Ramaphosa: GBV will be classified as national crisis
President Cyril Ramaphosa says gender-based
violence and femicide will now be classified as a national crisis.
“We have agreed among all social partners that we need to take extraordinary and concerted action using every means at our disposal to end this crisis,” Ramaphosa told the G20 Social Summit in Boksburg on Thursday afternoon.
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The move comes a day before the country joins anti-GBV organisations in a protest and 15 minutes of silence for the 15 women murdered in the country every day.
Bernadette Beyers from Purple Cap, a drug rehabilitation centre in Pietermaritzburg, says it is disappointing that GBV is only being declared a crisis now.
“It is a national crisis, and the government has not done much about it. We run a drug rehabilitation centre, and substance abuse is also a serious issue that is making this gender-based violence in high rise.”
Craig Freese from Men Fighting Against Domestic Abuse says anti-abuse NGOs urgently need more substantial support from the government.
“We fully need the support of everybody, as we all know that GBV, femicide and substance abuse cannot be dealt with as individuals, and the government is not playing an active role.”
