asia, Africa and the Middle East and hopes to reach over 5.3 million people.

    These 18 projects will work with women, men, communities and governments, to build an environment where women are valued and treated as equals, and where all people reject the use of violence, in order to prevent violence against women and girls from occurring.

    Through the project “Refinement and testing of a multi-level intervention for preventing men’s use of violence in urban South Africa,” Sonke’s gender-transformative “One Man Can (OMC)” campaign, which engages men and boys to challenge traditional models of manhood, will be tested and enhanced using a cluster randomised controlled trial design in Diepsloot, Johannesburg.

    “The project will deepen the field by building Southern African capacity to conduct rigorous formative and evaluation research,” says one of Sonke’s directors, Angelica Pino, “and will deliver a multi-level anti-violence against women and girls (VAWG) model.”

    A total of ten innovation grantees (and eight research grantees) were selected from an initial pool of over 800 pre-applications.

    *The Department for International Development (DFID) leads the UK’s work to end extreme poverty. They’re “ending the need for aid by creating jobs, unlocking the potential of girls and women and helping to save lives when humanitarian emergencies hit.”

    Contact

    Read more

  • Civil society takes to the streets to demand a National Strategic Plan to end gender-based violence

    NO MORE empty promises!

    In a series of coordinated actions, thousands of South Africans will take to the streets to demand action from a government that has not prioritized the rape, battery and assault of thousands of its citizens each year. They are challenging government to live up to its promises to develop and fully fund a National Strategic Plan on Gender-Based Violence (GBV).

    More than 30 civil society organizations are working together to lead marches to the Gauteng Legislature in Johannesburg and the Eastern Cape Legislature in Bhisho on 25 November, and to Parliament in Cape Town on 27 November.

    Meanwhile this past Friday, 21 November, Minister of Women in the Presidency Susan Shabangu kicked off the government’s “16 Days of Activism on Violence Against Women and Children,” by asking Members of Parliament to light candles and to sign a pledge displayed on a large banner. This “pledge” has no budget, no legal enforcement mechanisms and no clear roadmap. In other words, the MPs’ pledge is symbolic and unlikely to have any real impact on the lives of victims and survivors.

    In her speech to Parliament on Friday, Minister Shabangu announced that the Ministry of Women would conduct provincial dialogues in order to better understand the causes and consequences of poverty and inequality, to develop a research agenda and to inform the National Strategic Plan on Gender- Based Violence.

    While civic groups welcome this public re-commitment to the currently stalled and ill-defined NSP process, it is simply not enough. Civil society groups are demanding a National Strategic Plan that (a) is fully costed and commits significant new resources; (b) is developed through an open, inclusive and consultative process and (c) creates real accountability by reviving and reconstituting the moribund National Gender-Based Violence Council.

    Over the last twenty years South Africa has adopted impressive laws and policies to address gender- based violence. Yet, because of poor implementation, these laws have made very little difference. Police are not trained or resourced to follow through on their legal obligations to victims and survivors, the NPA’s specialized Sexual Offences Courts are woefully underfunded and struggling to get off the ground and civil society organizations, which provide vital support services to victims, are closing their doors due to lack of funding.

    As Mara Glennie, Executive Director of TEARS, one of the participating organisations in this week’s actions, explains: “NGOs are frequently being asked to carry out work in responding to gender-based violence that is the responsibility of the state. The state has essentially outsourced many essential statutory services to NGOs but without funding them to do so.”

    According to a recent study by KPMG, gender-based violence costs South Africa up to 42 billion rands a year – roughly one percent of the country’s GDP. Yet, as research from the UK shows, for every £1 spent on prevention, the country stands to save £6 on response services. In other words, the state can’t afford not to invest in a more comprehensive strategic response to GBV.

    Most importantly however, as Charlene May, at the Legal Resources Centre notes, “Government has a Constitutional obligation to address gender-based violence in a strategic, coordinated and funded manner. Women in South Africa’s Constitutional rights to dignity, equality and freedom from violence will continue to be violated as long as there is no national strategic plan to address gender-based violence.”

    This statement is co-signed by the following organizations:

    Budget and Expenditure Monitoring Forum (BEMF); Centre for the Study of AIDS and Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria; Community Law Centre, University of the Western Cape; Ecumenical Service for Socio-Economic Transformation (ESSET); Gender Links; Greater Rape Intervention Programme (GRIP); Legal Resources Centre; Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders (MSF); NACOSA; New World Foundation; People Opposing Women Abuse (POWA); Pietermaritzburg Agency for Community Social Action (PACSA); Project Empower; Rape Crisis Centre—Port Elizabeth; Section 27; Sisonke; Slutwalk; Sonke Gender Justice; SWEAT; TEARS Foundation; Thohoyandou Victim Empowerment Programm (TVEP); Treatment Action Campaign, Tshwaranang Legal Advocacy Centre

    Media Contacts

    For the marches

    Gauteng/Joburg (25 November):

    Eastern Cape/Bhiso action (25 November):

    Western Cape/Cape Town action (27 November):

    For solidarity actions

  • Alarming anti-feminist rhetoric at Ministry of Women

    Yesterday the Ministry of Women in the Presidency held a meeting in Lakefield to announce their plans for the international 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children campaign. While civil society was invited to a “consultation,” we arrived to find a plan for 16 Days that was already finalised and approved by Cabinet. This plan will focus on engaging men to stand up and support the campaign against violence by saying, “Count Me In.”

    We acknowledge and support the need to engage men in the fight against gender-based violence and applaud the Ministry’s desire to broaden the movement as widely as possible. Unfortunately, the Ministry’s language in launching this campaign reinforced a range of patriarchal ideas that we, as the women’s movement and organisations that support a gender-equal society, have fought against for years.

    Minister Shabangu opened the session explaining her desire to focus on mobilising men during these 16 Days because, “Men are supposed to be protectors of society. Men are supposed to be protectors of families. We need to bring back these protectors of society. We need to mobilise our protectors.” She went on to say that women cannot be victims any more and need to “get their confidence back.”

    As Nandi Msezani from ESSET expressed directly to the Minister, “We need to be aware of the language used as it comes from a very patriarchal standpoint. Men need to protect us? With language such as this, women are being infantilized and moving the women’s movement backwards.” She also went on to note “What about women in same-sex relationships? LGBTI individuals? Are we not women too?”

    The Minister then invited Mpumalanga Chief Moses Mahlangu to share his comments. The Chief spoke passionately about his belief that women must be submissive to their husbands. Princess Dineo, from the Northwest Province, then stood up to tell us that feminism is un-African and encouraged the Minister to cut all funds for centres for abused women and children, as they should be dealing with these issues at home. Both speakers received nods from the Minister on the dais and applause from the audience. Others followed, decrying women’s abuse of men and women’s aggression as the biggest challenges. These were deeply discriminatory statements that continue to fuel the very gender-based violence that the meeting sought to address.

    The Minister closed the opening session noting the diversity of opinions expressed and that we must value diversity as it is protected in the South African Constitution. Although diversity should be respected, the Minister has an obligation to ensure that diverse views expressed at an official government event do not promote the violation of rights of women and children. Diversity, in other words, cannot be upheld above the right to equality.

    In the midst of an epidemic of gender-based violence, unparalleled almost anywhere else in the world, in a moment when we are desperate for leadership, for vision and strategy, we instead are delivered destructive discourse and no clear roadmap for progress. Participating civil society organisations that have been fighting for gender-equality, safety and security for over 20 years, were highly disappointed that what should have been a safe space to develop positive, progressive actions for women’s rights, was left open and unprotected by the Department of Women for highly negative and oppressive input from traditionally conservative institutions and individuals.

    This concerns us as activists. Patriarchy has been brought back to the mainstream and seems to be supported, if not promoted by the State agenda, ironically, through a campaign that is designed to highlight the scourge of patriarchal violence. Patriarchy is not an abstraction or a theoretical concern as stated by the Minister. It directly feeds our epidemic of sexual and intimate partner violence. A South African women murdered by an intimate partner every 8 hours is not an abstraction. Tens of thousands of brutal rapes per year are not theoretical concerns.

    Activists at the meeting also reminded Minister Shabangu of the Department’s previous commitments on designing a national strategic plan on gender-based violence. Jabu Tugwana of People Opposing Women Abuse, read a brief statement, from 13 organizations from across the country, demanding the resumption of the National Strategic Plan process. But we received no response, no answers on the status of the National Council on Gender-Based Violence, which has been “under review” for 6 months. We received no public commitment on the National Strategic Plan, which will be essential in stemming our country’s epidemic of violence.

    We wish to state that our presence at the meeting should in no way be inferred to mean that we approve of the 16 Days Campaign or the strategy employed by the Ministry. The meeting in no way reflected the spirit of consultative engagement. We, therefore, call on all sectors of South African society to challenge this neo-patriarchal framing, and to demand a plan from government.

    To this end, we will host a National Day of Action on 25 November to launch our own 16 Days campaign to demand a national plan to end gender-based violence from government. Join us by signing this petition http://tinyurl.com/gbvplan and by coming out to participate in actions nation wide demanding an NSP on 25 November.

    Signed by:

    • Centre for Study of Violence and Reconciliation (CSVR)
    • Eastern Cape Rape Crisis
    • Ecumenical Service for Socio-Economic Transformation (ESSET) Justice and Women
    • NACOSA
    • Sonke Gender Justice
    • People Opposing Women Abuse (POWA)
    • Project Empower
    • Thohoyandou Victim Empowerment Programme (TVEP) Tswaranang Legal Advice Centre

    ###

    For media inquiries, please contact:

    Jabu Tugwana POWA jabu@powa.co.za 083 400 4509

    Nondumiso Nsibande Tshwaranang Legal Advice Centre nondumiso@tlac.org.za
    011 403 4267

    Katie Bolbach
    Sonke Gender Justice katie@genderjustice.org.za 011 339 3589

  • 2nd MenEngage Global Symposium calls for men and boys’ involvement in gender equality process

    New Delhi: Global efforts to attain gender equality will remain unfulfilled unless men and boys become more fully engaged in the process, is one of the key messages emerging from a major international conference being held in New Delhi this week.

    The Symposium is timely, as it concerns a number of issues that have recently been making headlines all over the world. The World Health Organization states that one in three women throughout the world will experience physical and/or sexual violence by a partner or sexual violence by a non-partner. Women also face significant pay disparities between genders, which frequently leave women trapped in poverty.

    Dr. Abhijit Das, Director, Centre for Health and Social Justice (CHSJ), the host country partner, summed up the aspiration of the 2nd Global Symposium.

    “Today, more than ever before there is both an urgency as well as an imperative for men to not just engage quietly when a crisis occurs but all the time, as publicly and as collectively as possible to bring about a critical shift in the public perception of men.

    “The time has come for a more caring male persona to assert itself, and for a global movement to emerge which will mainstream men’s role in gender issues through specific planning and policy initiatives.”

    Over 1000 eminent researchers, practitioners, advocates, activists and representatives from governments and donors from more than 90 countries are taking part in the 2nd MenEngage Global Symposium, which aims to explore how changing notions of masculinity can encourage greater involvement by men and boys in pursuit of gender equality, to the benefit of women and girls, and men and boys themselves.

    “Gender has for far too long been defined as a ‘women’s issue’ and expressed in ways that suggest that for women to experience gains and improvements in gender related indicators – whether that’s in health or equality or employment rights – somehow men must lose theirs,” said Dean Peacock, Director of Sonke Gender Justice, founding member and co-chair of the MenEngage alliance of 600 organisations.

    “If we are to achieve true gender equality, if we want to accelerate the pace of change, then we have to involve men. Engaging men and boys is an important strategy in advancing women’s rights and empowerment, resulting in more gender equitable societies which benefit the interests of women and girls and men and boys.”

    Delegates at the Symposium are generally in agreement that the years of research and practical field work have provided ample evidence of which interventions work. The challenge now is to take these initiatives to scale, in a global movement for change.

    “Over the past 20 years we have learned a lot about ways to effectively engage men and boys to redefine notions of masculinity and connect them up to ways of ending violence and promoting equality that are very effective,” said Andrew Levack, Promundo’s Deputy Director, US Programs.

    “In order to create broader social change we have to move this from individualised interventions to broader social movements and global movements about ways men can fully realise their potential in making the world a better place.”

    A range of thematic tracks will be examined during the four day meeting, including gender violence; sexuality and identity; social justice, peace building and inclusion; the role that gender plays in employment and poverty; and how changing notions of masculinity inform relationships, emotions and care-giving.

