Mar 2, 2021
President Cyril Ramaphosa in his State of the Nation Address earlier this month said it was important for law enforcement agencies to reduce the backlog of gender-based violence (GBV) cases in the country. This comes after he named GBV the second pandemic in our country, with the crime statistics for the last quarter of 2020 showing a massive increase in violence against women and children.
However last month, National Shelter Movement of South Africa (NSMSA) project co-ordinator Mariam Mangera said that despite the country finally having a national strategic plan to counter GBV, law enforcement does not seem to be making headway. Volunteer organisations with domestic violence helplines in place have also reported a near 30% rise in calls for help during the hard lockdown.
Survey lays bare the extent of GBV violence
By Mthuthuzeli Ntseku
Share
Cape Town - A recent survey by CompariSure, a financial technology company, has revealed that gender-based violence may be even more severe than current observations by many organisations.
The survey, which was conducted over a period of two months with 531 respondents, follows on the heels of the release of the third-quarter crime statistics, which revealed a 5% increase in reported sexual offences.
The survey revealed that 52% of respondents said that they currently feel anxious and nervous around their partners, while 40% of women aged between 25 and 35 said they were being isolated from their families by a partner, and 32% have been threatened with harm by their partner.
Picture: Gallo Images/Frennie Shivambu.
Police continue to fail victims of domestic and gender-based violence (GBV), despite positive strides made in policy development for policing, according to the National Shelter Movement of South Africa (NSMSA). Wednesday, 27 January, marked South Africa’s 16th National Police Day, a day set aside for the South African Police Service (Saps) to remember the sacrifices made by the police officers towards the safety of civilians. But those speaking for the women and children in civil society used the day to highlight the challenges and shortcomings of the police service as trends following the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak magnified existing patterns of.