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Violence against women
In South Africa, more than 7.3 million women have experienced physical or sexual violence at some point in their lives. This is according to the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) First South African National Gender-Based Violence Study published in 2024.
Since the beginning of this year, SABC News has been sharing daily gender-based violence (GBV) statistics on social media to highlight the magnitude of the crisis. The posts have drawn active public participation, with the comments section showing a disturbing trend.
Most men in the comments acknowledged that GBV is real; however, instead of focusing on accountability for what the South African government has classified as a National Disaster, many comments shifted the blame.
Some pointed to alcohol abuse, others to women’s financial dependence on men, while others asked the question, “What about men?” in response to GBV statistics that largely focused on the plight of women.
SABC News spoke to TEARS Foundation General Manager Celeste Louw, who says the defensive reactions are linked to how GBV communication has been set in the past.
Louw adds that previous campaigns have often painted men as abusers rather than focusing on abusive behaviour. “Those campaigns have created a perception amongst men that if you say abuser, you mean men,” says Louw.
She further stresses that this created a situation where men, whether abusers or not, are going to defend themselves because they feel that they are being attacked.
She says that this is why social media discussions drift away from violence and towards talks about men being unfairly blamed. “We need to separate behaviour from gender and have courageous conversations, not confrontational ones.”
In the comments section, one user wrote, “Most incidents happen at taverns.”
Another stated that women stay in abusive relationships because they are financially dependent on men.
Louw says the main cause of abuse is what a person perceives and how they behave.
“Generally speaking, alcohol does not cause abuse; that’s like saying a gun is a murderer. So, alcohol can exacerbate the level of abuse, but it’s not the cause of abuse,” she says.
PODCAST| Why GBV conversations turn defensive: Celeste Louw weighs in:
On the issue of financial dependence, she says most women are abused because a person chooses financial control as a tool of abuse while moving responsibility away from the abuser.
Louw also advises that what is said on social media can have real consequences for survivors. She says people feel comfortable saying harmful things on social media platforms because they do not see the person they are hurting. She reminds the public that behind every statistic is a human story.
“Trash talk is a big problem and there is no accountability for it,” says Louw.
Last year, President Cyril Ramaphosa declared GBVF a national disaster that demands national action. Similarly, the daily statistics shared by SABC News paint a clear picture around the gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF). HSRC also recorded that 35.5% of women aged 18 and above have experienced physical and/or sexual violence in their lifetime.
