Programme director and MEC for Health and Social Development in Limpopo province, Mrs Miriam Segabutla
Honourable Premier of Limpopo, Comrade Cassel Mathale
Honourable Ministers and Deputy Ministers from our Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries
Honourable Members of Parliament and Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Social Development
MECs for Social Development here present
Distinguished members of the diplomatic corps
Representatives of government, civil society and development agencies
Esteemed guests, friends and colleagues, ladies and gentlemen
Good morning to you all!
It is both a pleasure and a great honour for me to join you here today to address this important gathering on a topic of profound regional and global concern: Victim Empowerment. I hope you will quickly settle in, feel comfortable and, in particular that every individual here will feel free to contribute fully and honestly to the deliberations of the next few days.
We are honoured to have with us the Honourable Minister of Social Assistance and Social Re-Integration in Angola, Dr João Baptista Kussumua, Honourable Deputy Minister of Health and Social Services of Namibia, Petrina Hanguira and Honourable Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Welfare in Zimbabwe, Honourable T Mutinhiri and several representatives from the SADC Health and Social Development Sector, including the Town Councils. We are happy to have you join us at this significant conference. For those of you who are visiting our beautiful country for the first time, I bid you a warm South African welcome on behalf of our government and the people of South Africa.
I also wish to recognise the Acting United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Regional Representative for Southern Africa, Mrs Elizabeth Mayer, and the Head of Delegation of European Commission for South Africa, Ambassador Lodewijk Briët. We are happy to have you join us at this conference. On behalf of the government and the people of South Africa, and on my own behalf, I would like to applaud and express our gratitude to your continued financial and technical support in the Victim Empowerment Programme (VEP).
I would be remiss if I forget to recognise the most important partners in this conference- the representatives of non governmental organisations (NGOs), faith based organisations (FBOs) and community based organisations (CBOs) who are participating in the conference. My special thanks to you for keeping the flame of hope burning in our communities. We look forward to your continued inspiring work with victims of crime and violence as well as human trafficking. A special welcome to representatives of the media who are invited to attend all discussions at this conference because I believe media has an important role to play in changing societal attitudes towards violence against women and children by exposing and consistently denouncing all forms of violence.
Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to preface my address on a somber note. Last week Thursday, The Times newspaper published a chilling and nerve-wrecking story of a four year-old girl who was abducted from her home in Khayelitsha, Cape Town, and sexually abused by an unknown man. Hers is a story of many victims of violent crime and abuse.
Events like this conference that brings us here today are of utmost importance if this little girl’s story is to be an incentive to us all in the common effort to put a stop to this intolerable violence. Such acts are unacceptable because every child who suffers violence is a life cut short and innocence lost in vain. And every girl or woman harassed is a reminder of how much more still need to be done to confront the scourge of violence and abuse.
Ladies and gentlemen, this conference follows on the heels of the United Nations High Level Summit to review progress towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The Summit called on the African Union (AU) and its regional bodies, including SADC, to take urgent action to ensure that this decade (2010-2020) which the AU declared as the “Decade of the African Women”, improves women’s lives and brings to end the endemic violence faced by women and girls across the continent.
It is therefore not only right to be discussing the issue of victim empowerment and human trafficking, but befitting because violence against women and children is a serious violation of the universal principles of human rights. Acts of violence against women and children critically undermine the enjoyment of human rights, including the right to life and physical integrity of the victims.
In organising this conference, we were driven by a strong impulse to consult widely -- a sense that those of us who make decisions of national consequence need to be guided by the thinking of partners and colleagues working closer to the rockface of service delivery.
As you all know, the already marginalised status of women and children put them at greater risk to become affected by poverty and hardships, which in turn puts them at higher risk of violence and abuse and become easy targets of human trafficking. It is common knowledge that women and children constitute a large number of victims of violence and abuse, including human trafficking. Violence against women and children must therefore be addressed in the context of seeking to end all forms of women’s vulnerabilities to advance gender equality and to empower women.
