Cosatu kicks off 16 Days of Activism against Women and Child Abuse

Members of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) picketed outside the Ermelo Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, 27 November in what was a national day of action on ending the violence and harassment of employees in the workplace.

This was also the union’s launch of the 16 Days of Activism against gender-based violence which is an international campaign that begins on 25 November and ends on 10 December, which is International Human Right’s Day.

The campaign aims to raise awareness on gender-based violence as a human right’s violation and the negative impact that violence and harassment has on the individual, workplace, family, community and society as a whole.

At a global level, unions have put the issue of violence and harassment in the workplace on the agenda of the International Labour Organisations (ILO) and Cosatu is part of the network and is continuing to raise awareness of such.

The union also continues to ensure that each workplace has policies on violence and harassment.

Members of Cosatu held up signs and placards with words denouncing any kind of abuse outside the court, which the union targeted because they demand the implementation of all the laws and policies governing gender-based violence.

The leaders handed over a memorandum with a list of requests to the Department of Justice that include but not limited to the following:

• That all rape cases be investigated properly so that perpetrators can be given appropriate convictions.
• Sexual abuse of children, child abuse and killing of children cases must get harsher sentences.
• The court must ensure that enforcers of human trafficking be handed a fitting punishment and that of a life sentence.