Ramaphosa to SA men: Lead task to end GBV

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa has urged men to lead the fight against gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF).

While addressing the 17th IAWJ Biennial Conference in Cape Town on Wednesday, 9 April - under the theme Resilience: Women in Leadership to End GBVF, Ramaphosa emphasised that ending the scourge should not rest solely on women but must actively include men.

"Men should be in the forefront of the struggle because it is us as men who violate women. So, in many ways, we must lead the struggle against gender-based violence," he said.

Ramaphosa said GBV doesn't happen in a vacuum.

He pointed out that it's the result of complex societal, cultural, and structural factors, some of which are the unequal power dynamics between men and women, cultural norms and practices, unemployment, conflict and wars and patriarchy.

Ramaphosa said there's economic violence against women where they are prevented from accessing financial resources and achieving independence, thereby condemning them to poverty.

"Given all this, we had to embark on a number of efforts to combat GBV, including legal reforms, public awareness campaigns, support services for survivors, and initiatives aimed at changing societal attitudes around gender roles and power dynamics.

"In the post-Beijing years, we passed progressive legislation such as the Domestic Violence Act, the Maintenance Act, the Sexual Offences and Related Matters Amendment Act and others," he said.

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Ramaphosa mentioned that GBV continues unabated across the world, even in countries with progressive laws advancing gender equality.

He highlighted that South Africa has made significant progress, moving from a time when the judiciary had only three black male judges and no black women judges.

President Ramaphosa highlighted that approximately 48% of judges in the superior courts are women.

Furthermore, six of the 15 superior courts, including the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court of Appeal, are led by women.

"At the level of the magistracy, more than half of our magistrates are female. As female jurists, you have particularly strong influence and can shift the broader judicial culture with respect to GBVF."

He told delegates that in 2019, Mzansi had convened the first Presidential Summit on GBVF in response to the alarming rise in violence directed against women and kids.

Ramaphosa said it united officials, policymakers, activists, and civil society organisations to craft a clear and comprehensive response to GBVF.

"The outcome was the adoption of the National Strategic Plan, which is centred around six pillars, of which one is strengthening the criminal justice system and offering greater protection to survivors."