South African women arm themselves due to gender violence crisis

A growing number of women in South Africa are learning how to use guns to protect themselves due to the country’s gender-based violence crisis. On average, 15 women are killed every day in the country, marking a 34% rise from 2024, according to BBC News.

On November 21, hundreds of women gathered wearing all black in Johannesburg park and staged a 15-minute lie down ahead of the G20 summit. This act was performed to honour and symbolise the 15 women killed per day through gender-based violence in South Africa.

According to U.N. Women, South Africa suffers from a femicide rate that is five times higher than the global average. This issue is not new as it has been a severe problem in the country for more than a decade.

Courtney Gelderblom, a 19-year-old protest coordinator, told the Associated Press that the protest was “a minute of silence for every woman that could have fallen within the day.” Many attended the peaceful protest which took place across numerous cities, including celebrities and activists.

It was an emotional day for many women who took part, as some were survivors of gender-based violence. Placards were raised that read, “why do you hate us?” Gender based violence is a taboo topic in South Africa that is only now beginning to be spoken about more, with domestic violence being one of the main forms it takes.

Aside from learning how to use fire-arms, women are starting to take matters into their own hands. Leonora Tina, a South African woman, lost a close relative who was killed. Her death was met with neglect from both the media and law enforcement. In response, Leonora created an AI aunt app for women to talk safely about the abuse they have endured.

Leonora recalled, “What stood out for me was that my family member’s violent death was seen as so normal in South African society.” She added that her relative’s “death wasn’t published by any news outlet because the sheer volume of these cases in our country is such that it  doesn’t qualify as news.”

As part of her investigation, Leonora and her team spoke with over 800 victims of abuse and discovered that despite their urge to speak out about it, they hold off as they are sceptical of speaking to the police.

Similar to Sudan, women often get abused and are subject to violence online, and there is a big question as to whether social media is dangerous for women in the country.

BBC News, AP News, Maghrebi.org