21 November 2007
The North West Provincial Government will launch the 16 Days of Activism for
No Violence against Women and Children campaign at Maboloka in Madibeng Local
Municipality on Sunday, 25 November 2007.
The campaign, which will run until the 10 December 2007, will be unveiled
under the theme: "Act against Abuse".
The provincial government will also use this event as a platform to unveil a
plan of building 32 houses for victims of this form of abuse across the
province. The campaign will kick-start with the Million Men's march, which will
start at the entrance of Maboloka village and end at the Ambassadors Sport
ground where the main event will take place.
The march is part of the conscious effort aimed at mobilising and educating
men and boy children on the negative impact of gender-based violence while
encouraging them in the 16 Days of Activism Campaign even beyond the
commemoration period. As part of community mobilisation, the Madibeng Local
Municipality will avail 62 buses for people in all wards to attend the event
and participate in the march while there will also be one bus from each local
municipality across the province to ferry people to the event.
The event will also serve to highlight the Victim's Charter in detail, to
inform the public that victims of abuse also have rights and are entitled to
protection.
The provincial government will also join all sectors of society to mark and
commemorate this period while encouraging all people to report any form of
women or child abuse to the police.
In this context, we will work together to reach out to rural areas including
farming, mining, and informal settlement communities. Those most affected by
violence are in these areas and are often not aware of the resources and
services available to help them cope with their circumstances. Local structures
and faith based organisations associated with the government have a critical
role to play to reach these groups.
The provincial government is ensuring that the key messages of this campaign
continue to play an awareness-raising role and ensure continuous implementation
of the plans aimed at combating gender-based violence and children abuse beyond
the 16 days. In this regard, we also call on men, boys, perpetrators and
rehabilitated perpetrators to fight against gender-based and child-related
violence.
The provincial government also encourages victims of such abuse or violence
to report the matter to the police. Premier Edna Molewa said women and children
should therefore not fear their abusers as the police will protect them against
such people.
"We want all in society to speak out against any form of abuse against women
and children, we also urge victims to come forward and report such acts so that
we can put a stop to their abuse. Members of the public are also urged to
report such incidents should they be aware of those affected by such crimes in
their families or neighbourhood.
The key commemorative dates for the 16 Days of Activism Campaign are as
follows:
* International Day for No Violence against Women on Sunday, 25 November
2007, in Maboloka, which will serve as the official launch for the
campaign.
* World Aids Day on Saturday, 1 December 2007, at Olen Park in
Potchefstroom.
* International Day for People Living With Disability on Monday, 3 December
2007 in Itsoseng
* International Human Rights Day on Monday, 10 December 2007 in Setlagole
Enquiries:
Cornelius Tanana Monama
Spokesperson: North West Provincial Government
Tel: 018 387 3456
Cell: 082 578 4063
Issued by: North West Provincial Government
21 November 2007
