EKURHULENI EXECUTIVE MAYOR’S MESSAGE FOR 16 DAYS OF ACTIVISM AGAINST GBV+FEMICIDE

Gender based violence against the most vulnerable members of society and femicide continue to wrack havoc in our communities. This is the reason we, as South Africa, are still championing the safety of all our people equally across gender, age, race and sexuality.

No one deserves to be abused or violated in any form or shape.

From today (25 November) – which is International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and Girls – until 10 December which is International Human Rights Day, we join the country and world at large in raising our voices against gender-based violence. The 16-Days Against Gender Based Violence and Femicide is a very noble cause which requires active endorsement by every person.

It is humanly right and correct that individually we become engines of change, this will aid greater impactful change among our neighbours.

As the City of Ekurhuleni we stand firm and very proactive in being change drivers towards rooting out any acts of GBV in our communities through awareness campaigns and making our healthcare centres empathetic and respectful of such cases.

This year’s theme behind marking 16-Days Against GBV+Femicide says ‘Unite to End Digital Violence Against All Women and Girls’. It is in this spirit that I call on all our residents, corporates, social media users to be champions of change. Let us take a moment to remember how South Africa got rid of apartheid, it was a consistent collaborative push towards freedom. Even this social ill we are facing now, requires us to confront it head on collaboratively as society in our communities, on the internet and in our boardrooms if we are to root it out. Together, every day – let us talk less talk and rather act decisively against any form of Gender Based Violence, Abuse and Femicide.