The costs of violence against women and children are extremely high. They include the direct costs of services to treat and support abused women and their children and to bring perpetrators to justice. The indirect costs include lost employment and productivity, and the costs in human pain and suffering. Research has shown that women subjected to violence are more likely to suffer physical, mental and reproductive health problems which place them at greater risk of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV and AIDS, and unwanted pregnancies.
It is a well-known fact that the South African government is committed to ensuring a better life for all, free from violence, especially against women and children. My government is fully aware of the need to ensure the protection of the rights to equality, human dignity, privacy and freedom, as well as security of each person in this country as mandated by our constitution. The commitment is also informed by the obligations South Africa has in terms of international instruments for human rights such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Beijing Platform for Action, Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women and the United Nations Declaration of Basic Principles of Justice for Victims of Crime and Abuse of Power, to name a few.
In accordance with the obligations derived from these international legal instruments, the South African government introduced a number of policies and programmes. Chief among these was the Victim Empowerment Programme (VEP) under the umbrella of the National Crime Prevention Strategy and the Domestic Violence Act of 1998. The emphasis of the Victim Empowerment Programme is placed on prevention of victimisation, providing protection and support, and empowerment of victims with a special focus on the most vulnerable groups such as children, women, older persons and people with disabilities.
Other initiatives include the Services Charter for Victims of Crime, Minimum Norms and Standards, as well as the National Policy Guidelines for victim empowerment. And our efforts are paying off. The national crime statistics, covering the year ending 31 March 2010, suggest that violent crime is on the decline in the country, with sexual crimes down by 4.4%. While these figures are encouraging, more could and has to be done to combat crimes against women and children in the country. We need to do more to ensure to prevent such crimes from happening in the first place. Remember the old adage: “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure prevention is better than cure”.
The first most important step in tackling this problem is to acknowledge that domestic violence is not a private matter, but a huge social problem. We cannot consider our societies free and fair if women continue to live in fear of their own partners or family members, or when they suffer sexual harassment at the workplace. Any society that sits back and fold its arms while a large number of its population live in fear is not a just society. What is more shameful is when society or perpetrators of these violent acts justify them as a form of culture. No custom, religion or tradition can be invoked to justify the violation of human rights.
Another important principle is the need to empower victims to regain and take control of their lives and to prevent re-victimisation. The police and healthcare workers are often the first among other professionals to come into contact with the victims of violence. It is therefore important that these professionals are well trained and continue to receive ongoing training on how to recognise and respond to both immediate and long-term needs of victims.
The South African government has persistently strengthened its capacity building in order to respond the problem of domestic violence including raising public awareness and implementing international regulations nationally. At this juncture, allow me to briefly highlight some of our government’s efforts to nationally implement international regulations on this matter. Currently we are working closely with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and European Union (EU) Commission under the Programme of Assistance to the South African Government to improve implementation of victim empowerment services by building capacity and improving coordination between government institutions and civil society organisations.
The Programme of Assistance was officially launched in 2008. Now, just over two years down the track, we can claim many successes from our endeavours. To date we have appointed national and provincial VEP Coordinators in all nine provinces. We have finalised the strategy on the involvement of men and boys in Gender-Based Violence, launched the National Policy Guidelines and we have also finalised the rehabilitation programme for victims of human trafficking.
The partnership also relate to the establishment of One-Stop Centres for Victims of Crime and Violence to ensure that victims receive services from a multi-disciplinary team to reduce secondary victimisation.
Programme director, you will agree with me that to eradicate domestic violence and gender based violence, we must engage men as active allies and partners in mobilisation and prevention programmes. I am encouraged that over the last few years South African men’s organisations have begun to use the media to educate the public about positive and non-violent masculinity to end the social acceptance of violence against women and the gender inequality that underpins it. In this regard, I would like to express my personal thanks to organisations such as Men Engage Alliance, Sonke Gender Justice Network and the Brothers for Life campaign for continuing to mobilise men to be positive agents of change in our society.
Since 1998, the 16 Days Activism for no Violence Against Women and Children Campaign has succeeded in placing the violence against women and children firmly on the national agenda. The campaign has managed to bring on board the media, sporting sector, men's groups, private sector, non-governmental organisations, faith-based organisations and other stakeholders on the quest to end violence against women and children.