    “The symposium also calls attention to gender inequalities among men, such as on the basis of race, class, age or sexual orientation and gender identity (gay, bisexual, transgender or queer)” adds Joni van de Sand, Co-Coordinator of the MenEngage Global Alliance. “What we (aim to) do is address the patriarchal power and privileges that some men have over others – and stimulate men to step up, for a world that is equal and just – for everyone.”

    “Women account for 45% of the world’s workplace and those in work, on average earn between 10- 30% less than men,” said Gary Barker, International Director of Promundo, and Co-chair of the MenEngage Alliance.

    “We cannot reduce or eliminate women’s poverty without involving men. Unless we can get men to support women’s full entry into the workplace by taking on their fair share of care work within the family, we are not going to achieve the illusory 50% share in terms of economic empowerment that women deserve.”

    Governments can also play their part in improving women’s economic equality by introducing or increasing paid paternity leave, subsidised child care close to the workplace and incentives to encourage men to make greater contributions to their households.

    The Symposium is expected to result in the release of a ‘Delhi Call to Action’, which will provide a roadmap to address the persisting gaps in addressing men’s roles in ensuring gender equality. It comes five years after the First Global Symposium, which was held in Rio de Janeiro in 2009.

    ​Press Conference

    11th November, 2014

    12pm till 2:30pm

    Foreign Correspondents Club AB-19 Mathura Road
    Pragati Maidan
    7-gate
    New Delhi

    The press conference will address the significance of the 2nd MenEngage Global Symposium and its agenda, as well as discuss expected outcomes.

    Sonke’s Executive Director and Co-chair of the MenEngage Alliance Dean Peacock and Gary Barker, Founder and International Director of Promundo and Co-chair of the MenEngage Alliance, will speak about MenEngage and the 2nd Global Symposium that is being held in Delhi.

    The following panellists will speak on the subjects listed below at the press conference:

    Kumi Naidoo, Greenpeace: on how working with men and boys is central to environmental concerns

    Abhijit Das, Director of the Centre for Health and Social Justice: on how the Delhi symposium will give new direction to the gender equality movement; and examine issues around the western media’s concept of the Indian male and the negative image created by the December 12 gang rape.

    Sheepa Hafiza, BRAC: on why BRAC works with men; and the messages from its experience on working with men for the rest of the development sector.

    Shereen Ek Feki, journalist: on her insights as a student of sexuality and politics in the Arab world.

    Frederika Meijer, UNFPA: on the organisation’s growing commitment to engage men on gender-based violence (GBV).

    Michael Flood, Professor at the University of Wollongong: on his experience of running a centre for men and masculinities; the global trends around the issues of men and masculinities; and the key differences in addressing masculinities between the global north and the global south.

    Please RSVP for the press conference to czerina@genderjustice.org.za

    View the new MenEngage film which was just premiered at the symposium today: http://menengage.org/film/

    View the symposium website here: http://www.menengagedilli2014.net/

    Journalists who would like to attend the symposium in Delhi should please email czerina@genderjustice.org.za

    Media Contact​s

    Dean Peacock
    Sonke Gender Justice – Executive Director MenEngage Global Co-Chair dean@genderjustice.org.za

    Czerina Patel
    Sonke Gender Justice – Communications czerina@genderjustice.org.za

  • As the murder case of David Olyn continues in Ceres, activists ask if police are responding properly to LGBTI crimes

    Sonke Gender Justice, the Witzenburg Rural Development Centre, other civil society organisations, and the gay and lesbian community in Ceres will once again make themselves seen and heard outside the Ceres Magistrate Court this Thursday, October 16, 2014 when the case of David Olyn, who was brutally raped and murdered on the 22nd March 2014, will be called following numerous postponements due to an incomplete investigation on the part of local police. Since March the activists have been maintaining a visible presence each time this case has come to court to show support and solidarity for the Olyn family, and also to put pressure on police, government and judicial authorities to properly prosecute crimes against LGBT people in the area.

    For several months, the Olyn family, the accused Christo Oncker, and the wider community have been unsure whether the case would proceed to trial or would be dropped due to significant failure on the part of the South African Police Services (SAPS) to collect evidence expediently and to prioritise Olyn’s murder case.

    “We are concerned about the police’s weak response to crimes against LGBTI people in Ceres,” says Lucinda van den Heever, Sonke’s Specialist on LGTBI rights, “The police have repeatedly failed to make arrests and collect sufficient evidence around other LGBTI murders there. At least one recent LGBTI murder case did not even make it to court. The police and prosecutors in Ceres need to be reminded of Section 9 of South Africa’s Constitution which states that everyone has the right to equal protection and benefit of the law.”

    The Ceres community, with support from Sonke Gender Justice and the Witzenburg Rural Development Centre, have repeatedly expressed their dissatisfaction over poor police responses to crime and ineffective service delivery since Olyn was murdered, demanding that more be done to prevent gender-based violence and LGBTI hate-crimes.

    “While the motive for David’s murder is still to be discovered by the courts, the fact is that David was an openly gay man and he was raped before he was murdered,” says van den Heever, “When the police fail to properly respond to crimes like these, they feed into homophobia and the vulnerable situation that many LGBTI persons in South Africa find themselves in.”

    Sonke and our partners have conducted numerous trainings and workshops in Ceres since Olyn’s murder to build awareness and solidarity around LGBTI issues and citizens. Van den Heever says that activists and LGBTI organisations have been reporting numerous hate crimes against LGBTI persons across South Africa over the last few years, including recently the brutal rape and murder of a young lesbian woman, Gift Makau, in Ventersdorp, and the murder of Duduzile Zozo, a young lesbian woman in Erkurheleni, Johannesburg.

    No South African, whether a woman, a gay person, a child, or someone living in poverty should live in fear or should feel like the police will not protect them or represent justice where they live. Van den Heever says that the police have a responsibility to ensure the safety of all people and to properly investigate cases so that justice can be served and perpetrators of gender-based violence are held to account by the police and the courts.

    Sonke strongly condemns homophobic attitudes of both citizens and police, and notes that such attitudes are a strong contributor to violence against LGBTI people in South Africa. We repeat previous urgent calls for the South African government to implement a national strategic plan to combat gender-based violence that will seek to both prevent violence and improve the response of the courts and the police.

    We hope that the case of David Olyn’s murder will not be further delayed and that on Thursday the police will announce that their investigation is complete, and that the trial may finally begin.

    Media Contacts

    • Lucinda van den Heever – Sonke Gender Justice – lucina@genderjustice.org.za
    • Naomi Thomas – Witzenburg Rural Development Centre – 074 354 4756

    Details of mobilisation

    Sonke Gender Justice and Witzenburg Rural Development will be holding a demonstration in front of the Ceres Magistrate Court to demand Justice for David Olyn and to highlight the slow service delivery of government and police.

    • Date: Thursday, 16 October, 2014
    • Time: 8:30am – 11:30am

  • Community social dialogue in Ventersdorp, North West Province on the case of Disebo Makau

    Sunday 5 October at Tshing location, Ext 2 Community Hall, from 12pm-5pm.

    Disebo Gift Owen Makau, a 24 year-old lesbian was found half naked and strangled on 18 September, 2014 in Ventersdorp. She had a wire around her neck with an open house pipe pushed down her throat.

    In response to this heinous hate crime, Iranti-org, the Legal Resources Centre and Sonke Gender Justice will be hosting a Social Dialogue for members of civil society, representatives from local government, religious organisations, traditional leaders, the SAPS and the LGBTI community from Ventersdorp, Klerksdorp, Rustenburg, Mafikeng and Potchefstroom. This precedes the planned court date for this case, on Monday 6 October at the Ventersdorp Magistrates Court.

    The purpose of this forum is to raise public awareness of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) and have an open and frank discussion about issues of safety and security of the LGBTI community, discuss the norms and values of ‘family’, masculinities, gender norms and violence. It also seeks to promote visibility and transparency of the issues at hand, which in itself can be educational and promote diversity. Various invited organisations will present their work and how they can support the rights of the LGBTI community in Ventersdorp and other locations in the North West Province.

    CONTACT

    • Kokeletso Legoete of Iranti-org – legoetek@gmail.com

    • Carien van der Linde of the Legal Resources Centre (LRC) – carien@lrc.org.za or (011) 838 6001

    • Mzwakhe Khumalo of Sonke Gender Justice – mzwakhe@genderjustice.org.za or (011) 339 3589

    MORE

    www.enca.com/media/video/suspect-arrested-murder-ventersdorp-lesbian-woman

    SUNDAY’S PROGRAMME

    Community Social Dialogue on the protection of the LGBTI community in Ventersdorp:

    12:00 Welcome
    12:10 Video Screening (hate crime, human rights violations)
    12:20 Words from the Makau family
    12:35 Hate crimes documentations and reporting
    12:50 LGBTI issues
    13:05 Transgender and Intersex Africa
    13:20 LGBTI issues identified by the Ventersdorp community
    13:30 South African Police Services
    13:50 National Task Team/ Rapid response team
    14:15 Municipality social conditions on safety and security in Ventersdorp
    14:45 Sonke Gender Justice
    15:00 Legal Resources Centre
    15:15 Parents Friends and families of the South African Queer
    15:30 South African Council of Churches
    15:45 Community Police Forum
    16:00 Questions and Answers (Discussions)

    About IRANTI-ORG

    Iranti-Org is an African visual media organisation established in 2012. It works within a human rights framework to raise issues of sexual orientation and gender identities. To date, Iranti-org has documented hate crimes and human rights violations in the Northern Cape, Limpopo and Gauteng provinces. Iranti-org has also set up the African Queer Media Makers Network, which seeks to build the media making capacity of LGBTI activists in southern Africa.

    www.iranti-org.co.za

    About LRC

    The Legal Resources Centre is the largest public interest law firm in South Africa. Since 1979, the LRC has worked to promote, protect and advance human rights and democracy in the country.

    www.lrc.org.za

    About SONKE GENDER JUSTICE

    Sonke Gender Justice is a non-partisan, non-profit organisation, established in 2006. Today, Sonke has established a growing presence on the African continent and plays an active role internationally. Sonke works to create the change necessary for men, women, young people and children to enjoy equitable, healthy and happy relationships that contribute to the development of just and democratic societies. Sonke pursues this goal across Southern Africa by using a human rights framework to build the capacity of government, civil society organisations and citizens to achieve gender equality, prevent gender-based violence and reduce the spread of HIV and the impact of AIDS.

  • African civil society celebrates continued recognition of sexual orientation and gender identity at UN Human Rights Council

    African Men for Sexual Health and Rights [AMSHeR], the Coalition of African Lesbians [CAL], and the Demand Accountability SA Campaign recognise and celebrate the adoption of a resolution, led by Chile, Uruguay, Colombia and Brazil – on “Human Rights, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity” resolution [A/HRC/27/L27 Rev.1] by the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva on 26th September 2014.

    25 States, including South Africa, voted in favour of the resolution, 14 States voted against it, and 7 States abstained from voting. One State was absent during the vote. The resolution requests ‘the High Commissioner to update the report [A/HRC/19/41] with a view to sharing good practices and ways to overcome violence and discrimination, in application of existing international human rights law and standards, and to present it to the Human Rights Council at its twenty-ninth session’.

    This report will ensure that the issues are brought into the main plenary session of the Human Rights Council and that a formal dialogue is held on these issues. The need to sustain and strengthen dialogue on sexuality and gender related rights is key to advancing rights and so the report is a welcome product that will contribute to such dialogue.

    In 2011 South Africa, with co-sponsorship from Brazil and Norway, led a resolution [17/19] on Human Rights, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity which was adopted at the Council in June 2011. Its adoption led to the first official United Nations report [A/HRC/19/41] titled Report of the HC – Study documenting discriminatory laws and practices and acts of violence against individuals based on their sexual orientation and gender identity by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. This resolution was affirmed in a vote of 23 to 19 States, with three abstentions, indicating their recognition of sexual orientation and gender identity as a human rights issue and denouncing violence and discrimination on these grounds.

    More than three years after Resolution 17/19, the oppression of people of non-conforming sexual orientation and gender identity and expression has worsened all over world. In Africa, intolerance against people who engage in same sex relations, those who are gender non-conforming, intersex people and those who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans-diverse has manifested in the form of retrogressive legislation that seeks to limit the rights and freedoms of many African people. Such legislation has been introduced in Nigeria and Uganda and similar moves are underway in Gambia and Chad to do the same.

