South Africa
Is there legislation in place which explicitly states that acts of violence committed against women by someone close to them which take place in private are against the law, and which imposes appropriate punishment on the perpetrator?
South Africa’s constitution is one of the world’s most modern and forbids all forms of discrimination.
A new Act, the Domestic Violence Act, has, among other things, introduced protection orders.
Traditional laws and rules, under which the man is superior, still play an important part. They also have a certain official status and compete with the more liberal national laws. It is even possible that the male traditionalism is on the rise now that Jacob Zuma is President. He was charged with rape but acquitted, and has five wives.
Is there a functioning, non-corrupt police force and judiciary which can pass sentence and enforce punishment within a reasonable period of time?
The police have a reasonable reputation and are less corrupt than in other comparable countries. Some training for police officers in the question of partner violence is underway.
The legal system is inadequate and slow. It can take 5-6 years for a criminal case to reach the court, and even longer before sentence is passed. It is estimated that only one in ten abuser and rapist who is reported to the police is convicted, and that nine out of ten rapes are not even reported.
Are there accessible and reliable statistics for the incidence of violence against women?
The figures available come from individual organisations, not from official sources.
Is it possible for women to support themselves and their children, for example after divorce?
One effect of the divided families which the apartheid system created and left behind is that women have historically been forced to take responsibility for supporting themselves. It is not considered unusual or inappropriate for women to earn their own money.
Unemployment affects more women than men and the informal sector, where the majority of women work, is an uncertain labour market. Women and girls who live on their own and support themselves, for example after the death of a husband or parents from AIDS, may be forced to turn to prostitution in order to have food – a life where they are subjected to even more violence, and a greater risk of infection.
Are there shelters for women who want to leave a violent relationship?
In the cities there are women’s shelters which provide protection, but there are not enough of them.
There are no women’s shelters in rural areas and it is difficult for most abused women to leave their abuser, for both economic and traditional reasons. In many of the traditional cultures women are seen as subordinate beings, whose duty is to obey – if they do not, then the husband has the right to use violence.
Are there shelters for women who want to leave a violent relationship?
In the cities there are women’s shelters which provide protection, but there are not enough of them.
There are no women’s shelters in rural areas and it is difficult for most abused women to leave their abuser, for both economic and traditional reasons. In many of the traditional cultures women are seen as subordinate beings, whose duty is to obey – if they do not, then the husband has the right to use violence.
Does society take the view that women are subordinate to men?
In many cultures, boys undergo initiation rites when they are 15 after which they are considered adults and can take over the role as head of the family, with, for example, the right to exercise power over their single mother.
Many men have several wives, which is legal.
Talking about sexuality is considered unpleasant and inappropriate, not least for women, a taboo which prevents women from talking about abuse.
Over 40 per cent of the women who took part in a survey said that their first experience of sexual intercourse was a rape, and more than one South African man in four admits to having committed rape at least once.
Which direction is the fight to end the violence against women going in?
The question is receiving more attention, police are being trained, and more women now report the violence. At the same time, there is a growing resistance to equality in the form of calls for the traditional courts, where women have fewer or even no rights, to be placed on an equal footing with the Statute Book. President Zuma is, in many respects, a representative of the traditional macho culture, both as an active politician and as a role model.