I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere thanks to government departments represented here today for their commitment to making the Victim Empowerment Programme a model of success for intersectoral cooperation. And while we have made progress in this programme, we cannot yet claim victory against violent crimes. A recent study conducted by the University of South Africa’s Centre for Applied Psychology clearly shows that we need to strengthen coordination of VEP services at implementation level. To fight domestic violence successfully, we must step up cooperation and coordination at all levels to provide optimal services and support to empower victims.
Ladies and gentlemen, one of my greatest concerns with regard to victim empowerment is the lack of shelters in rural areas. It is not sufficient that support services such as help-lines, shelters and One-Stop Centres are established only in urban centres. Victims living in rural areas should not be made to travel tens or hundreds of kilometres to find refuge and appropriate support and assistance, in their own language. On the same note, it is not sufficient that support and protection is provided only for immediate crisis situation. Some victims will require a long period of support to regain their normal functioning. Victim empowerment services should be tailored to meet the individual needs of victims. And that is why coordination is so crucial.
Ladies and gentlemen, one very serious form of violence that needs the urgent attention of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region and the global world is the growing phenomenon of human trafficking. Human trafficking is a result of a complex set of interrelated push and pull factors. On the ‘push’ side most studies focus on such factors as poverty, lack of economic opportunities, dislocation, gender, racial and ethnic inequalities, and the family dysfunction. ‘Pull’ factors include the false promises of a better life, consumer aspirations and general lack of information on the risks involved. Many people are still tricked or forced from their communities to be exploited and abused
More recently the United Nations global report on trafficking in persons (2009) shows that sexual exploitation is by far the most common reason for human trafficking with 79 percent of victims. Forced labour accounts for 18 percent of the victims of human trafficking. Like the global drug trade, almost every country in the world is affected by human trafficking, either as a source, transit or destination for victims.
Human trafficking syndicates have proven very successful in cross broader cooperation. I therefore would like to echo the call made by the 12th African Women’s AU Pre-Summit Consultations in Cairo (Egypt-2008) for African states to take urgent steps to curb human trafficking. Bearing in mind that human trafficking is a transnational crime; cross-border cooperation is a must to address this phenomenon and other related transnational crimes. Both countries of origin and destination must cooperate closely to ensure that protection of rights of the victims remain a high priority at all times.
The fact that South Africa is seen as a source, transit and destination country for trafficking in persons is a threat to our fledging democracy. National and international efforts to combat human trafficking emphasise the value of effective legislation and law enforcement. Accordingly, government has put in place various measures to deter this crime. Key among these is the Sexual Offences Amendment Act, Children’s Act which came into full operation in April this year, and the Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in Persons Bill, which is currently before Parliament. The Bill provides for the prosecution of persons involved in trafficking and for appropriate sentences. The Bill also makes provision for the protection and assistance of victims of trafficking. These measures clearly show that government’s effort to combat human trafficking is comprehensive and firm.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am confident that today you will exchange your positive experiences from your daily work which will surely serve as a means to reinforce our collaborations at regional level and beyond. We have had, we still have and we hope to have in the future continued support of the donor community in fulfilling the promise and obligations to the victims of crime and violence.
During this three-day conference, we will hear presentations on which services are needed and how they should be organised and coordinated in order to meet the victims’ needs. We will also hear how we can work together to improve and restore the lives of victims of crime and violence. Later today we will visit one of the shelters that provides victim empowerment services in the local area.
In conclusion I would like to once again, thank local non governmental organisations (NGOs) and international partners for their joint commitment to the Victim Empowerment Programme (VEP). Without your contribution, any progress would have been impossible. I trust that the support demonstrated here in statements will be turned into serous action at the local and national levels, where it really matters.
As government we count on you to find practical and effective solutions which will contribute to ending violence against women and children. I want to thank you all for being here, and I appreciate the work you are doing. I hope that you will have a very fruitful and good conference and I wish all our visitors a very good stay in South Africa.
I thank you.