    Phillipa Tucker of AIDS Accountability International asserted that states have an obligation to protect all rights for all people and cannot allow violence and discrimination against anyone to be justified or excused. Other activists slated the use of religion and tradition to deny all people the right to peace and safety: “We will not accept states imposing their own religious beliefs on others. We insist on the rights of everyone to freedom of belief and religion and at the same time will not sit back and watch states impose the religious beliefs on those who hold opposing beliefs,” said Ingrid Lynch from the Triangle Project.

    Kene Esom of AMSHeR stated that “the levels of violence and discrimination in Africa are of particular concern to our organisations and African states must fulfil their obligations to stop all forms of violence and this includes violence based on real or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity and expression. In April this year, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights adopted the first ever resolution focussed on sexual orientation and gender identity within the African human rights system calling on states to end the violence. This resolution and the resolution adopted [today] at the Human Rights Council all contribute to a shift in the culture of impunity when it comes to the human rights of people who are non-conforming in terms of sexual orientation and gender identity”.

    The recent vote by African states included a yes vote from South Africa, four abstentions from Burkina Faso, Congo, Namibia and Sierra Leone; with Algeria, Botswana, Cote D’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Gabon and Kenya all voting against the resolution. In a not-unexpected backlash, the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), represented by Pakistan, as well as Bahrain, Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Malaysia, Namibia, Sierra Leone, South Sudan and the United Arab Emirates, proposed amendments to the resolution, intended to weaken the provisions of the resolution and to remove direct reference to sexual orientation and gender identity. Namibia withdrew their co-sponsorship of these troubling proposed amendments before they came to the vote. The amendments were all defeated.

    “Collectively, the defeat of the proposed amendments, the growing number of abstentions since June 2011 and the explanation of the vote by Botswana are all seen as small steps forward. These shifts are understood to come out of strengthening behind the scenes and more public dialogue emerging from, as an example, the Universal Periodic Review [UPR] of all states as well as strong and effective campaigning by civil society in these countries and in intergovernmental spaces” was the view of Sally Shackleton from the Sex Workers Education and Advocacy Taskforce [SWEAT]. “We must collectively now invest more heavily and responsibly in national level organising and building civil society capability to step up and sustain the work at the national level, even as we intensify our work within the international human rights system,” said Shackelton.

    Activists in Africa now look forward to the South African government, through the Department of International Relations and Cooperation [DIRCO], hosting the long awaited seminar ‘Ending Violence based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression in Africa’. This Regional Seminar is a critical step in creating space for dialogue on rights related to sexual orientation and gender identity in the African region. South Africa must fulfil its commitment in this regard.

    Members of the Demand Accountability Campaign:

    1. AIDS Accountability International
    2. Access Chapter 2
    3. African Men for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights
    4. African Sex Workers Association
    5. Coalition of African Lesbians
    6. Durban Gay and Lesbian Centre
    7. Forum for the Empowerment of Women
    8. Gay and Lesbian Memory in Action
    9. One in Nine Campaign
    10. People Opposing Women Abuse
    11. Sex Workers Education and Advocacy Taskforce
    12. Sonke Gender Justice
    13. South African National AIDS Council – Civil Society Forum
    14. Triangle Project

    For comments please contact:

    • Kene Esom African – Men for Sexual Health & Rights [AMSHeR] kene@amsher.net Tel: +27-11 242 6801
    • Dawn Cavanagh – Coalition of African Lesbians [CAL] dawn@cal.org.za Tel: +27 71 104 1718
    • Lucinda van den Heever – Sonke Gender Justice lucinda@genderjustice.org.za Tel: +27-21-423 7088

  • Sonke urgently calls on South Africa to vote YES on UN resolution to address discrimination and violence against LGBTI and gender nonconforming people

    Sonke Gender Justice joins nearly a 100 civil society organisations calling on DIRCO Minister Nkoana-Mashabane to instruct a YES vote today in support of the Resolution on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression (#SOGI, and to follow through with South Africa’s commitments to convene a Regional Seminar on Ending Violence Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in Africa as committed to more than a year ago. South Africa needs to lead on this as an African country with a constitution that promotes non-discrimination, tolerance and equality. LGBTI and gender nonconforming people throughout Africa, especially those being persecuted or having their sexual and gender identity criminalised, urgently need South Africa’s leadership on this!

    We also ask our friends to please tweet and share on social media:

    SA #VoteYESForSOGI to uphold our Constitutional commitment to #humanrights. The world is watching you! @PresidencyZA @ClaysonMonyela #DIRCO

    Here is the letter that was sent to the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) by dozens of civil society organisations :

    MONDAY 22 SEPTEMBER 2014

    Johannesburg, South Africa
    The Minister
    International Relations and Co-operation
    Pretoria
    South Africa
    ATTENTION: Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane

    Dear Minister

    RE: The Human Rights Council 27TH SESSION, September 2014:

    Resolution: Human Rights, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity [A/HRC/27/L27]

    On behalf of the undersigned organisations, we write to draw your urgent attention to Resolution A/HRC/27/L27 tabled at the Human Rights Council on Thursday 18 September by Chile, Uruguay, Colombia and Brazil and to urge and insist you act in keeping with your human rights obligations in this regard by voting YES to the Resolution in its current tabled version. The operational paragraphs call for a minimum of a follow up report to the Report of the High Commissioner of November 2011 on Violence and Discrimination on the basis of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and for follow up reports every two years.

    As you know, this is, more than three years later, a follow up to 17/19 led by South Africa, and is important as a way to keep dialogue at the Human Rights Council sustained and to ensure that the issue does not fall off the agenda of the Council. Here on the African continent, many of our fellow activists, colleagues and fellow human rights defenders view this Resolution as a way to draw the attention of states to an issue that forces many into an unnecessary and unjust confrontation with the law and criminalises sex between consenting adults with a wide range of consequences for our right to development.

    We are disappointed that your Ministry has recently repeatedly failed to represent the position of South Africa on this issue with the same commitment and determination it did in 2011. This disappointment has been based on your repeated failure to keep your commitment and word on the issue of the Regional Seminar coupled with a refusal to respond to numerous requests for information on plans for the hosting of the Regional Seminar. We still look forward to and to expect South Africa to continue principled leadership on this matter in a range of intergovernmental processes internationally and to demonstrate accountability to the principles of the Constitution as well as respect for the right to development framework which includes transparency, accountability and participation.

    We remind you and call your attention to your obligation to promote the respect for the human rights of all people, including on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity and expression, and to use the opportunity afforded by your own leadership at the Human Rights Council on this issue in the past to begin to confront violence and discrimination targeted at this part of the community.

    Minister, we further call your attention to an oral amendment which is expected from the floor during the vote on this Resolution A/HRC/27/L27. Such a proposed amendment would call for the removal from 27/L27 all language on sexual orientation and gender identity and the replacement with language equal or roughly equal to “race, colour, sex, language, religion or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status”. Our organisations are all committed to and passionate about and have a track record in local and international work in applying an analysis that includes multiple forms of discrimination and intersectional analyses. In 2013, we mobilised support for the 10 May Statement which asserted the need for any follow up resolution on sexual orientation and gender identity to use an intersectional and incremental lens. Our work as feminists and pan Africanists is based on such thought and standards.

    At the same time, the proposed language will deny and attempt to erase and hide from the lived realities of people facing violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity and expression who are targeted for violation, violence and discrimination. This is what such an amendment will attempt to do and will contribute to. South Africa cannot be party to such an amendment and indeed, should be at the forefront of reaching out to states to dissuade them from such a move. The Human Rights Council is about human rights. We expect and trust that our rights as African people with non-conforming sexualities and gender identities and expressions will not be negotiated away for political expediency at the Council.

    Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, we the undersigned now call upon you to:

    1. Issue the appropriate directive for a vote in support of the Resolution on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression when it tabled later this week as it stands within the version tabled by the lead states.
    2. Reach out to your colleagues who may be calling for the abovementioned amendments and to work to persuade them to desist from such a move and to issue a directive to the South African delegation in Geneva to vote against such an oral amendment from the floor at the vote which may seek to change the intention to show urgency to the need to protect rights related to sexual orientation and gender identity.

    We look forward to remaining in dialogue on this issue throughout the week and to a progressive vote on this Resolution.Our colleagues from the Sexual Rights Initiative are available for dialogue in Geneva all of this week.

    Minister, we look forward also to your leadership on the Regional Seminar on Ending Violence Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in Africa as per your own announcement and commitment in March this year and the staff of your Department since June 2013. This Seminar will provide much needed dialogue on the continent to begin to stem the tide of violence and discrimination faced my millions of people on the continent based on their real or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity and expression. We will be popularising the ideas, analysis and policy imperatives emerging from the powerful speech by the Minister of Social Development, Bathabile Dlamini at the general Assembly in New York last week [19 September]. We will continue to advocate to see these ideas reflected in South Africa’s domestic and international policy positions and work.

    We continue to follow the proceedings at the Council very closely this week, together with our more than 80 member and partner organisations in more than 30 African states. We will also all be watching the proceedings online both in South Africa and in various fora in each sub-region on the continent. We will direct the media to this facility online also.

    Thank you for your leadership in this important moment on rights related to sexuality and gender.

    In solidarity and anticipation.

    1. AIDS Accountability International
    2. Access Chapter 2
    3. African Men for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights
    4. Coalition of African Lesbians
    5. Durban Gay and Lesbian Centre
    6. Forum for the Empowerment of Women
    7. Gay and Lesbian Memory in Action
    8. One in Nine Campaign
    9. Sonke Gender Justice
    10. South African National AIDS Council – Civil Society Forum
    11. Triangle Project

    Additional Endorsements

    Individuals

    1. SuntoshPillay, King Dinuzulu Hospital Complex, Durban, South African
    2. EstianSmit, Gender diverse activist, South Africa
    3. UmeshBawa, Clinical Psychologist, University of the Western Cape
    4. Dr. Tracy Morison, PhD, Human and Social Development research unit, HSRC
    5. Dr. Elaine Salo, South Africa/USA
    6. Yvette Abrahams, Gender Equality Commissioner, SA
    7. Ivy FungaiRutize, Human Rights Feminist Activist, Zimbabwe
    8. MzikaziNduna, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
    9. Melanie Judge, South Africa
    10. Nicolette August, South Africa
    11. Sophia Lugilahe, Tanzania
    12. Beth Buchanan, South Africa
    13. AsandaBenya, WITS University, South Africa
    14. Chris Stander, South Africa

    South African/Regional Organisations

    1. African Women’s Development and Communications Network (FEMNET), Pan-African
    2. AIDS Legal Network, South Africa
    3. Center for the Right to Health, Nigeria
    4. Deo Gloria Family Church, South Africa
    5. DISA Health Care, South Africa
    6. Forum for the Empowerment of Women (FEW)
    7. Free Gender (FunekaSoldaat), South Africa
    8. Geiheis Collective, South Africa
    9. Gay & Lesbian Network, PMB, South Africa
    10. Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ), Zimbabwe
    11. Gender Dynamix, South Africa
    12. Gender Transformation Network, South Africa
    13. Good Hope Metropolitan Community Church, South Africa
    14. Health4Men, Anova Health Institute, South Africa
    15. HOPEM Network, Mozambique
    16. Inclusive and Affirming Ministries (IAM), South Africa
    17. The Inner Circle, South Africa
    18. Iranti-org, South Africa
    19. Kydesa Rainbow Community, Kenya
    20. LifeLine NW Rustenburg Centre, South Africa
    21. Matrix Support Group LGBTI, Lesotho
    22. The New Women’s Movement, South Africa
    23. Network of African People Living with HIV (NAPSAR+), Southern Africa Region
    24. The Networking HIV, AIDS Community of South Africa (NACOSA), South Africa
    25. The Nucleus Association Mavalane against Drugs and AIDS, Mozambique
    26. Out In Africa, Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, South Africa
    27. OUT LGBT Well-being, South Africa
    28. Partners in Sexual Health, South Africa
    29. PASSOP LGBTI Refugee Support and Advocacy Project, South Africa
    30. People Empowering People Africa, Cameroon
    31. People Opposing Women Abuse (POWA), South Africa
    32. Positive Women’s Network, South Africa
    33. PsySSA – the Psychological Society of South Africa (Sexuality and Gender Division), South Africa
    34. Rainbow Identity Association, Botswana
    35. Rainbow WSU, South Africa
    36. SAFAIDS Zimbabwe, Zambia, Swaziland, Lesotho, Malawi and South Africa
    37. Section 27, South Africa
    38. Sex Worker Education and Advocacy Taskforce (SWEAT), South Africa
    39. Sexual Rights Centre, Zimbabwe
    40. Simply Said and Done, South Africa
    41. South African Education and Environment Project (SAEP), South Africa
    42. South African National AIDS Council (SANAC) Men’s Sector, South Africa
    43. Southern African AIDS Trust, South Africa
    44. Soweto HIV/AIDS Counsellors Association/National LGBTI Health Campaign, South Africa
    45. The Centre for the Study of AIDS, University of Pretoria, South Africa
    46. Transgender and Intersex Africa, Pan-African
    47. Treatment Action Campaign, South Africa
    48. Voices of Women in Western Kenya, Kenya
    49. Wellness Foundation, South Africa
    50. Women’s Health and Equal Rights (WHER) Initiative, Nigeria
    51. The Women’s Leadership Centre, Namibia
    52. WISH Associates, South Africa
    53. Young Women’s Knowledge and Leadership Institute (YOWLI) Burundi
    54. Zambia Association for the prevention of HIV and Tuberculosis (ZAPHIT), Zambia

