Lesufi acknowledged the government's responsibility to protect women and said the fight to end GBV must start when a child is young.
School children should graduate with a certificate in gender sensitivity, alongside their matric certificate, says Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi.
Lesufi was speaking at a National Women’s Day commemoration event at the Union Buildings in Pretoria on Saturday.
Lesufi acknowledged the government’s responsibility to protect women and said the fight to end gender-based violence (GBV) must start when a child is young.
“It starts in the classroom. If you can’t teach a child in the classroom that such conduct is wrong, you think you can teach them when you are an adult? You would be wrong,” he said.
“We should have certificates that are different from your matric certificates. We want to bring a course and a certificate on gender sensitivity while children are still in the classroom. If we can start in primary school, we can intervene and will benefit in the long run.”
GBV
In Tzaneen, Limpopo, President Cyril Ramaphosa challenged men to take up the fight against GBV.
“We continue to see incidents of gender-based violence. But what is more troubling is how the men of our country continue to abuse women, also by raping and brutally killing them.
“But it gets worse when it actually involves the rape of children, children as young as a few months, children as young as two years and the impregnation of young girls, as it was said earlier here by Minister [in the Presidency for Women, Youth and People with Disabilities, Sindisiwe] Chikunga.
“That is painful. And that is why we say we must all rise against gender-based violence. We must all rise as men and make sure that we bring the levels of gender-based violence down.”
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