If you are in the office, stop trying to tune into the gossip for a second and if you are in the queue, stop checking your email. In traffic? Turn your playlist down. We want you to do something for us real quick.
Count the women you see – friends, family, strangers, it doesn’t matter.
Now we’re about to tell you something truly scary – and we know a thing or two about scary, so trust us on this. A little over half of the women you see around you have been victims of some form of GBV in their lifetime. A third of them victims of sexual assault (more often than not from their significant other). Let those frightening statistics sink in.
South Africa is one of the most unsafe places in the world for women and kids – this is not hyperbole. There are polls and UN surveys and all sorts of crime stats to back this up. Back in 2020 when we went into that hard lockdown – President Ramaphosa was moved to claim that GBV was the second pandemic that we were all dealing with – as if one wasn’t enough. In the first 2 weeks of lockdown 21 women and children were murdered. 21.
Today, about 147 women will report their rape or sexual assault. Tomorrow there will be 147 more. This means that every 10 minutes a rape case is opened. But even worse than this truly awful data is the realization that only 1 in every 25 women report their rape at all.
Now let’s take a look at our kids. In October of last year, the DA put out an urgent call to action as over 100 000 child rape cases had been reported in a 6-year period. In 2022/23 rape accounted for over 38% of all crimes against children countrywide. On average 48 cases are opened a day.
The recent breaking news regarding the young school girl, Cwecwe has captured the nation’s attention and ire – with #JusticeForCwecwe trending for days on all social platforms and thousands turning out to marches. She was just 7 and brutally attacked and raped in her school. A place where she should be safe. This case highlights an unfortunate truth though – our schools are anything but. Between April and June of 2024 – there were 91 reported rapes on school grounds in the country.
While these figures are both staggering and devastating, it is worth us acknowledging that we, as a collective, had little to no idea. We carry on with our lives – doing the best we can with varying degrees of success in difficult circumstances, unaware of just how close to home (and home is the most frequent location of GBV) everything is.
What can we do about it though? Well, we may live in a world where we have become more insular and disconnected (ironic considering how we are all literally plugged in, all the time) – but the best way to counter these trends is to double back on the old adage, “if you see something, say something”. Because, only with good data can better work be done. And only with people raising red flags can we see where action is needed.
Hold the (Help) Line
We often make the mistake of writing something off as ‘not that bad’ or ‘it was just one time’ or ‘other people have it far worse’. Don’t be gaslit by yourself or others. Violence escalates and you deserve better. You deserve to be safe.
GBV takes many forms as well. It isn’t just rape, or violent abuse. It can be emotional warfare and mental abuse or being forced to do things against your will, be it from coercion, threats, deception, cultural expectations or economic factors. You have the right to say no and silence isn’t consent.
There are various safe spaces that victims of GBV can reach out to including shelters and helplines. Save this list to share with someone that you believe may need it.
- Stop Gender Violence Helpline (24/7) – all languages: 0800 150 150
- National Shelter Movement of SA (24/7): 0800 001 005 (send a Please Call Me: 082 057 8600
- Sonke Gender Justice: 021 423 7088
- Legal Aid: 0800 110 110
- National Counselling Line: 0861 322 322
- LifelineSA: 0861 322 322
- AIDS Helpline: 0800 012 322
- Childline: 0800 055 555
- SAPS Crime Stop (Tip-off Line) – Also for Cybercrime: 0860 010 111
- SAPS: 1011
- Marshall Security: 086 162 7732
How to Help
If you think you know someone that is a victim of GBV, here are some steps you can take to help:
Listen. Find a safe space to talk, express your concern and listen to what they have to say. Verbalise your support and belief.
Support. Reassure them that they are not alone, then ask them how you can best support them.
Resources. There are various resources available to victims in South Africa – connect this person with what they need. From community support to shelters, hotlines and mental health services.
Plan. Encourage them and / or help to make a safety plan. The plan should include safe spaces, helpline contacts and go bags. Make relevant info available for family or friends, have them plan travel routes and mix them up, urge them to keep people in the loop and ensure they fill their children in on the plan.
Respect. Your friend or family member may not be ready to make the choice you wish they would. Know that the whole situation is complex and hard, and give them the support and understanding they need, until they are good to go.
Safety in Numbers. Share and save our number. If we are needed, we will be there… and fast.
Social Worrier (and Warrior)
Social platforms have so many ‘bad takes’ that we can get a bit desensitised to what we read. However, there are some flags that absolutely must not be ‘unflown’. People – when anonymous and far removed from a ‘real world’ setting – feel invincible online. Sometimes they troll for engagement, but other times they express real opinions that are deeply problematic. Freedom of Expression isn’t the same as Free Speech.
This is your call to arms. Don’t just scroll by if you read something that makes your eyeballs pop out your head or your skin crawl. In the social media furor surrounding #JusticeForCwecwe there were a great number of comments that spoke up everything from the child’s enjoyment (yes, shudder), to a desire to commit similar crimes and other deeply disturbing content. This happened to such an extent that the governments X feed was moved to get involved, calling the posters out and flagging the profiles with the SAPS. We urge you to do similarly.
If you see a profile behaving in a way that speaks up violence, pedophilia, crime or other inappropriate behaviors report it to the authorities and or flag the profile and content with the platform administrators immediately. If you are an online victim, you can report the crime/inappropriate behavior with the Cyber Crime division. Visit: https://cybercrime.org.za/reporting
Know your rights. Trust your gut. Don’t look away. Because GBV affects someone you know, well. But if we work together, we can keep the people we care about safe. Our job at Marshall Security is to make as many arrests as possible, building enough of a case that the dismal conviction rate in this sphere gets turned around and justice is served. Call us, In Case of Anything.