    Global Organisations

    1. Association for Progressive Communications, International
    2. Association of Transgender People in the Philippines (ATP), Philippines
    3. CURE Foundation, Bosnia and Herzegovina
    4. David Kato Foundation, USA
    5. Diverse Voices and Action for Equality, Fiji
    6. Gayten-LGBT, Center for Promotion of LGBTIQ Human Rights, Serbia
    7. Oneworld – Platform for Southeast Europe, Bosnia Herzegovina
    8. Society of Transsexual Women of the Philippines (Strap Kababaihan, Inc.), Philippines
    9. VIKALP WOMEN’S GROUP, India
    10. Women’s Global Network for Reproductive Rights (WGNRR), International

    Media Contacts

  • On World Contraception Day, Sonke asks government to support the ECHO trial

    Today (September 26, 2014) is World Contraception Day and the South African HIV Prevention Research Advocacy Expert Group (which is housed at Sonke Gender Justice) and partners have written to South African government officials to request that they strongly support the proposed Evidence for Contraceptive Options & HIV Outcomes (ECHO) trial which we understand to be at risk of cancellation — a development that would be a blow to South Africa’s AIDS and reproductive health programming. We strongly believe that the ECHO trial could be one of the most important reproductive health and HIV trials of this decade and would further strengthen South Africa’s position on the global stage as a leader in generating scientific evidence that has a meaningful impact on improving the lives and well-being of all South Africans, especially women, via informed, innovative programming.

    Our vision is a world where every pregnancy is wanted and where the awareness of contraceptive options enables young people to make informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive health.

    See our letter in support of the ECHO trial below.

    September 26, 2014
    Johannesburg, South Africa
    SOLIDARITY STATEMENT TO:

    Minister Aaron Motsoaledi, Minister of Health, South Africa
    Prof. Glenda Gray, President – Medical Research Council of South Africa
    Dr. Fareed. Abdullah, Chief Executive Officer, South African National AIDS Council

    Today on World Contraception Day, we support a worldwide campaign whose vision is a world where every pregnancy is wanted and the awareness of contraceptive options enables young people to make informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive health we, the South African HIV Prevention Research Advocacy Expert Group & partners are writing to request strong, public, SA government support for the proposed Evidence for Contraceptive Options & HIV Outcomes (ECHO) trial which we understand to be in jeopardy of cancellation — a development that would be a blow to SA AIDS and reproductive health programming. We strongly believe that the ECHO trial could be one of the most important reproductive health and HIV trials of this decade and further strengthen South Africa’s position on the global stage as a leader in generating scientific evidence that has meaningful impact on improving the lives and wellbeing of all its citizens, especially women, via informed, innovative programming.

    The ECHO Trial has the potential to provide high quality, evidence based answers to questions about whether three specific contraceptive options (Depo Provera, the Jadelle implant and the copper intrauterine device) might increase women’s risk of HIV acquisition. These questions are of utmost relevance to South Africa. Excluding condoms, injectable contraceptives make up nearly 75% of the contraceptive methods dispensed in South Africa. Within this, the majority of women are receiving Depo. Modeling studies designed to gauge the impact on HIV infections in a scenario where Depo does increase risk, show that the highest burden of new infections attributable to this method is in South Africa.

    South Africa’s new contraceptive policy stresses an increase in the range of options offered to women, and a shift away from Depo based on the current uncertainty regarding its impact on HIV risk. These are key steps and we believe they should proceed with urgency. However, there are no data on the other hormonal methods, such as the implant, that are being introduced today. ECHO will provide an answer for multiple methods—not just Depo—laying the basis for sound public health policy and clear communication.

    To ensure that this trial takes place, we seek to engage with you in ways that may see the full funding of ECHO. At present, there is a funding shortfall. Unless additional funds are committed, the trial may not take place. We welcome South Africa’s current financial commitment to the trial and ask that you consider increasing this amount as well as making a strong, public statement that this research is a priority for our country and the region.

    We the undersigned therefore stand in solidarity with the women of South Africa, one of the Sub Saharan countries with the widest use of depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA), in encouraging our Department of Health, the Medical Research Council, and the South African National AIDS Council to ensure that the ECHO trial is fully funded – as a national imperative, especially as a country whose response to and recent leadership in the national response to HIV is world renowned.

    We wish to categorically state that our expectation is that our Government, in partnership with the Medical Research Council, fill the funding gap that is needed to get the ECHO trial underway, not only as a public health imperative, but as an urgent human rights issue.

    We will continue to explore ways to mobilise as many South African’s as possible to express their support for the trial to be fully funded, and trial recommendations urgently acted upon.

    Dr. Ntlotleng Mabena – Centre for HIV & AIDS Prevention Studies
    Ntando Yola – Desmond Tutu HIV Foundation
    Sisonke Msimang – Graca Machel Trust
    Phillipa Tucker – AIDS Accountability International
    Dr. Johanna Kehler – AIDS Legal Network
    Tian Johnson – Sonke Gender Justice

    ENDORSEMENTS

    1. AIDS Legal Network
    2. AIDS Consortium
    3. AIDS Accountability International
    4. Centre for HIV & AIDS Prevention Studies
    5. Desmond Tutu HIV Foundation
    6. Graca Machel Trust
    7. Positive Women’s Network
    8. Save The Children International – SARO
    9. Salamander Trust
    10. School of Human and Community Development, University of Witwatersrand
    11. Sex Worker Education Advocacy Taskforce
    12. Sonke Gender Justice
    13. South African Positive Women Ambassadors
    14. Triangle Project
    15. WISH Associates

    …and more on change.org

    Media Contact

    Tian Johnson
    tian@genderjustice.org.za

    The SA HIV Prevention Research Advocacy Expert Group, housed at Sonke Gender Justice, has been established to provide senior level advocates and programme leaders a platform to: enhance their individual capacity relating to all aspects of HIV Prevention Research, build the capacity of key individuals in their organization and circles of influence including policy makers, donors and strategic partners on issues of HIV Prevention Research, accelerate the pace and level of public discourse around HIV Prevention Research Advocacy as it pertains to existing as well as potential technologies in their conceptualization, development, trial, piloting, procurement, distribution & marketing stages, serve as a point of entry and access to the HIV Prevention Research Science communities for advocates.

  • Sonke supports women Nobel Laureates’ decision to cancel their trip to SA

    Sonke Gender Justice was looking forward to hosting four women Nobel Peace Laureates in Cape Town next month during the World Summit of Nobel Laureates, but they are no longer coming to South Africa.

    Nobel Peace Prize Laureates Jody Williams, Shirin Ebadi, Leymah Gbowee and a representative of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) cancelled their planned visit after South Africa’s refusal (once again) to issue a visa to Nobel Peace Laureate His Holiness the Dalai Lama for the upcoming summit, and China’s public declaration thanking South Africa for blocking the spiritual leader from entering South Africa.

    This is the third time in five years that South Africa has failed to grant the Dalai Lama a visa. Two years ago, South Africa’s Supreme Court of Appeal ruled that the government “deliberately delayed” a decision to grant the Dalai Lama a visa to attend friend and fellow Nobel Laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s 80th birthday celebration, among other events. Instead of blatantly refusing the visa applications and facing the anticipated public outcry, the government’s tactic seems to be to delay granting the visa until such time that the Dalai Lama cancels his trip. This time, an aide to the Dalai Lama told reporters that the Tibetan spiritual leader cancelled his trip after he was denied a visa. China then went so far as to publicly thank South Africa for its support and praise its “correct position” on the visa request.

    To repeatedly shut out this humanitarian, Nobel Laureate, spiritual leader, man of peace, global icon, and friend to many South African leaders including our own Nobel Peace Laureates (Archbishop Tutu and the late Nelson Mandela) and instead bow to the pressure of trade partner China (which has an appalling human rights record) does not serve, reflect or speak to South Africa’s own struggle history of fighting against oppression and for the freedom and dignity of all human beings.

    Blocking the Dalai Lama from coming to South Africa prevents many thousands of South Africans from interacting with their spiritual leader, and has many other negative consequences including dissuading other leaders and inspirational figures (such as these four Laureates) from coming here. Fourteen Nobel Laureates appealed to South Africa’s President Zuma to grant the Dalai Lama a visa after he cancelled this trip, writing “we are deeply concerned about the damage that will be done to South Africa’s international image by a refusal – or failure – to grant him a visa yet again.”

    Sonke has a close working relationship with the Nobel Women’s Initiative (NWI) in their capacity as convenors of the Global Campaign to Stop Rape in Conflict and we were to convene a speaking event with Jody Williams, Shirin Ebadi and Leymah Gbowee next month in Cape Town to discuss gender-based violence (GBV) in South Africa and strategies to combat gender inequality and violence against women, particularly our campaign to establish a national strategic plan against GBV in South Africa. These women have been tireless advocates for women’s rights and a world free from violence against women.

    The NWI says that “the Dalai Lama advocates a nonviolent, negotiated solution to the Tibet problem – what he calls ‘the Middle-Way Approach’ – and is calling for real autonomy for Tibet under Chinese sovereignty. China has questioned his claims that he does not seek independence, and exerts political pressure on India…and other countries to limit the Dalai Lama’s freedom of travel and access to political leaders.”

    Sonke applauds these women Laureates who have cancelled their trip to South Africa for the global Nobel summit, as – unlike the South African government – they are sending the right message on human rights. Sonke believes that South Africa should be embracing human rights and peaceful leadership and should reflect our own history by sending the right message on peace, reconciliation and freedom to the world.

    Archbishop Tutu has called this repeated failure to grant the Dalai Lama a visa “a total betrayal of our struggle history.” We agree.

    Media Contact:

    Czerina Patel
    Sonke Communications
    czerina@genderjustice.org.za

  • Sonke celebrates a guilty murder verdict in system that more often that not fails victims

    Sonke Gender Justice (Sonke) celebrates the verdict of guilty for murder handed down by the Butterworth Magistrate Court in the Eastern Cape on September 11 against Nkosinam Xabadiya for the domestic violence murder of Sandiswa Mhlawuli.

    462442DF-9A42-447C-B5CD-EB350622DDEA

    Magistrate Doreen de Waal found Xabadiya guilty of murder just 9 months and one day after he killed Sandiswa Mhlawuli and after only five court appearances. In South Africa, it is extremely rare that cases are resolved this quickly. In fact, the majority of crimes reported, including murder, do not make it to court, and a very small percentage are completed within two years, if at all. Long trials reduce the chance of conviction and create additional trauma and expense for victims and their families.1

    Sonke applauds the speedy resolution of this case but notes with concern that this occurred only because of the sustained pressure brought to bear on a negligent criminal justice system by local activists from Sonke community action teams (CATs) and from partner organisations. “While the speedy resolution is testimony to the power and potential of community mobilisation and people’s power, it should not be necessary for civil society organisations to spend large amounts of money and staff resources to ensure that the criminal justice system meets its constitutional obligations. This should happen as a matter of course,” says Sonke’s Executive Director, Dean Peacock.

    27-year old mother-of-two murdered

    Xabadiya stabbed Mhlawuli, his ex-girlfriend, to death in the Eastern Cape town of Dutywa on December 10, 2013 – International Human Rights Day and also the last day of South Africa’s 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children.

