J Swanson-Jacobs: 16 days of activism commemoration

30 November 2007

Programme director, Ms Sadi Luka
Mayor of Tshwane, Dr Gwen Ramokgopa
Acting Director-General, Mr Zane Dangor
Ms Rosemary Ngobeni, Soshanguve Trauma Centre
Mr Dumisani Rebombo, men as partners
Government officials
Civil society organisations
Ladies and gentlemen
Members of the media

Good morning to one and all.

At the opening of the first democratically elected Parliament, our former
President, and Mr Nelson Mandela set the agenda for addressing the rights of
women in a post Apartheid South Africa, when he stated:

"Freedom cannot be achieved unless women have been emancipated from all
forms of oppression. All of us must take this on board that the objectives of
the reconstruction and development programme will not have been realised unless
we see, in practical and visible terms, that the conditions of women in our
country has been changed for the better and that they have been empowered to
intervene in all aspects of life as equals with any other member of
society."

This year we commemorated the 30th anniversary of the death of our struggle
stalwart Steve Biko. There is no doubt that he would have been appalled at the
way women have been treated in the new South Africa. The incidence of violence
perpetrated against women and children has reached unprecedented levels. Over
55 000 women were raped in our country last year. There were over 10 000 cases
of indecent assault, while adult women who were victims of family murders rose
by 13, 9 percent. Such figures are a betrayal of the struggle for freedom and
democracy in our land.

We did not fight for justice to see injustices committed against the weak
and vulnerable. We did not fight for fairness to witness victims of these
crimes being treated callously. We did not fight for equality so that women can
become society’s punching bags. Government has adopted the United Nations (UN)
campaign of 16 days of activism for no violence against women and children.
This campaign seeks to uphold the rights and restore the dignity of the most
vulnerable in our society. We as a nation will be engaging in various
activities, events and programmes aimed at raising awareness around the scourge
of violence and abuse of our women and children. other objectives include:

* increasing awareness of gender-based violence and violence directed at
children, particularly those living in rural and other traditionally
marginalised communities

* encouraging behaviour change among perpetrators and potential perpetrators
of violence against women and children

* highlighting the correlation between violence against women and children
and other social ills such as substance abuse

* raising funds to support places of safety providing services to victims
and survivors of violence and abuse

* underscoring the extreme vulnerability to abuse faced by special groups,
such as farm workers and women and children with disabilities

* strengthening inter-sectoral partnerships aimed at eradicating the
violence and abuse suffered by women and children

* facilitating the participation of men and boys in campaign activities and
events.

To this end we have embarked on a number of programmes. A cornerstone of our
campaign this year is the Million Men's March. It was conceived to sharpen the
focus and mainstream the participation of our men and boys in this campaign The
million men's march is symbolic of men and boys joining together with women to
say "No!" to the abuse of women and children. It will further highlight the
fact that violence against women and children is not only a women's issue, but
a societal issue, an issue that should concern everybody.

The SMS campaign is another mechanism for members of the public to get
involved in the 16 Days of activism campaign. The aim of the SMS campaign is to
provide an opportunity for the general public to pledge support for
non-violence, to spread the message to "act against abuse" and to raise funds
for places of safety for abused women and children. Members of the public can
contribute to the campaign by sending an SMS with the words "16 Days" to 31616.
For each SMS sent, a donation of five rands is made to the 16 Days of activism
fund. The donations are administered, managed and disbursed by the Foundation
for Human Rights (FHR), a civil society partner and friend of the campaign.

Through the foundation for human rights we have been able to bring the
message against gender violence to the most rural of communities. In Limpopo
FHR assisted the Matlala Advice Office conduct workshops on violence against
women and children in area covering sixty villages. In the Eastern Cape the FHR
supported the Gompo Child Abuse Centre and was able to translate human rights
materials on children’s rights and child abuse into isiXhosa. Similar projects
were helped in other provinces. This resulted in more women and children coming
forward to utilise their services.

Another important initiative is the One Man Can Campaign. This campaign
provides men and boys with resources to act on their concerns about domestic
and sexual violence. It was launched in 2006 in conjunction with the 16 Days of
activism campaign. This campaign provides an action toolkit for men that
include a resource directory, workshop materials and information on how to
develop healthy relationships and how to support victims of violence.

Government as a whole is strengthening its hand in the battle to protect
women and children. The Service Charter for Victims of Crime in South Africa
will be launched soon and combines the current legal framework on the rights of
victims of crime with the services to be provided to them. It identifies seven
key rights for which victims can demand from the criminal justice system and
related service providers like hospitals. The Charter aims to ensure that
victims remain central to the criminal justice process in South Africa, to
eliminate "secondary victimisation" from this process.

The complementary minimum standards on service for victims of crime aims to
explain the rights contained in the victims' charter further, and to help make
these rights a reality by giving detailed information to enable victims to
exercise their rights and service providers to uphold them. Over 20 000
government officials and personnel, police officers and train-the-trainers have
already been trained on the victims' charter nationally, including chairperson
and vice-chairpersons of all the Parole Boards. In 2006, 50 000 victims were
prepared for court by 66 trained court preparation officers and the victims
support directorate established in 2005 as part of the department of justice,
also added to the growing empowerment and support of victims of crime in the
country.

The Department of Social Development has also been involved in other
projects which have been supported by funds from the criminal assets recovery
account, administered by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA). In
conjunction with the provincial departments of social development we are busy
establishing two new shelters for victims of domestic violence in KwaZulu-Natal
and Mpumalanga. At least one shelter in each of the nine provinces has been
prioritised for upgrading, with a focus on rural areas. Support to civil
society bodies involved in running victim empowerment and support centres has
also been strengthened and we will be handing out cheques to some of these
organisations today. We are also embarking on initiatives to engage men and
boys in the prevention of gender-based violence.

The National Child Protection Register is also up and running and enables us
to have a record of all abused children with the aim of rendering effective
services and protecting them from further harm. With the passing of the
Children’s Amendment Bill this programme will be strengthened by the creation
of a register of offenders. Any person deemed by a court of law as "unsuitable"
for working with children will be added to this register. This will further
protect the most vulnerable in our society from those predators that prey on
our children. In partnership with the United Nations office on drugs and crime
we have also established eight one-stop centres that deal with gender-based
violence.

These centres provide counselling, support, training, paralegal advice and
medical attention to victims of violence, as well as rehabilitation programmes
for male perpetrators and potential offenders, in order to break the cycle of
violence. Tomorrow, the 1st of December we commemorate World AIDS Day. This day
provides an opportunity to draw attention to how the pandemic particularly
affects women and children and how, if coupled with gender-based violence,
increases women and children's vulnerability. Our view in government is that
there is a clear link between violence against women and HIV infection.
Socio-economic factors, unequal gender and sexual relations, unprotected sex,
and alcohol and drug abuse are among the factors that have increased the
negative impact of HIV and AIDS.

Therefore, behaviour change programmes form part of government's prevention
efforts to stop the spread of HIV and AIDS. These programmes are especially
important during the festive season when increased violence and risky behaviour
make women more vulnerable. The 16 days campaign is not only a campaign of
government, but encompasses a wider partnership with civil society, faith-based
organisations, gender-based organisations, traditional leaders, trade unions,
the media, business, state-owned enterprises and the youth. Government values
the partnerships that have been built over the years and would like to thank
each and every partner for their contribution. We urge you to intensify your
role now and into the future. Violence against women is not a women’s issue,
but a challenge for greater society to tackle.

Together, let us act against abuse!

Thank you.

Issued by: Department of Social Development
30 November 2007