Residents of Toekomsrus together with the Patriotic Alliance embarked on a remembrance ceremony on Saturday, August 20 to show support to the families whose loved ones passed away as a result of gender-based violence (GBV).

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The ceremony was held outside the Toekomsrus Police Station and was named the ‘Say her name power walk’, aimed at remembering women who have died at the hands of their partners, while giving others the courage to leave abusive relationships.

This was also aimed at encouraging abusers to seek rehabilitation through anger management

Speaking at the event, Althea Curtis from the Patriotic Alliance said GBV remained a thorn in the side of many people within their communities.

“We decided to hold this remembrance ceremony just to pay homage to our fallen mothers, sisters and daughters who died due to GBV. As the Patriotic Alliance we wanted to make an impact and bring comfort to our fallen sisters’ families, and we thought this was the best way possible.

“We also wanted to engage with the families of those women who have passed away because of GBV. We wanted to see the actual impact that GBV has had in the different homes and the pain still lingers on.

The late Althea James was my best friend and Danél Rooskrans was my cousin. It’s years after their passing but we still feel the pain and void of their loss,” said Curtis who added that the family and children of these women were left to bear the tremendous pain.

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The event was also attended by Women Against Women and Children Abuse (WAWA), the Men’s Forum, various Members of the Mayoral Committee in Randfontein, and community leaders.

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