Limpopo receives 700 rape evidence collection kits

During the national launch of the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children campaign guided by the theme ‘Enough is Enough’ in Lephalale on Monday, President Cyril Ramaphosa revealed that 7 000 rape evidence collection kits had been distributed to Police stations countrywide while Limpopo received 700 kits in the first week of November.
He indicated that the national campaign was aimed at raising awareness around the rights of women and girls, but also at changing the attitudes of men and boys. Ramaphosa stressed that many men and boys believe women are inferior, that they are the property of their husbands and fathers, and worse yet, that women and girls ‘deserve’ to be raped because of how they dress, the places they visit and the friends they keep. The campaign will complement a wider 365-day, year-round education, awareness and prevention campaign that government will roll out in partnership with civil society, he explained. According to Ramaphosa, violence against women is not a problem of women, it is a problem of men.
“This crisis is a great shame on our nation. It goes against our African values and everything we stand for as a people. We grew up being taught that as men and boys we must respect women and protect children. We were taught to never, ever raise your hand against a woman. But we have lost our way. Our communities are in the grip of violence against those we are supposed to protect. I invoke the memories of the many women and girls in Limpopo and throughout the country who have suffered from the brutality of men. These cowardly criminals have absolutely no regard for the sanctity of human life,” he stressed.
Ramaphosa added that perpetrators of violence don’t discriminate as he mentioned that the young are attacked, as are the elderly, boys are raped and abused, as well as girls. He further highlighted that the culprits impose their toxic masculinity on those who are gay, straight, transgender or bisexual. He reported that two months ago they have announced an Emergency Action Plan that has seen R1,6 billion of government funding reprioritised towards programmes to tackle gender-based violence. It was learnt that the programme focuses on improving access to justice for survivors, prevention campaigns to change attitudes and behaviour, measures to strengthen the criminal justice system and the creation of economic opportunities for women who are vulnerable to abuse.
Ramaphosa informed the audience that government was working around the clock to reduce the gender-based violence case backlogs at forensic laboratories and is developing a tracking mechanism that will be rolled out in January. He further highlighted that national and provincial 24-hour call centres to deal with complaints against the Police and legal officers in matters of gender-based violence were up and running. He concluded by saying nearly 4 500 Police officials have also received training on the provision of survivor-centred services.

Story: ENDY SENYATSI
>>endy@observer.co.za