    Xabadiya claimed that he and Mhlawuli were a happy couple intending to marry and argued that he did not mean to kill her. However, she had a paper in her handbag that told a very different story: the application for a protection order against Xabadiya, which Mhlawuli had obtained earlier that same day.

    In the wake of Mhlawuli’s murder, Sonke was approached by members of one of our CATs, which we established last year while working in the Eastern Cape on the Safer South Africa project, a partnership with UNFPA and the Department of Social Development. Following their training on gender-based violence (GBV), the CAT members called on Sonke to support them in their efforts to demand justice for Sandiswa Mhlawuli.

    Sonke took this case on as part of our ongoing work to build community capacity to address and respond to GBV. This work has three objectives: 1) strengthening community monitoring of the criminal justice system to ensure access to justice, 2) promoting community driven violence prevention to stop violence before it happens, and 3) generate local lessons for the development of a fully-costed comprehensive national strategic plan on GBV. Sonke is currently working on a number of similar cases across South Africa, including the homophobic hate crime/rape and murder of David Olyn in Ceres, the rape and murder of Queen, a 9-year old girl, in Delft, and the rape and murder of Dorcas Nqanqeli, a 14-year old girl, near Roma (Eastern Cape).

    Justice system failures

    Sonke’s legal team quickly learned that neither the police nor the courts were treating Mhlawuli’s case as a priority and were not proceeding according to established criminal procedures. Amongst many failures on the part of the state, we learned that:

    • Xabadiya pulled Mhlawuli out of a taxi and stabbed her to death in front of witnesses, but was granted bail and allowed to walk free despite the fact that the prosecutor is required by law to oppose bail in cases of murder.
    • The police in Dutywa collected no forensic evidence at all, in part because the police did not have the equipment with which to do so.
    • On 24 April 2014, the case was postponed to 14 July 2014. For two and a half months the police, the prosecution and Legal Aid were aware of the trial date yet they did not prepare the case. The prosecutor only requested the court docket from the police on 10 July 2014, and was going to send it to Legal Aid on 11 July 2014 making it difficult for Legal Aid to prepare their defense of the accused, and easy for the trial to be unnecessarily postponed.
    • Instead of serving subpoenas directly to each witness individually, as the law requires, the police asked one of the witnesses to hand them out to the remaining witnesses.
    • The witnesses were not prepared by the prosecutor as the law requires.

    Sonke chose to monitor the case against Xabadiya because it became clear that without community pressure, there would be no justice for Mhlawuli or her family and that Xabadiya would remain free despite the overwhelming evidence of his guilt.

    Community action

    Sonke brought significant pressure to bear on this case. Together with dozens of CAT members and local partner organisations, Sonke supported the community in Mhlawuli’s village to take action. Together, we engaged village leaders, formed and trained community action teams (CATs) in an additional ten villages, monitored and picketed at each court appearance, put pressure on Legal Aid to prepare their defense properly, met with the police and the prosecutor, placed a complaint with the Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) who then engaged both the local and the district National Prosecuting Authority, and engaged local, regional and national media to increase pressure to ensure that the case was dealt with thoroughly and expeditiously and to keep GBV in the national spotlight.2

    The Senior Public Prosecutor confirmed that due to the community pressure, Mhlawuli’s case was moved from the Willowvale District Court to the bigger regional Butterworth Magistrate Court, and that the community protesting outside the court and the memorandum,3 which was handed over, caused both the police and prosecution to give proper attention to Mhlawuli’s case.

    Xabadiya no longer walks free. He is now in police custody, awaiting sentencing for the murder of Mhlawuli.

    “The criminal justice system fails far too many victims of domestic and sexual violence in South Africa,” says Sonke’s Patrick Godana, “We believe the swift and successful conclusion of this case reflects the pressure that community members and ourselves brought to bear, and the close collaboration with key partners including the CGE, Treatment Action Campaign, Dutywa Women’s Support Centre and the Methodist Church in Dutywa. We thank all of our partners, the CATs, the village and community leaders, the eyewitness who remained clear and consistent despite harsh cross-examination and lack of preparation by the prosecution, and the many individuals who showed up at the court for every court appearance to call for justice for Sandiswa.”

    More than a thousand women are killed by intimate partners in South Africa each year. All deserve justice. We call on our government to implement a fully funded national strategic plan on GBV, which includes serious improvements to policing, evidence-gathering and the courts, as well as commitment to prevention efforts. We have made this call again and again, but the government has repeatedly failed to respond with the appropriate commitment or urgency that is called for.

    “We celebrate the ability of community members from Dutywa and its surrounding villages to demand and win justice for Sandiswa Mhlawuli and her family,” says Peacock, “We will continue to work to support community action and human rights activism across the country to ensure justice for victims of violence and their families, and to stop the violence.”

    Media contacts:

    About Sonke: Sonke Gender Justice is a South African NGO working across all of South Africa’s nine provinces and in nearly twenty countries across Africa to strengthen government, civil society and citizen capacity to promote gender equality, prevent domestic and sexual violence, and reduce the spread and impact of HIV and AIDS.

    [1] A study by the South African Law Commission looked at more than 15,000 criminal cases reported to the police between 1997 and 1998, including more than 10,000 cases of violent crime found that 75% of cases had not gone to court, and only 11% resulted in verdicts (5% not guilty and 6% guilty).

    The document also highlighted that only 19% of the crimes reported were completed within 2 years, and that where cases are delayed for more than 2 years there is less likely to be a conviction.

    A 2009 study by the Medical Research Council found that only 37.4% of intimate partner femicide (female homicides) lead to conviction, and even fewer of other female homicides (not classified as intimate partner femicides).

    [2] Together with our CAT members, we carried out local education and training on GBV prevention, including engaging religious and traditional leaders to challenge harmful gender norms and other social norms that inhibit community action on GBV, and we also provided training on the importance of positive parenting as a way to interrupt intergenerational cycles of violence. We also helped Mhlawuli’s mother to access foster care grants to take care of Mhlawuli’s two children.

    [3] The memorandum demanded:

    • that the accused only be released on bail if he can show that there are exceptional circumstances that require he be released.
    • that both the SAPS and the NPA continually inform Sandiswa’s family and/or community of the investigation and on-going trial.
    • that the SAPS, the NPA and the Legal Aid Board do their duties to their citizens accordingly and prevent any further unnecessary delays.

    Additional Resources

    https://genderjustice.org.za/article/justice-for-sandiswa/

    Additional photos attached of protests in front of court by Czerina Patel. Media may print these photos, alongside news articles about this story – Please use byline “Photo by Demelza Bush, Courtesy of Sonke Gender Justice” or “Photo by Czerina Patel, Courtesy of Sonke Gender Justice”

    Media may also print this statement as a news article by Sonke Gender Justice.

    CzerinaPatelProtestorsatCourt
    CzerinaPatelProtestorsatCourt2

  • Judge Masipa requires utmost respect

    We, the undersigned, wish to express our concern at what we believe are unwarranted personal attacks against Judge Thokozile Masipa.

    On 11 and 12 of September 2014, Judge Masipa handed down the much-awaited verdict in the criminal trial of Oscar Pistorius. Since Judge Masipa’s decision to find Mr Pistorius guilty of the lesser charge of culpable homicide, we have witnessed an avalanche of criticism of both the decision and the judge who handed it down.

    We believe that in a democratic society, decisions emanating from our courts are not above reproach. While people are free to express their opinions on the judgments handed down by the courts, unwarranted attacks on the judge who decides on matters are inappropriate.

    We have a robust and independent judiciary that seeks to uphold the law and protect all citizens regardless of their status. The judges who have a daunting task of upholding the law deserve respect and, if and when their decisions are a cause for concern, an appeal is the appropriate recourse for unhappy parties.

    The unfounded personal attacks and threats towards Judge Masipa are not only abhorrent but do little to advance the respect for and the integrity of the judiciary. They show scant regard for the rule of law and the rights protected in our Constitution and should not be tolerated in a democratic society. We call for a debate on judgements which is thoughtful, and responds to the issues, and not the individuals.

    Signed by:

    1. The Democratic Governance and Rights Unit-UCT
    2. The Centre for Law and Society-UCT
    3. Sonke Gender Justice
    4. Women’s Legal Centre
    5. Rape Crisis
    6. Centre for Applied Legal Studies-WITS
    7. Triangle Project
    8. Governance Crime & Justice Division-ISS
    9. The Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution
    10. Lisa Vetten
    11. Allison Tilley

    For further information, please contact

    • Tabeth Masengu, Researcher, Democratic Governance and Rights Unit
    • Allison Tilley, Coordinator Judges Matter Campaign
    • Katy Hindle, Policy Development and Advocacy Fellow, Sonke Gender Justice: katy@genderjustice.org.za

  • Pistorius trial reminds us that too many women die at the hands of their intimate partners

    As the Oscar Pistorius trial for the killing of Reeva Steenkamp draws to a close, it is important to note that on average, three women are killed by an “intimate partner” (former or current) in South Africa every day.1

    Tomorrow, on the same day that the Pistorius verdict is expected, 1,000 kilometres away in the Eastern Cape, another man who admits to having killed his former intimate partner will find out if the court believes his defense that he didn’t mean to do it, and whether he will go to jail. Nkosinam Xabadiya admits to stabbing Sandiswa Mhlawuli, a 27-year old mother of two. Eyewitnesses say they saw him do it, but he says he didn’t mean to kill her, that he was stabbing at her hands.

    This is not a coincidence. In South Africa, more than 1,000 women are killed at the hands of their intimate partners each year. In fact, “intimate partner femicide”, which is the most serious form and consequence of domestic violence, is the leading cause of the murder of women here.

    When Sonke Gender Justice (Sonke) got involved in the Sandiswa Mhlawuli case earlier this year, Xabadiya was walking free, without even having paid bail, even though he had been seen by witnesses stabbing Sandiswa. Sonke responded by supporting community members to organise protests outside the court house. We met with police and court officials, brought in the Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) and brought to bear sufficient public pressure to cause the police and the prosecution to take the case to trial expediently.2

    Sonke’s Government & Media Manager, Patrick Godana, who has been leading our work to demand justice for Sandiswa’s murder says that the nature of the government service delivery around this case was inadequate. Godana also says the accused was allowed free bail because the police did not present compelling evidence at the time of his arrest, partly because police in Dutywa (where Sandiswa was killed) do not have cameras, forensic equipment and the resources necessary to bring cases of gender-based violence and murder to justice on a regular basis. “She died with a court protection order in her handbag,” says Godana.

    Central to the Pistorius trial is the question of his intent and whether the killing was a domestic violence homicide.

    There are many contributing factors to the high rates of domestic and sexual violence (there are an estimated more than one million rapes in South Africa each year). Key among them are patriarchal beliefs held by many men around the world that they are superior to women, and notions of masculinity that reinforce violence, combativeness, fighting or the use of guns and weapons.

    “Multiple surveys carried out in nearly all regions of the world have found that the strongest factors associated with men’s use of violence against women are social norms that support men’s collective dominance over women,” says Sonke’s Executive Director Dean Peacock. He says that on top of this, “children’s exposure to violence in the home, alcohol abuse and easy access to guns all contribute to the unsafe environment women and children find themselves in.”

    On Thursday, September 11, Xabadiya will learn his judgment, while the world waits with bated breath to hear only what Pistorius’ fate will be.

    “From the beginning, Sonke has been saying that we must not lose the many in the one,” says Peacock, “Every woman who is killed matters – whether she’s the girlfriend of a world-famous Olympian, or a woman whose name hardly anyone knows in a rural village a thousand kilometers away. We can’t forget when Oscar’s trial is over that this is happening again, and again and again, every single day.”

    The global media attention in the Reeva Steenkamp case, and Sonke’s involvement in the Sandiswa Mhlawuli murder case has helped these two cases move through the courts more quickly. Usually, though, men’s violence against women is treated as a low priority. Peacock says that government representatives pay predictable lip service to treating violence against women as a priority, but fail to follow up with the commitment and resources necessary for effective violence prevention measures, or for health and criminal justice services.

    A 2009 Medical Research Council study shows that the great majority of female homicides in South Africa go by unpunished, with less than 38% of intimate partner femicides leading to conviction in less than two years. Consequently, far too many men learn that they can commit violence with impunity, and even get away with murder.

