Cape Town - The Madina Institute’s Centre for Non-Violence and Peace Studies held a youth summit against gender-based violence (GBV) at Spine Road High in Mitchells Plain.
Inspired by the UN global campaign and under the same title, Orange the World Youth Summit learners from Grades 8 to 12 gathered from schools across the district for a solutions-based workshop, facilitated by university students, to address issues such as GBV and femicide.
This year’s summit saw around 200 learners from Maitland High, Wynberg High, Islamia College, Princeton High, The Bright Student Learning Centre and the Langa community gather.
Facilitators posed questions to the learners on concepts such as gender, patriarchy, masculinity, femininity and willpower, and provided better understanding and clarity on these issues.
Mayor Dan Plato addressed attendees: “We can't during the 16 Days of Activism only talk about the issues around women; we must draw in the men. Raising boys to be good men, that’s so important.”
Guest speaker and award-winning gamer Bahiyya Khan, creator of the After Hours video game, which focuses on a young woman who was sexually abused as a child and as a result struggles with borderline personality disorder, gave a presentation.
“It was on video games and GBV and how to try to not end up as a product of your environment but go beyond that,” said Khan.
“I made my game because of the number of women in my family who’ve been sexually abused and harassed - I tried to make it as a form of activism and to educate people.”
Khan added that the journey in making the video game was emotionally and physically draining.
She said she had contemplated suicide while creating the game, as it forced her to address her own experiences of abuse.
@TheCapeArgus