Unveiling of Anti GBVF billboard at Caledon Police Station
Gender-based Violence and Femicide needs daily work & advocacy to stamp out the scourge and protect our women and children
Today I was joined by the Overberg District Municipality Mayor, the Theewaterskloof Mayor and Deputy Mayor, local SAPS leadership and local officials as we unveiled the 25th Anti-Gender-Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF) Billboard installed by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) at police stations in areas identified as hot spot areas for GBVF crimes.
We unveiled the anti-GBVF billboard at the Caledon Police station in the Western Cape, one of the latest locations where DPWI installed the billboard to demonstrate advocacy against GBVF and communicate helpline numbers for victims of abuse.
This month the DPWI also completed the installation of anti-GBVF billboards at the Bredasdorp, Laingsburg, Paarl and Beaufort West police stations in the Western Cape as well as at the Bloemspruit, Thabong, Zamdela and Phuthajidaba police stations in the Free State.
This brings the total number of billboards installed in GBVF hotspot areas across the country by DPWI to 25 since December 2019.
I was joined at the Caledon billboard unveiling by Overberg Executive Mayor Alderman Sakkie Franken, Theewaterskloof Mayor, Karel Papier and Deputy Mayor, John Michels, Caledon SAPS station commander, Colonel June Maarman, SAPS Overberg District Commissioner, Major General Mochologi and Overberg District Municipal Manager, Richard Bosman.
The installation of the anti-GBVF billboards stems from a commitment I made during the joint sitting of the National Assembly regarding GBVF in September 2019, where I stated that DPWI would use state-owned properties to install anti-GBV messaging as a campaign to show government’s solidarity with communities and families who have been affected by this scourge and to demonstrate government efforts in the fight against GBVF.
During the special sitting of Parliament on GBVF, I also made a commitment that DPWI would allocate unoccupied state-owned properties for service delivery purpose, especially to provide shelter to victims of GBV.
So far 14 state-owned properties have been handed over to provincial social development departments for use as shelters for victims of gender-based violence in the Western Cape, Gauteng, the Free State and Limpopo. We are finalising refurbishments of more properties in other provinces to be used as shelters for victims of GBV and these will be handed over to the provincial Social Development departments during the course of 2023 in line with the District Development Model.
While the period of 16 Days of Activism Against GBVF has come to a close, this does not mean that we must stop our work to fight against this scourge. The degeneration of our society has seen escalated levels of violence against women and children and to fight these vicious crimes, we need all sectors of society to work together 365 days a year to protect our women and children and ensure that perpetrators receive harsh sentences for their crimes.
All spheres of governments must work together and as DPWI, our contribution is making shelters available and placing billboards in hot spot areas so that people who need help and can see that help is at hand as various helpline numbers are placed on the billboards.
We need all communities to keep on doing the good work they are doing to combat GBVF and we are grateful for the many community organisations doing good work in this regard.
As communities and leaders, we must stand together and speak up and act against GBVF as victims are too scared to speak up and report abuse as they fear for their lives. We need to rally around them and provide them with the support they need, help them to report abuse and keep them safe from abuse.
We must save our women and children and I appeal to all sectors to ramp up the fight against GBVF. As DPWI we will continue doing our part, especially to avail state-owned properties to be used as shelters for victims of GBV.
These properties are not just buildings, they are a lifeline, a safe haven, a second chance and hopefully a place of healing for abused women and children.
Enquiries:
Zara Nicholson: Media Liaison Officer to Minister Patricia de Lille
Mobile: 079 416 5996
Email: zara.nicholson@dpw.gov.za