    Sonke is calling on the South African government to invest in a comprehensive and multi-sectoral national strategic plan to combat gender-based violence (GBV). We know that we need serious investment in prevention efforts, policing and police training (including evidence gathering), courts, social support services, and the kind of gender transformative, and community building work that Sonke does if we’re ever going to be able to make deep inroads in combatting GBV. Some countries have recognised that such plans are essential to stop violence against women. We hope that South Africa will be next.

    While Sonke can’t take a position on abuse or intent in the Pistorius case (since that is a question for the court), the reality is that when Pistorius killed Reeva, she joined South Africa’s statistics – she became one of those 1,024 women killed by an intimate partner in South Africa every year.

    Reeva’s death is tragic, as are the deaths of the more than 1,000 women that have or will be killed in South Africa this year, but the global media attention of the Pistorius trial gives us the opportunity to demand that our government take action now and implement the kind of comprehensive national plan necessary to ensure that even if the justice system fails them, the deaths via gender-based violence of the many thousands of women will not be ignored.

    We all deserve at least that much.

    Endnotes

    1. Every Eight Hours
    2. Justice for Sandiswa at last, but what about the rest of SA’s women?

    MEDIA CONTACTS

    Bafana Khumalo, Sonke Senior Programme Specialist
    bafana@genderjustice.org.za

    Vuyiseka Dubula, Sonke’s Director of Advocacy and Accountability
    vuyiseka@genderjustice.org.za

    Patrick Godana, Sonke’s MenCare Government & Media Manager
    patrick@genderjustice.org.za

    Czerina Patel, Sonke Communications
    czerina@genderjustice.org.za

    Notes for Journalists:

    Also this week in South Africa

    Shrien Diwani, who is accused of having hired men to kill his wife while they were on their honeymoon in Cape Town is expected in court for his pre-trial hearing.

    Sandiswa Mhlawuli was killed on December 10, 2013 – International Human Rights Day and the last day of South Africa’s annual 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children.

    Reeva Steenkamp was killed on Valentines Day this year.

    How common is intimate partner violence (IPV)?

    World Health Organisation:

    http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/77432/1/WHO_RHR_12.36_eng.pdf?ua=1

    A growing number of population-based surveys have measured the prevalence of IPV, most notably the WHO multi-country study on women’s health and domestic violence against women, which collected data on IPV from more than 24 000 women in 10 countries, representing diverse cultural, geographical and urban/ rural settings. The study confirmed that IPV is widespread in all countries studied. Among women who had ever been in an intimate partnership:

    • 13–61% reported ever having experienced physical violence by a partner;
    • 4–49% reported having experienced severe physical violence by a partner;
    • 6–59% reported sexual violence by a partner at some point in their lives; and
    • 20–75% reported experiencing one emotionally abusive act, or more, from a partner in their lifetime.

    Some countries have already implemented national strategic plans to combat domestic and sexual violence, including the United Kingdom:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/policies/ending-violence-against-women-and-girls-in-the-uk

    There are high-res photos of our mobilisations in the Eastern Cape available here:

    https://www.dropbox.com/sh/z05g6shde2eiol1/AADvbfn0svJwAO1ajlGaEffTa?dl=0

    You may print them/use them along with your related news story, as long as they they are used in correct context, and with proper credit.

    Please use byline: Photo by Demelza Bush, Courtesy Sonke Gender Justice

    There are captions in the dropbox as well.

    You may also print the above media statement in its entirety as an article online or in print. If you do, please let us know that you are doing so by emailing czerina@genderjustice.org.za

    Please use the byline: by Czerina Patel, Sonke Gender Justice

    Its-not-only-Oscar

  • CGE responds to sex workers’ and activists’ complaints and demonstration

    This morning, nearly 200 sex workers and activists from Sonke Gender Justice, SWEAT (Sex Worker Education Advocacy Task Force), Sisonke Sex Worker Movement and the Treatment Action Campaign handed over a petition to the Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) demanding CGE action on sex worker human rights. In November 2012, a complaint by sex workers and sex worker advocates was submitted to the CGE asking them to investigate systematic sex worker human rights violations which include police harassment, abuse of their rights and non-protection from sexual assault, rape and murder.

    This demonstration followed a number of brutal sex worker murders over the past weeks. Our organisations wrote letters to the CGE on Monday and Wednesday and did not receive an adequate response. After a march to the CGE offices in Cape Town this morning to hand over the petition of our demands, the CGE finally responded – just 30 minutes later – with a 22 page reply.

    The letter positively dealt with most of our demands and included the following:

    • an apology from the CGE for the negative impressions that have been created and an assurance that the sex worker human rights complaint is being dealt with “the utmost priority”
    • the scheduling of a meeting with SWEAT, Sisonke Sex Worker Movement, Sonke Gender Justice and the CGE on 9 September, 2014
    • a draft terms of reference for the steering committee that will oversee the CGE public hearings into sex worker human rights violations
    • a copy of a recent CGE letter to the SA Law Reform Commission (SALRC) asking for a meeting [which we asked the CGE to do in our complaint in Nov 2012], and a response from the SALRC that a report on the adult prostitution law reform project was submitted to the Minister of Justice – something which the SALRC failed to notify sex workers and advocates about. Sex worker advocates have been putting pressure on the SALRC for more than a decade to move forward on the law reform project on sex work legislation. The SALRC released their Discussion Paper in 2009 and the next step should have been for them to have made their recommendations to the Minister of Justice. Sonke feels that this should have happened at least four years ago, and that while they dragged their feet, sex workers have suffered assault, abuse and been murdered.

    Today’s reply from the CGE and its positive response to our demands was a huge success for activists. If the CGE does not continue to move this process forward expediently, we are prepared to take further action. In the meantime, we are celebrating a successful mobilisation, showing sex worker solidarity and honouring the lives of murdered sex workers. We are happy that this demonstration and our written appeals this week have galvanised the Commission, who should have urgently attended to systematic abuse of sex workers and their rights!

    In this video, Sonke’s Policy Development & Advocacy Specialist Marlise Richter talks about the petition handover while activists debrief and celebrate at Sonke’s office immediately after the march! After the interview, you can see some of the celebratory spirit in song and dance by the activists:


    Video by Czerina Patel

    Press Statement on today’s demonstration at the CGE here.

    Media Contact

    Dr Marlise Richter
    Sonke Gender Justice
    marlise@genderjustice.org.za
    021 423 7088

  • Sonke calls on government to join Eastern Cape MEC of Social Development in supporting decriminalisation of sex work

    logos

    Statement issued by SWEAT, Sisonke, Sonke Gender Justice, Women’s Legal Centre and TB/HIV Care Association

    Civil society organisations call on Ministers and MEC’s in the new cabinet to follow the footsteps of Eastern Cape MEC of Social Development, Nancy Sihlwayi, for her stance on supporting the decriminalisation of sex work in South Africa.

    Sex Worker Education and Advocacy Taskforce (SWEAT), Sisonke sex workers movement of South Africa, Sonke Gender Justice, Women’s Legal Centre and TB/HIV Care applaud MEC Nancy Sihlwayi for her courage and insight in taking the position to support decriminalisation.

    Last week at an ‘Intergenerational Dialogue’ workshop in Southernwood, Mthatha – MEC Sihlwayi made a public announcement of her intentions to table a programme for the decriminalisation of sex work. The Hon. MEC joins international and local human rights and health institutions in making the call to decriminalise sex work – among them are the World Health Organisation, UNAIDS and the Commission for Gender Equality.

    The MEC made the announcement at a time that SWEAT and Sisonke have been dealing with a rise in the murders of sex workers across South Africa. In the month of July and August 2014, five female sex workers have been brutally murdered, three of those murdered are under the age of 25. The most recent case of this gruesome series of murders is that of Desiree Murugan, a 39 year old Durban sex worker who was beheaded and her body discarded at a stadium in Chatsworth.

    The current criminalised status of sex work harms sex workers as it perpetuates stigma, limits access to health and rights – including labour rights – and creates an enabling environment for abuse and violence. Another implication of stigma is that perpetrators may specifically target sex workers and can do so with impunity because their violence goes unreported. The law as it stands is untenable and un-implementable.

    Sex workers may fear arrest or harassment by SAPS and therefore may work in isolated areas thereby placing their safety at risk. The criminalisation of sex work may give sex workers the perception that they have no recourse to justice which may result in a reluctance to report crimes, for this reason, it is particularly important for SAPS to work with sex workers so that they will report crimes committed against them.

    The criminalisation of sex work, coupled with the high levels of violence perpetrated by the state through the police, disables sex workers from accessing justice and reinforces stigma that prevents sex workers from accessing health care and social services. A recent leading international journal, The Lancet, published a study that found that decriminalising sex work could prevent 33-46% new HIV infections in the next decade.1

    We call on the South African Government to decriminalise sex work now, and not another death later. We must reduce sex workers vulnerability to violence at the hands of police, clients and intimate partners. This will ensure that sex workers are afforded the same rights, in law and in practice as others in the country are given.

    [1] http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(14)60931-4/abstract

    Media Contacts

  • In honour of Women’s Day, Sonke tells government to develop NSP to address and prevent gender-based violence

    Across the country tomorrow, there will be hundreds of speeches, marches and advertisements celebrating women. Women’s Day is indeed an important time for us to recognise the contributions of women living in South Africa, past and present. From high-profile leaders in business, government and civil society, to the leadership of women who form the backbone of families and communities, we have many reasons to celebrate Women’s Day. But this day is also an opportunity to reflect on the work that is still needed to build the South Africa we want for the next generation of women and girls. For us at Sonke Gender Justice (Sonke), it is Women’s Day every day as we struggle to end gender-based violence (GBV) in South Africa and to achieve gender equality.

    In the spirit of the courageous women who marched on the Union Buildings in 19561 whom we celebrate today, we must, as women and men, take this occasion to also demand change in the everyday lives of women. In honour of Women’s Day, Sonke demands urgent action to address gender-based violence in South Africa. A key step towards this is for government to develop a national strategic plan (NSP) to address and prevent gender-based violence. The body tasked with this – the National Council on Gender-Based Violence (GBV Council) – has been suspended to allow for the new Ministry for Women to establish itself in office. The work of the GBV Council needs to be resumed urgently so that it can engage in the national consultations needed to produce an effective national strategic plan to combat GBV. We call on government to urgently clarify its plans and recommit to this process.

    This national plan to combat GBV will coordinate responses to the plight of women who are enduring disturbingly high levels of violence every day, in every community all across South Africa. A woman is killed by an intimate partner every eight hours in South Africa, and yet our laws on domestic and gender-based violence go unenforced. Young girls are routinely denied their sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR). HIV is wreaking a particularly brutal toll on this group: A recent Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) survey2 showed that about one out of four new HIV infections occurs among girls and women ages 15-24. We can and must do better for adolescent girls who are denied comprehensive sexual education and access to contraception.

    Sex workers are targeted and abused daily. A growing body of global research tells us that full decriminalisation of sex work is the strategy most likely to be successful in protecting sex workers from violence and ill-health,3 yet the laws of our land continue to criminalise sex work and endanger the lives of sex workers. We can and must do more to protect sex workers from abuse at the hands of clients, partners and the police.

    Our government agencies are underfunded and untrained, lacking the capacity to fully perform their legal responsibilities. Survivors of sexual violence receive inconsistent and inadequate treatment. Insufficient effort is put into developing and implementing evidence-based prevention strategies.

    We know that a multi-sectoral, fully funded and comprehensive national strategic plan, that sets out timelines and markers for accountability is needed to respond to the violence, and that we must commit to the preventative work that prevents the violence from happening in the first place, yet we are still to see any real commitment from government to fund and implement such a plan any time soon. We can and must do better.

