By Amelia Naidoo
More than a decade after women across the country began coming together to raise awareness about gender violence, women and children in South Africa are still subjected to an alarming rate of physical and sexual violence.
As the 16 days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children campaign begins on Saturday, activists said violence against women continued to be perpetuated at all levels - in law enforcement, the criminal justice system, the health-care system and in communities.
The plight of women and children has been highlighted across the country at "I stories" workshops, at which women have publicly shared their personal experiences of violence to help others come forward and raise awareness.
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| 'Seeking justice through the courts is our right' |
The Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) and community activists had also recently held a protest march in Eshowe, in support of women's rights to live their lives free from sexual and gender-based violence, TAC General Secretary Sipho Mthathi said.
The TAC is a member of the "One in Nine Campaign", a network-based campaign aimed at building solidarity with and justice for women survivors who speak out.
"Seeking justice through the courts is our right. Building justice where we live is the ultimate goal. This campaign aims to build a just environment for all, and particularly for women," said Mthathi.
A community organiser in Lusikisiki, in the Eastern Cape, spoke out about her experiences when helping raped women seek justice.
"When you go to the courts, you find that the cases are postponed, rape kits are lost or police investigators are on sick leave - this is all so discouraging to these women," she said.
| 'Prosecutors also discourage them from pursuing their cases' |
Often, rural community members treated rape lightly and negotiated with the rapist's family, with payments of sheep and goats being made, she said.
Penny Dladla (not her real name), a rape survivor from Mandeni, in northern KwaZulu-Natal, spoke about her problems with the police.
"When you go to the police, they don't want to help you and act irritated. It makes you feel uncomfortable. Even the female investigators are rude to you - they question you like you are lying."
The woman spoke of how difficult it was getting information contained in case files from investigators.
"To add stress to rape survivors who go through the courts, prosecutors also discourage them from pursuing their cases by telling them that their cases are weak."
The activists and community members marched in solidarity with "the 51 500 women whose rape cases each year - although reported to the police - are ignored and forgotten," said Mthathi.
The group marched to the regional court in Eshowe, where a long list of their demands was handed over to a magistrate.
Top of the list was a demand for justice for survivors of rape, and zero tolerance for all forms of violence against women.
Women demanded that the police and justice system increase the number of rapists arrested and charged.
An immediate end to police intimidation and incompetence, including the "losing" of dockets, was listed. Access to post-exposure prophylactics at health-care facilities, especially rural ones, and better psycho-social support for rape survivors was also emphasised.
According to TAC statistics from 2005, more than 55 000 rapes were reported to the police. "We know that rape and sexual violence in general is a much bigger problem than SAPS statistics suggest. We know that most incidents of rape go unreported," said Mthathi.
Of the more than 55 000 rape cases reported in 2005, only 7 percent of cases were successfully prosecuted. "This is an injustice. It sends a message to communities that rape is not a serious crime and that the survivors of rape, who are usually women, do not matter.
"Why does this happen? Because families, communities, social and governance institutions believe that sexual violence is not an issue of pressing concern, and do not speak out against it."
Mthathi said that one of the main barriers for rape survivors' access to justice was the criminal justice system itself.
At police stations, women were met with intimidation, harassment, disrespect and blame.
"As it functions today, the South African criminal justice system is an institutional endorsement of male power. It sends a message that rape is not a serious crime."
Survivors of sexual violence were at risk of contracting HIV, as sex was unprotected and violent, said Mthathi.
"We live in a patriarchal society, in which the majority of men feel entitled to power, including dominance and control over women, their bodies and their sexuality. South Africa's intolerable levels of rape are a symptom of the abuse of male power and a deeply destructive disrespect towards women."
Mthathi said this level of gender-based violence in a country with a devastating Aids pandemic meant that efforts to end new HIV infections were being undermined.
amelia.naidoo@inl.co.za
- This article was originally published on page 6 of The Mercury on November 24, 2006
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