THE fight against gender-based violence (GBV) and the protection of vulnerable groups took centre stage when Brighton Beach Police Station, in collaboration with multiple stakeholders, launched an impactful community empowerment initiative on December 5.

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This effort forms part of the global 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence campaign, which aims to challenge violence and promote safety for women, men, children, the elderly and LGBTQIA+ community members.

Captain Louise le Roux, Brighton Beach’s communications officer, emphasised the importance of recognising that combating violence is not confined to these 16 days, but requires a year-round commitment. She added that they distributed 4 000 empowerment care packs across the Brighton Beach policing precinct. The initiative sought to educate and equip community members with tools and resources to address abuse, support victims and foster resilience.

“Literature contained in the care packs explains various form of abuse, procedures to obtain an interim and final protection order, sexual assault, victim empowerment, telephone bookmark with support organisations contact details, and include the national shelter movement contact token,” said Le Roux.

She added that child protection care packs were also distributed to address issues affecting young people, with materials covering child protection measures, school bullying and cyberbullying, substance abuse awareness with a focus on drugs dragging you down, back-to-school safety tips and telephone bookmarks for child-focused support organisations.

The success of the initiative was made possible through the effort of various stakeholders, including representatives from the Brighton Beach Family Violence, Child Protection, and Sexual Offenses Unit members, Brighton Beach Victim Friendly Centre volunteers, Brighton Beach CPF and Youth Desk representatives, Community Fathers and security professionals drawn from Blue Security.

Le Roux said this campaign reinforced their commitment to providing the knowledge and tools necessary to drive change in support of victims of violence.

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