    Contacts

    Vuyiseka Dubula
    Sonke Gender Justice
    Director Advocacy and Accountability
    vuyiseka@genderjustice.org.za

    Czerina Patel
    Sonke Gender Justice
    Communications and Strategic Information
    czerina@genderjustice.org.za

    Notes

    1. The month of August is Women’s Month, which recognises the contribution made by women in the Struggle for freedom in South Africa. On 9 August 1956, more than 20 000 defiant and fearless women marched to the Union Buildings in Pretoria to protest against pass laws. The year 2014 marks 60 years since the signing of the Women’s Charter on 17 April 1954 in Johannesburg, which called for a non-racial and non-sexist South Africa; and demanded the emancipation, development and empowerment of women.
    2. HSCR study: South African National HIV Prevalence, Incidence and Behaviour Survey, 2012:
      http://www.hsrc.ac.za/en/research-outputs/view/6871
    3. The Lancet: Global epidemiology of HIV among female sex workers: influence of structural determinants
      www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2814%2960931-4/abstract

  • Sonke’s Mbuyiselo Botha in gender dialogue with Chilean president, Michelle Bachelet, and Graça Machel

    “August 9, 1995 is the 39th anniversary of the 1956 women’s march to the Union Buildings in opposition to the pass laws … We have declared this day a national holiday. This is in celebration of the struggles of the women over the decades and a rejuvenation of our commitment to strive for a society free of all kinds of discrimination, more especially discrimination against women.”
    – Nelson Mandela, August 9, 1995

    This Women’s Day weekend, the Nelson Mandela Foundation is bringing together some of the world’s most prominent women leaders as part of the 12th Annual Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture Series. On Saturday, President Michelle Bachelet of Chile delivers the annual lecture, with the theme “Building Social Cohesion Through Active Citizenship.”

    As an organisation that promotes gender equality, Sonke Gender Justice (Sonke) welcomes this lecture, and looks forward to hearing insights from the highly esteemed panellists on Sunday’s interactive dialogue: “Does Gender Still Matter in the Ongoing Work of Liberation?”

    Coordinated by the Nelson Mandela Foundation and the University of Cape Town (UCT)’s African Gender Institute (AGI), the Gender-in-Dialogue on Sunday includes Chilean President and former UN Women Director, Michele Bachelet; UCT Chancellor, Graça Machel; Sonke’s Government and Media Liaison, and gender activist Mbuyiselo Botha; researcher and the host of the recent Queer in Africa events, Zethu Matebeni; and feminist activist and writer, and former Chair of the South African Commission for Gender Equality, Nomboniso Gasa.

    “It is important for men to shoulder the responsibility of creating a safe and equal society for women,” says Sonke’s Mbuyiselo Botha who has worked to engage men and boys in the struggle for gender equality for decades, “Men have to join women as allies and be part of the work towards an equitable society.”

    The speakers will discuss whether gender still matters on the political and economic work of on-going liberation. The Nelson Mandela Foundation says that “the choice to include a strong focus on the politics of gender and sexuality within this exploration of citizenship speaks to the decades-long recognition of the work of women such as Dora Tamana, Lilian Ngoyi, Phila Ndwandwe and Bev Ditsie, and to the current dynamism of a new generation of African-based feminist writers and gender activists.”

    Sonke’s Executive Director Dean Peacock pays tribute to Nelson Mandela and the inspiring life he led, “Nelson Mandela embodied the values Sonke works to promote: a commitment to dialogue, democracy, equality and accountability, and a determination to live life passionately and courageously.”

    Mr. Mandela committed his life to the fight against an oppressive regime in South Africa, and after more than a quarter of a century of being imprisoned for his efforts to free oppressed people in South Africa, he then, as President of a new democracy, dedicated himself to building a democratic and free South Africa, with dialogue, reconciliation and freedom as cornerstones.

    Contacts:

    Mbuyiselo Botha
    Sonke Gender Justice, Government and Media Relations Manager
    mbuyiselo@genderjustice.org.za

    Czerina Patel
    Sonke Gender Justice, Communications & Strategic Information
    czerina@genderjustice.org.za

    Resources:

    August 10th dialogue, 10am:

    The dialogue will be streamed live from the UCT website: http://www.uct.ac.za/#NMAL2014

    And also live broadcast on SABCTV Channel 404 on DSTV

    UCT’s African Gender Institute (AGI) is the Nelson Mandela Foundation’s partner in the design of the event. AGI’s Associate Professor Jane Bennett and Yaliwa Clark will convene and facilitate the interaction between the speakers and audience. At least 600 people are expected to attend, including parliamentarians, NGO activists, and UCT students and staff.

    More: www.genderjustice.org.za / www.nelsonmandela.org / http://agi.ac.za

    August 9th Lecture, 3pm:

    The lecture on 9 August will be live streamed through the Nelson Mandela Foundation Facebook page: www.facebook.com/NelsonMandela

  • Sonke Gender Justice statement on budget votes for SA’s Ministry of Women

    Sonke Gender Justice (“Sonke”) welcomes the creation of the new Ministry of Women and its location in the Office of the Presidency. We support Minister Susan Shabangu’s commitment, as stated in her 16 July speech on the budget vote,to improving monitoring and evaluation and gender-responsive budgeting.

    During this time of transition, we urge the Minister to prioritise the development of the country’s first National Strategic Plan (NSP) on Gender-Based Violence (GBV). We encourage Minister Shabangu to build on the recent momentum left by the Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities under the banner of the National Council on Gender-Based Violence in this process, and to make this her top priority for the remainder of 2014.

    Along with 19 other civil society organizations, Sonke has signed and sent a letter to Minister Shabangu, urging her to carry this process forward. We’ve also called on Finance Minister Nene to increase the engagement of the Ministry of Finance in the National Council on Gender-Based Violence and in the development of the National Strategic Plan on GBV.

    The budget request of R198.3 million, including R63 million for Commission for Gender Equality (CGE), is unfortunately quite small to fully pursue the Minister’s agenda, and we hope that the development of a comprehensive multisectoral NSP on GBV is given sufficient resources and priority.

    Sonke appreciates the Minister’s comment that this limited budget “continues to pose limitations in fulfilling the mandate of this department,” and supports the urgent development of a fully-costed National Strategic Plan on GBV as essential to properly addressing gender-based violence and to ensuring the necessary resources are allocated to address both the structural and societal barriers and challenges to women’s empowerment and well-being in South Africa.

    For media inquiries, please contact

    Vuyiseka Dubula
    Sonke Gender Justice
    Head of Policy Development and Advocacy
    vuyiseka@genderjustice.org.za

  • Sonke supports petition for 10 days paternity leave in South Africa

    This month, Hendri Terblanche gave birth to an important petition, just eight months after his twin children were born prematurely. His petition, which seeks to provide new fathers with 10 days paternity leave, was submitted to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) and officially received and acknowledged by NCOP Chair, Thandi Modise, two weeks ago.

    Terblanche initiated the #10dayspaternityleave campaign when his twin children were born three months prematurely, and he saw for himself how only having three days family responsibility leave (and no paternity leave) severely restricts fathers from spending time with their children in their first days of life, from forming a bond with their newborns, from supporting their partners and assisting with childcare duties, and from being able to be there for their families at this important moment in all of their lives. This lack of paternity leave is even more challenging in cases where there are medical complications, premature births, and also Caesarean births, which are very common in South Africa as the mother and child are often in the hospital for up to a week, and sometimes longer. Terblanche’s twins Danté and Juandré were hospitalised for 139 days and 79 days respectively.

    “During my visits to the ICU, I noted that after the fourth day, other fathers couldn’t come anymore. That was a result of their only having three days family responsibility leave,” says Terblanche.

    Kevin Jacobs from Manenberg who is expecting his third child says, “I feel that the three days allocated to us isn’t enough time to assist our spouses or for us to even bond with our kids at that tender age… It’s so unfair that our spouses have to sit with the babies [alone] after that long procedure of carrying them for nine months and then still the painful ordeal of labour.”

    Terblanche was fortunate to have a sympathetic employer that granted him flexible work time to care for his children, but he realized that most fathers in South Africa do not have this opportunity and decided to champion this cause on behalf of all fathers, and more importantly, all children.

    “Being a financial manager, you’re always trying to identify reasons for problems, and then try to rectify the situation,” says Terblanche, “For me it was such an honour and a privilege to be the father of little Danté and Juandré. I wanted other fathers to also get to be involved in the day-to-day care of their little babies from day one.”

    So Terblanche developed a petition calling for an amendment to the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (1997) to include 10 days paternity leave for fathers in South Africa with the birth or adoption of their child(ren). Somehow finding time between his job as a financial manager, and his role as a father to infant twins, Terblanche singlehandedly approached every member of Parliament and urged them to draft a bill for consideration by the National Assembly, mounted a twitter campaign under @DadToBeAdvice using the hashtag: #10DaysPaternityLeave, and submitted the petition to the NCOP.

    Sonke Gender Justice (“Sonke”) and Terblanche are now working together to ensure that the special petition to the NCOP for paternity leave in South Africa is taken seriously, and that Parliament also takes up the call to change the law to ensure that a child’s right to parental care is fully realized by the Basic Conditions of Employment Act. The Department of Labour and the Department of Social Development are mandated in the White Paper on Families in South Africa (2013) to explore the feasibility of paternity leave.

    “While we hold men accountable to their parenting responsibilities through shared work at home, or child support when they are separated from the mothers of their children, we feel that it is also important for men, women, children and families to create more opportunities for men to be involved in care work,” says Andre Lewaks, Sonke’s Manager of MenCare in South Africa. “Paternity leave is one step towards this that is still lacking in our leave framework.” South Africa’s Basic Conditions of Employment Act (Section 27:1997) only provides for three days of family responsibility leave for employees, and the Unemployment Insurance Act (1966) protects mothers from losing their salary for up to four months at the time their child’s birth. Terblanche’s petition proposes an additional 10 days paternity leave for fathers.

    Sonke’s MenCare campaign advocates for men’s involvement in unpaid care work and promotes gender equitable and non-violent fatherhood. Parental leave for fathers creates a valuable opportunity for fathers to do unpaid care work and to bond with their children. Child development research is clear on the fact that a child bonds with the adults that provide for their basic survival needs, in other words, the adults that care for them.

    When men get more involved in child-care work, children benefit by receiving more care, and mothers benefit by carrying less of the burden of care and having more opportunities for paid work. More than half of the children growing up in South Africa do so without a father present in the home. In 2011, 48 % of South African children had fathers who were living elsewhere than in their home, 16% had fathers who were deceased, resulting in a massive 64% of children growing up without their father in the home.* In many of these cases, it means that other members of the family – mostly mothers or older siblings – are relied upon for all the care work.

    Research evidence from countries that offer paternity leave supports the intuitive idea that an emotional connection during infanthood would lead to long-term involvement in care, and that fathers would then take more responsibility for their children’s development.

    While a mere 10 days of paternal leave does not give fathers the opportunity to be as deeply involved in the care work of their children as it does mothers, Sonke Gender Justice supports this petition as a step in the right direction towards a framework where the vital care work in an infant’s life could be shared equally by both primary caregivers.

    South Africa would not be the first country in Africa to establish paternity leave. Kenya already offers fathers 14 days, Cameroon 10 days, and Ghana five days.

    [1] Holborn, *L. and Eddy, G., 2011. First Steps into Healing the South African Family. Johannesburg: South African Institute of Race Relations.

    MEDIA CONTACTS

    [Please note: Wessel van den Berg is also a new father who has adopted a child and has benefited from employer-provided parental leave]

    NOTE FOR MEDIA

    NEWS MEDIA MAY PRINT THIS STATEMENT IN ITS ENTIRETY (WITHOUT EDITS) AS A NEWS ARTICLE IF DESIRABLE

    PLEASE EMAIL CZERINA@GENDERJUSTICE.ORG.ZA IF YOU PRINT ABOVE, OR IF YOU NEED IMAGES

    TWITTER:

    • Hendri Terblanche: @DadToBeAdvice
    • Sonke: @sonketogether
    • #10DaysPaternityLeave

    MORE: www.genderjustice.org.za

    RESOURCES:

    From: http://www.fatherhoodinstitute.org/

    Studies show there are many benefits to fathers having paternity leave:

    Impact on mothers and gender-equality

    • In the UK, a fathers’ taking paternity leave is strongly associated with mothers’ well-being three months after the birth (Redshaw & Henderson, 2013).
    • In Sweden it has been estimated that each additional month of parental leave taken by the father increases the mother’s earnings by 6.7% (Johannson, 2010).

    Impact on couples

    • In Norway, following the introduction of the four-week ‘daddy quota,’ significant numbers of fathers took longer leave. After this, an 11% lower level of conflict over household division of labour was found, and couples were 50% more likely to share clothes-washing equally (Kotsadam and Finseraas, 2011).
    • Similarly, in Quebec, some years after the introduction of their ‘daddy quota’, fathers were found to be more engaged in routine household tasks (Patnaik, 2013). A robust evidence base finds that greater participation in household chores is connected with couple relationship stability.
    • Swedish couples are 30% less likely to separate if the father took more than two weeks leave to care for their first child (Olah, 2001).
    • There is less violence in families where fathers have taken parental leave (Holter et al, 2008)

    Impact on fathers

    • Swedish fathers who take longer leave are more satisfied with time spent with their children (Haas & Hwang, 2008).

