Programme Director
My Cabinet colleagues
Representatives of civil society
Members of the media
Honoured guests
Ladies and gentlemen
We are gathered here today to mark the launch of the 16 Days of Activism Campaign on No Violence against Women and Children under the theme – Don't look away, Act against abuse. This theme calls upon all of us, families, communities, civil society and government and other sector of our society to take action to stop the rampant cases of abuse in our society.
The 16 Days of Activism Campaign takes place annually from 25 November which is an International Day of No Violence against Women. It runs up to 10 December which is an International Human Rights Day.
The period of the campaign coincide with commemoration of the World AIDS Day on 1 December and the International Day of Persons with Disabilities on 3 December. This allows us to focus on the link between sexual violence and the spread of HIV infection as well as incidents of abuse experienced by persons with disabilities.
The campaign focuses on increasing awareness of the detrimental effect of violence on women, children and society as a whole. The year 2009 officially marks the ten year anniversary of the 16 Days of Activism Campaign in South Africa. Over the ten years, we have witnessed exponential growth of this campaign, making it the second most known government event in South Africa, after the State of the Nation Address according to the Government Communication (GCIS) Tracker Survey of last year.
Programme Director, although the campaign has succeeded in raising awareness amongst the South African public, the abuse of children and women continue to occur. This disjuncture between the high level of awareness and persisting abuse is a cause for concern.
The continuing incidents of violence necessitates a review of the arrangements and programmes around fighting gender based violence and child abuse that have been implemented over the past 10 years. This will be the primary focus of the Summit that will be held at Birchwood conference centre in Boksburg on 25 November to mark the official commencement of this year's campaign.
We are confident that as the South African Police Service (SAPS) reinforces security measures for the festive season, the issues of safety of women and children will be high on the agenda. We are already encouraged by the efforts being made regarding the reestablishment of specialised units dealing with crimes against women and children. We believe that this development will strengthen police capacity to successfully deal with cases of sexual abuse.
The terrible cases of abduction, rape and murder of little children are making headlines in many areas of our country. In response to this challenge, the Ministry of Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities commissioned a study which seeks to build a profile of a child murderer currently held in correctional service centres. The outcomes of the study will be released as soon as the verification process is finalised.
While we finalise this work, it is becoming apparent that the use of drugs and alcohol abuse are the most common factors identified amongst people who have been convicted of these crimes. We therefore need to intensify the response to drug trade and use. We should also intensify enforcement of existing restrictions with regard to access to alcohol and highlight negative effect of alcohol abuse through various means including messages on the containers of alcoholic beverages.
Again this year, the 16 Days Campaign will feature strong media activities which include the use of both advertising and editorial opportunities to heighten the focus of our nation on issues of abuse over the next 16 days. A list of 16 Days activities combining both government and civil society events and activities is available in the government website to encourage participation.
We call on all South Africans to once again support this campaign. The practical ways in which anyone can support the campaign include:
* The wearing of a white ribbon which symbolises support for the campaign
* Actively supporting, financially and otherwise, various shelters and places of safety that are doing outstanding work in supporting survivors of abuse
* Getting involved in a range of local initiatives, programmes and events organised by our various partners in our government departments and municipalities, the non-governmental organisations (NGO) and community based organisations (CBO) sectors, the religious fraternity and the private and business community.
* This include participating in the cyber dialogues initiative, which is facilitated by gender-links.
The closing ceremony will be held in Free State on 10 December.
The Ministry of Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities will lead a co-ordinated effort to sustain the campaign into its next decade. Our aim is to work in partnership with other government departments and civil society organisations to fight the scourge of violence throughout the 365 Days of the year. We will be taking up the implementation of the 365 Days National Action Plan against Gender Based Violence.
Thank you
Issued by: Department of Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities
23 November 2009
