Soweto women say, ‘Down with femicide!’
March organiser, Sibongile Buthelezi said, "Through such campaigns, we encourage women to break the silence because women don’t talk about their abusive relationships."
Women from all walks of life in Soweto marched to the same beat on July 14. Placards in the air, they chanted and sang struggle songs.
Their message was: Rise up Soweto against the killing of women and children, enough is enough and my body is not your crime scene.
Following the brutal killings of women at the hands of their partners or ex-partners and men particularly in Soweto, women wanted to condemn and stand up against the violence.
The marchers departed from Regina Mundi in Rockville to Mofolo Park in Mofolo. It was an emotional moment as some survivors told their painful stories and read poems.
March organiser, Sibongile Buthelezi said, “Through such campaigns, we encourage women to break the silence because women don’t talk about their abusive relationships.”
“Women and children are being raped, brutally killed, abused and kidnapped every single day and the situation is getting out of hand.”
Television personality and founder of Khuluma Ndoda, Patrick Shai said, “The killing of women doesn’t start with the sound of a gun, but with a curse and pointing of a finger and escalates to murder. It should not be about the victim, but the perpetrator because he will continue to abuse other women and we shouldn’t talk about such issues when the woman is dead but before she is killed.”
“Women are aware of these killings but they are silent and many women are walking corpses because they are dead inside,” said Shai.
He emphasized that for the fact your brother, uncle, father and cousin is not here with you today means that he doesn’t love you and doesn’t support the purpose of this campaign.
He added, “Your brother is a potential abuser, your uncle should hear your screams and it means that your father doesn’t hear your cries. Will they speak or take action when you are killed by another man?”
Shai urged women to go back and have this conversation with any man in their lives and ask them if they would shed a tear when women are being killed.
“The most important time when you need a man in your life to be with you is when you fight and prevent femicide. Women in South Africa can’t be a person for a minute and you can’t be killed for that minute. The women of yesterday are being remodeled to become women of substance today. What your mother, Nomsa Mbuyisa and Karabo Mokoena went through, you can’t go through today.”
“Our lifestyles and choices must change and let us have the value system that will make sure that we choose the right people. Let it not be the comfort of guys that you need a weave and phone that you will subject yourself and lose your whole self because you need to look good,” said Shai.
He added that he spoke like that because he has a daughter and he gets worried if he will come back home feeling better and safe and that he has two boys which make him worried because they have a potential to abuse and kill like another man that he is ashamed of.
He added that every man in this country who is worried will be here today and make sure that our children don’t commit these acts of violence against women and children.
“You are not a chilling material and you are beautiful without all the extensions because these are trappings that make you be there. You can’t be defined by material things and die for small things. Take your space, define your space and find your voice today as women and say it’s not because of hunger that he will provide for me,” concluded Shai.
