President Cyril Ramaphosa's recent announcement of new measures to address gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) in South Africa has been met with skepticism by civil society and political leaders. They are demanding accountability, resources, and concrete action to ensure the latest commitments translate into tangible results. Ramaphosa's measures include municipal safety audits, fixing broken streetlights, clearing overgrown public spaces, and addressing other hazards.
Critics argue that Ramaphosa's latest initiatives are not new and have been repackaged from previous commitments. Amnesty International South Africa Executive Director Shenilla Mohamed stated that the four measures announced by Ramaphosa came seven years after women took to the streets demanding action on the crisis. Mohamed emphasized that timelines would only carry weight if they resulted in action and consequences for failure.
Amnesty International is calling for femicide to be codified as a crime, arguing that the country cannot properly confront a crisis it does not adequately track. Mohamed also stressed that municipalities cannot be allowed to ignore their obligations to make public spaces safer for women, and there must be consequences where they fail to do so. The organization also demanded that the audits ordered by the president be made public.
Kwanele Foundation Founder Sihle Sibisi expressed disappointment that the address did not adequately respond to the resource shortages facing communities and organizations dealing directly with victims. Sibisi questioned why the government continued holding high-level meetings while organizations working on the ground struggled for resources. She called for greater support for civil society groups already assisting communities.
The International Women’s Forum South Africa, GBVF Response Fund, and Graça Machel Trust welcomed the president's address but emphasized that the announcements could not be treated as the end of the response. They stressed that the measures would have to be backed by capacity, resources, and accountability, with sustainable funding across prevention, policing, forensic services, justice, survivor support, and community organizations.
Various political leaders also expressed skepticism about the effectiveness of Ramaphosa's latest commitments. African Transformation Movement leader Vuyo Zungula questioned whether the latest commitments would produce results when previous government plans and funding announcements had yet to satisfy the public. He pointed to about R21 billion previously announced over three years for various components of the National Strategic Plan on GBVF.
DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis also challenged the gap between government announcements and what women experience in their communities. He pointed to years of emergency plans, legislation, funding commitments, summits, and the classification of GBVF as a national disaster. Hill-Lewis emphasized that the focus should be on detection, arrests, and successful prosecutions, while calling for stronger municipal law-enforcement capacity and greater visibility in crime hotspots.
Key points
- President Ramaphosa's latest GBVF measures have drawn mixed reactions from civil society and political leaders.
- Critics argue that Ramaphosa's latest initiatives are not new and have been repackaged from previous commitments.
- Various stakeholders are demanding accountability, resources, and concrete action to ensure the latest commitments translate into tangible results.