    Impact on children

    • Infants whose fathers take paternity leave during the first year are significantly more likely to be breastfed at two, four and six months of age (Flacking et al, 2010).
    • In the UK, fathers’ not using paternity leave or not sharing childcare responsibilities is associated with increased likelihood of their three-year-old having developmental problems (Dex & Ward, 2007)

  • Sonke welcomes release of health activists and calls for government investigation into their arrest

    Sonke Gender Justice (Sonke) welcomes the release of the 127 community healthcare workers and Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) activists who were arrested during a vigil and peaceful sit-in at the head office of the Free State’s Health Department on Thursday, 9 July 2014.

    The sit-in was staged after health workers failed to gain an audience with Free State Health Minister Benny Malakoane to discuss the collapsing health system in the Free State, including drug stock outs, ambulances, and staff shortages.

    Activists claim harsh treatment by the police during detention, and Sonke demands an immediate inquiry by the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) and the South Africa Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) into the arrest of these peaceful protestors who were detained for 36 hours.

    The TAC reports that “the activists and community healthcare workers were detained unnecessarily in harsh conditions with limited access to food and in need of critical medication for various conditions such as HIV, TB, diabetes and hypertension. Those arrested included many middle-aged and elderly women workers who have served the health service for many years.”

    Sonke stands in solidarity with the community healthcare workers and applauds the TAC for its part in fostering critical reforms in healthcare. Community healthcare workers are essential to ensuring that citizens receive proper treatment and medication on a grassroots level where other forms of healthcare infrastructure have collapsed. The arrest of these workers highlights a flagrant lack of respect for the critical work they do.

    “The increasing use of police force to squelch South Africans’ free speech is unacceptable, unconstitutional and contrary to the fabric of South Africa’s democracy,” says Rukia Cornelius, Community Education and Mobilisation Manager at Sonke, “The government should be in partnership with grassroots organisations and citizens seeking to improve access to healthcare, and not in opposition to them. This failure to engage with citizens about critical service delivery issues creates a need to take these issues to the courts instead, and prolongs the process of ensuring public access to critical and life-saving health services and treatments.”

    Sonke calls upon the government to hold those responsible for the arrests accountable for their actions. As citizens play a vital role in social change, their constitutional rights to freedom of speech and peaceful protest must be respected.

    South Africans deserve a working health care system that meets their needs. Access to quality health care services plays a vital role in promoting the equitable, healthy relationships that are the centrepiece of Sonke’s work, and which are enshrined in Chapter 2, Section 27 of South Africa’s Constitution and Bill of Rights which calls for the universal right to health services.

    Contact:

    Rukia Cornelius
    Sonke Gender Justice, Community Education and Mobilisation Manager
    Rukia@genderjustice.org.za

  • Sonke commends Minister for commitment to promoting positive discipline and prohibiting corporal punishment

    On Youth Day, Sonke Gender Justice commends the Minister of Social Development, Bathabile Dlamini, for her commitment to promote positive discipline and prohibit corporal punishment in all settings. As the nation celebrates our youth on June 16th, Sonke Gender Justice (“Sonke”) commends Minister Bathabile Dlamini for working to ensure South African youth are safe.

    This month, which is also Child Protection Month in South Africa, the Department of Social Development (DSD) expressed support for the prohibition of corporal punishment in the home:

    “Children are impressionable and when those in positions of authority use violent means to encourage discipline, the children understand this as saying violence is permissible when trying to persuade others to act in a certain way. This is why we are going to forge ahead with banning corporal punishment even in the home environment,” said DSD Minister Bathabile Dlamini.

    Sonke commends the Minister for her statement. Physical punishment of children is contrary to our own constitution, and to several international treaties that South Africa has signed. We believe the Minister’s statement expresses the intention to improve relationships and reduce violence between adults, youth and children, and we support this vision.

    Research carried out by the Medical Research Council on child deaths in 2009 found that nearly half of the 1 018 child homicides in that year could be attributed to non-accidental injuries within the context of a relationship of presumed responsibility and care by a parent or other caregiver (“child abuse”). This is one of the negative impacts of corporal punishment – the fact that it often escalates to more serious assault, and too often, in murder.

    The DSD, with the leadership of Minister Dlamini, has however recognized that more effective methods of discipline should be promoted and normalized in South Africa:

    “While the law we propose would be a positive development in caring for our children in that it will raise awareness about what abuse is, and how negative corporal punishment is and can be to a child’s development, we also need to help parents find more positive alternative forms of discipline,” said Minister Dlamini.

    The DSD has previously shown commitment to the prohibition of corporal punishment. The 2012 Child Protection Week campaign was dedicated to positive discipline. Positive discipline content is also incorporated in the Department’s capacity building programmes. Positive discipline is an approach to parenting that improves the parent-child relationship and communication, and avoids physical and humiliating punishment.

    In 2015 the Children’s Act is due to be amended, and the clause that prohibits corporal punishment is already included as an amendment. Sonke and the Working Group on Positive Discipline are calling on Minister Dlamini to sustain the laudable move to prohibit corporal punishment by championing the point in Cabinet, the National Council of Provinces and the relevant parliamentary portfolio committees, as soon as the committees have been confirmed.

    Similarly to other countries (most recently Brazil), prohibition does not depend on criminal law, but rather on family law – on its own, it will not lead to the incarceration of parents since the removal of the parent from the child’s environment is generally not in the best interest of the child. It will rather encourage healthy and caring relationships between parents and children.

    This Youth Day can remind us that youth have a right to grow up without violence, in a safe home environment. Commemorative days like this often include one-day campaigns or events. However, DSD has shown their departure from this by demonstrating a commitment to a long-term solution.

    Media Contacts

    Patrick Godana – patrick@genderjustice.org.za
    Mbuyiselo Botha – mbuyiselo@genderjustice.org.za
    Wessel van den Berg – wessel@genderjustice.org.za

    Resources

  • Sonke Gender Justice calls on parents and caregivers to cease spanking during child protection month (June)

    It takes 28 days to change a habit – use Child Protection Month to improve your parenting habits!

    ‘I never spanked my child, even though everyone around me was doing it. Today she is an adult, and tells me that it helped her to grow into a responsible and caring person.’
    — Mbuyiselo Botha – Father, grandfather and activist

    Physical punishment of children is contrary to our own constitution, and to several international treaties that we have signed as a country. Quality research studies from Africa and the rest of the world have proven that there are much better ways to discipline children that do not depend on using physical punishment or spanking. They have also shown that even the so-called ‘little slaps’ can be harmful in the long-term, impacting on children’s social and emotional development.

    Parents usually don’t like spanking their children, but they don’t know what else to do. The starting point for positive discipline is for parents to think about the long-term goals for children, rather than the short-term goals.

    ‘So while it’s urgent for her to put on her school jersey right now, you also want to remember that you want her to grow up as a caring person one day. Take a deep breath, calm down and tell her why it’s important to keep warm. And remember that children copy everything adults do, so if you want to teach her a lesson, she’ll copy that and want to teach you a lesson!’
    — Wessel van den Berg – Kindergarten teacher and parent.

    Using positive discipline is also a smart way to prevent violence in the long term, since children grow up learning that problems are not solved through violence, but through thinking and negotiating.

    Sonke is calling on all parents and caregivers in South Africa to avoid spanking for one week, and then to decide about the best method to manage their children’s behaviour.

    In 2015 the Children’s Act is due to be amended. Sonke and the Working Group on Positive Discipline are advocating for the use of positive discipline and the prohibition of physical punishment in home. This will not criminalise parents, since the removal of the parent from the child’s environment is obviously not in the best interest of the child. It will rather encourage healthy and caring relationships between parents and children.

    Contact

    Further Information

  • Civil Society applauds verdict in sex work murder case

    The Sex Worker Education and Advocacy Taskforce (SWEAT), Sisonke Sex Worker Movement, the Women’s Legal Centre and Sonke Gender Justice welcome the judgment handed down by the Western Cape High Court on 29 April 2014 that found double murder accused Johannes de Jager guilty of raping and murdering Hiltina Alexander, a sex worker, in May 2008 in Cape Town. De Jager was also found guilty of murdering and dismembering 16-year old teenager Charmaine Mare in 2013. Sentencing was supposed to be handed down on the 22 May 2014, but due to Afrikaans translator not readily available on the day; the hearing was postponed to the 27 May 2014.

    Gender-based violence is an injustice that affects many women and girls worldwide, with South Africa recording some of the highest rates of sexual violence. Violence against sex workers is particularly pronounced, and recent research shows that a third to half of all sex workers experienced violence in their workplaces in the last year. A legal framework that criminalises sex work greatly increases sex workers’ vulnerability to violence and reduces the likelihood that violence will be reported. Very few perpetrators of crimes against sex workers are brought to justice. In addition, high levels of violence against sex workers are linked to social stigma which has contributed to sex workers being viewed as second class citizens. Says Sisonke organizer, Dudu Dlamini “as a sex worker who experienced a lot of abuse from police and being raped , I never reported it because of laws that are used against us as sex workers. These laws label us criminals and bad people who not deserve safety and security. The law takes away our dignity and makes us all vulnerable to speak out”.

    We mourn the violent and unnecessary deaths of Alexander and Mare – but also question the slow response of the criminal justice system.

    “De Jager raped and murdered Alexander in 2008 – had he been arrested and prosecuted for this crime, 16-year-old Mare may still be alive today” Sally Shackleton, Director of SWEAT said. Mare was killed in 2013, five years after Alexander’s body was found.

    Marlise Richter, from Sonke Gender Justice added “While Alexander’s case took 6 years to conclude, the South African Law Reform Commission has spent more than 13 years researching legal models for sex work in South Africa”.

    SWEAT, Sisonke and Sonke Gender justice call on the South African Law Reform Commission to release their recommendations on sex work and the law, and ultimately for the South African government to decriminalise sex work. During this unconscionable delay, countless sex workers in South Africa have experienced rape, abuse and torture by clients, the police and the general public, while a number have been murdered. Removing the criminal law from sex work and bringing it under rights-based labour and occupational health & safety laws will reduce violence and enhance sex worker- and public safety.

    Alexander’s rape and murder is yet another urgent call to immediately safeguard sex worker rights.

    De Jager will be sentenced on 27 May 2014 at the Western Cape High Court.

    Contacts

    • Sally Shackleton: 082 330 4113
    • Marlise Richter: (021) 423-7088
    • Stacy-Leigh Manoek: (021) 424 5660

  • Sonke Gender Justice calls on government to follow through on commitment to gender parity

    Premiers

    Sonke Gender Justice is very disappointed that seven out of nine of our premieres are men. This is a dramatic reversal from the previous administration where four of the ANC’s eight premiers were women. Western Cape being the DA led government continues to appoints only two women out of nine MEC’s and this is again a disgrace. This is a reversal against the commitments all major political parties have made to prioritising gender transformation. Sonke calls on all parties to take leadership and take gender equality serious.

    Sonke notes that the cabinet has better gender balance than the premiers. We had hoped that cabinet might include at least 50% women and look forward to that day.

    New Department of Women

    We note with appreciation that the Department of Women, Children and People with Disability is now the Department of Women which will be located in the Presidency. The Women’s Ministry is intended to champion the achievement of women’s socio-economic empowerment and women’s rights. This ministry has a lot of work ahead given the urgency and severity of gender based violence in South Africa and the lack of a costed national plan to address it.

    Minister Susan Shabangu will lead this important ministry. As members of the Gender Based Violence Council we look forward to a constructive working relationship with the Minister and her Department that expedites the development of a National Strategic Plan that provides justice to survivors of violence, holds perpetrators accountable and puts in place fully funded violence prevention programmes. We call on the Presidency and other members of cabinet to provide full and immediate support to the new women’s ministry.

    We recall with concern Minister Shabangu’s statements when she was Deputy Minister of Police to “Shoot to kill the bastards” which contributed to a climate of police violence and was condemned by the South African Human Rights Commission. We call on her to desist from making similar statements in her new role and to ensure government pays equal attention to strategies that deter and prevent the violence.

    Contact

    • Sonke Joburg office: Bafana Khumalo, Advocacy and Accountability Manager, 082 578 4479
    • Sonke Cape Town Office: Vuyiseka Dubula, Advocacy and Accountability Manager, 082 763 3005