Activists: Poor police, judicial response to attacks on women

POORLY co-ordinated police response and a sluggish judicial system are among several things the feminist group Womantra believes continue to contribute to violence against women.

The group hosted an emergency virtual town meeting last Saturday in response to the recent rise in cases of killings, child sexual assaults and kidnapping of women.

In a release, it said the meeting “yielded an energising and solutions-oriented discussion on the way forward, with participants coming from a range of backgrounds, including concerned citizens, students, academics and activists who spoke to various aspects of violence against women, including their main areas of concern; the need for greater state accountability; and community-led solutions.”

The group believes everyone has a part to play in working towards decreasing the issues women face, and the onus should not be placed on women to protect themselves from perpetrators.

It called on men to be more present in spaces that centre the experiences of women to increase understanding and empathy.

It also said public officials must be held accountable when they make statements that normalise rape culture.

“Influential politicians and members of government at all levels must be sensitive in their language use around gender-based violence and in particular, men’s violence against women so that policy and decision-makers take the situation seriously.”

It added, “All police officers should undergo gender sensitivity training, particularly those who interact with survivors and victims.”

And it called on the media to be more responsible when reporting on gender-based violence and sexually-motivated crimes.

One of the insights gained from the meeting, it said, is that gender analysis, in public discourse, often causes conflation of gender-based violence “and other crimes like homicides or assault and at the community level, victim-blaming and the shaming of women and girls.”

Victim-blaming refers to when people suggest the victim did something which caused the perpetrator to act. For instance, “Why was her skirt so short?” or “Why did she go into a PH taxi?”

It continued, “Perpetrators are allowed to murder, rape and disappear women and girls with impunity due to a poorly co-ordinated police response, the sluggish judicial system and the lack of political will to implement, the National Policy on Gender and Development.

“There is a lack of awareness of how steeped our society is in normalising rape culture. We must become more informed about the dangers of normalising street harassment, and other types of degrading behaviour, including sexual coercion and violent assault. We must build a culture of consent from the ground up.”

The group shares similar views to those of Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith, calling for the legalisation of pepper spray and other items women can use to protect themselves.

It also called for mandatory, age-appropriate and comprehensive sex education from as early as pre-school, and the sensitising and training for key service providers like healthcare workers and taxi drivers.

In addition, it pleaded for the development of assistive technologies for women and girls to avoid or escape life-threatening situations.

“Amend, implement, and budget for the National Gender Policy. A formalised multi-sectoral approach to awareness-raising, prevention and accountability must be applied to all aspects of gender-equality, including gender-based violence. These interventions should include private and state actors, communities etc."

It also wants “gender-sensitivity training for our national representatives, media personnel and cultural leaders, including an introduction to acceptable gender-based violence terminology, so their language and contributions to solution-building can help to shift the way the population views and talks about gender-based violence.”

It said the government should not be allowed to “drag its feet” when women’s lives are at stake.

“We urge every citizen to commit to actively cultivating a society that values the lives of all women and girls.”