National Women's Day is an annual public holiday in South Africa on 9 August that commemorates the national march of women in 1956 to petition against ‘dompass’ legislation.
The Sonke Gender Justice Commission (SGJ) chose this day to submit their petition against Woman and Children Abuse. The march commenced from Gugulethu Police Station and made its way to Nyanga Police station where the petition was submitted to the SAPS, who welcomed it with open arms: “The SAPS expresses its gratitude to the NGOs involved in fighting against crime.”
This comes two days after a seven-year-old and a four-months-old were raped in Ceres, eliciting an uproar. “That could have been my children, these dogs (perpetrators) deserve a death sentence,” says a Nyanga resident.
Correcting Rape
Cape Chiefs support lesbian rights.
By Ndibulele Sotondoshe
On arrival to Nyanga station, a swollen-faced woman just opened an assault case against her boyfriend “This is a practical example of what is happening throughout the country. This must end,” she explained.
The African People’s Convention (APC) blames parents for not raising their children to respect woman and that parents should give them ‘more guidance than money’. The Western Cape has suffered several barbaric attacks on lesbians and the SGJ voiced its outrage at the violence against women and homosexuals.
Kwazulu-Natal held a gay marriage that was widely criticised by traditional leaders, one of whom was quoted as saying: “The normal marriage is made for a wife and a man.”
However, the Western Cape Council of Indigenous Integrated Traditional Leaders says a chief shouldn’t judge: “If we disown homosexuals, then it means we are condoning their killings and actually rekindling for more violence,” says Chief Zwelivumile Nakana. He agrees that ‘homosexuality is new to Africans’ but encourages workshops that will enlighten other leaders. “SGJ carried out a training exercise that educated us about the origin of lesbians. We understand it better now, hence we support this initiative.” The SGJ affirmed their willingness to educate other traditional leaders around South Africa.
A rape victim recently committed suicide after the alleged culprit was acquitted due to insufficient evidence presented against him. “We demand free counselling for rape victims and a food scheme so that they may face trial on a full stomach,” says the petition presented by the SGJ.
The petition also condemned the killing of police officers, stating they are also parents and family members. Robbin Mesani of SAPS signed the petition and promised to send it over to his superiors. He also urged the community to refrain from taking the law into their own hands.
He urged the public to report crime by phoning 08600 10111.