South African Men Lead Gender Violence Now

In South Africa, violence against women is no distant statistic. It plays out in homes, taxi ranks and workplaces every single day. Yet South African men fighting gender-based violence against women are growing in number, and they insist the burden cannot stay on women alone.

A Crisis That Starts at Home

Intimate partner violence is the most common form of gender-based violence in the country, and a national HSRC study found that a fifth of the men surveyed admitted to sexual or physical violence against a partner. A 2016 Statistics South Africa survey also showed that one in five women over 18 had experienced such abuse. Behind those numbers are mothers, daughters, sisters and neighbours.

From a Painful Childhood to a Movement

For some men, the fight is personal. Sebatsane grew up in a home scarred by abuse and, as a young man, chased his mother’s violent partner out. He later founded the Rea Thusana Foundation to campaign against gender-based violence. His work takes him to the streets, where he builds relationships with men in order to reach the women who have been pushed there by abuse. He believes the shortage of positive male mentors is a big part of the problem.

Calling Out Your Own

Government has asked men to do more than simply be good husbands and fathers. Officials want them to sign the national pledge and to challenge men who insult, demean or objectify women. That means speaking up in the WhatsApp group, at the shebeen, in church and in the office, where silence often protects the abuser.

Leaders have echoed the message. Western Cape premier Alan Winde said that as a man he carries responsibility for the violence, and that men are also key to the solution. He also urged parents to take seriously their role in raising respectful sons.

Raising Boys Who Respect Girls

Prevention is where the long-term fight is won. The Presidency has argued that sexism, the belief that men and boys are superior, sits at the root of these crimes, and that boys must be taught equality early. Fathers, uncles, teachers, pastors and coaches all shape what a boy believes it means to be a man.

What Every Man Can Do

The steps are not complicated:

Challenge sexist jokes and talk among friends.
Report abuse instead of looking away.
Mentor young boys.
Hold yourself accountable at home.

South Africa has the laws and the courts. What it still needs is a culture in which no man stays quiet. As the men leading this effort keep saying, every man needs to play a part.