Little to be proud about this Sixteen Days
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It says something, however, that the most senior government officials concerned with this legislation have not seen the final version of the bill and that an air of anti-climax hangs heavily on the various proceedings this year.
On 8 March - International Women’s Day - 2007, Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka unveiled the 365 Day National Action Plan to End Gender Violence. The outcome of a multi-sector conference that brought together over 200 participants from across the country last year, the plan set out a number of key targets to be achieved by the end of this year. South Africa’s plan was hailed globally as an example of a coordinated, multi-sector plan to end gender violence.
The plan draws its inspiration from the Addendum to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Declaration on Gender and Development for the Eradication of Violence Against Women and Children. The regional provisions are being strengthened in a draft Protocol on Gender and Development that leaders are expected to adopt when they meet in South Africa next year.
Legislation, while not an end in itself, is a key priority. The SADC requirement is that every country should have comprehensive and specific legislation to address domestic violence and sexual offences and that these be properly costed and implemented. Our Domestic Violence Act, exemplary in its provisions, has fallen far short in its implementation.
The Sexual Offences Bill, with progressive, gender-neutral provisions on what constitutes rape, and what kind of evidence is admissible in such cases, is a vast improvement on the antiquated laws that have been used in such cases up to now. It has been pointed out, for example, that had this bill been in place before the Jacob Zuma rape case that relied heavily on the past sexual history of the complainant, the outcome (in which Zuma was acquitted) might have been very different.
One of the technicalities that slowed down the bill is whether or not it should cover trafficking - that ugly new form of gender violence that is rearing its head even as we grapple with the myriad other forms of such violence. The Soccer 2010 frenzy that overshadowed the kick off of the Sixteen Days of Activism on 25 November promises to escalate this phenomenon unless action is taken fast.
Getting some provisions on trafficking in the Sexual Offences Bill is an important start. But the SADC requirement is that by 2010 all countries in the region have specific legislation on trafficking.
Services are a key component of the package. SADC provisions are for all countries in the region to ensure comprehensive treatment and care for survivors of gender violence, including access to Post Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) to reduce the chances of contracting the HIV virus.
After much pressure from NGOs, the Sexual Offences bill contains a treatment clause (although the definition of this is not as comprehensive as NGOs would want). The government currently has ten Thutuzela “one stop” centres and 54 Sexual Offences courts. Working in unison, these specialised facilities have proved remarkably effective in providing dignified treatment as well securing high conviction rates of up to 80 percent, compared to the conviction rates for gender violence in the general courts of only seven percent. Overall, the specialised facilities have brought the conviction rates up to an average of 12 percent.
The intention is to roll out another 12 Tutuzela Centres and 8 Sexual offences courts over the next year, targeted at centres with the highest number of reported sexual offences. But the specialised facilities only service a fraction of the need. What is required are creative solutions that upscale existing facilities to provide the same services as the Thutuzela Centres and Sexual Offences Courts within easy reach.
An interesting example of how civil society and government could work together to make this happen is provided by the Greater Nelspruit Rape Intervention Programme (GRIP), an NGO in Mpumalanga that locates it staff at busy hospitals to assist victims of sexual assault in accessing socio-psycho counselling; provide advice on PEP; as well as collect the evidence needed in court.
Sadly little has been done to replicate such examples. A multi sector task team created to take forward the 365 Day Plan with a Secretariat in the offices of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has met sporadically.
Within government, there is division between this secretariat and the 16 Day Secretariat in the Department of Provincial and Local Government even though the one is programmatic, while the other is campaign driven. With the demise of the Network on Violence Against Women, NGOs in the sector are also woefully fragmented.
One of the few positive developments over the last year is the energy emanating from local government. Led by the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) that hosted a major conference on the role of local government in ending gender violence last year, councils around Gauteng are taking stock this week of what they have done in mobilising communities, setting up effective police community forums, and making public spaces safe. A case in point is the Ekurhuleni metro that hosted a “Take Back the Night” march on Saturday 24 November and has a comprehensive, fully budgeted year-long plan for ending gender violence.
But ending gender violence requires that every sphere of government and society work in unison. From 5-6 December, Deputy Minister of Safety and Security Susan Shabangu will host a gender justice summit that, it is hoped, might help to weave together the many loose threads. Her, and the nation’s, political leadership is sorely needed.
Colleen Lowe Morna is executive director of Gender Links (GL) chair of the Gender and Media Southern Africa (GEMSA) Network. Loveness Nyakujarah-Jambaya is gender justice programme manager. This article is part of the Gender Links Opinion and Commentary Service, for more information on the Sixteen Days of Activism go to www.genderlinks.org.za.
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