Sexual violence is a critical issue in South Africa, affecting many lives.
South African laws, including the Sexual Offences Acts, recognise crimes like rape and sexual assault. To raise awareness on what sexual violence is and where a victim can get support, Families South Africa (Famsa) provides the following information:
Sexual harassment may be of a verbal, nonverbal or physical nature, including written and electronic communications.
Rape is any non-consensual vaginal, anal or oral penetration of a sexual nature of the body of another person with any bodily part or object, including through the use of physical violence and by putting the victim in a situation where they cannot say no or complies because of fear. This can be by any person known or unknown to the survivor, within marriage and relationships, and during armed conflict.
Corrective rape is a form of rape perpetrated against someone on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity. It is intended to force the victim to conform to heterosexuality or normative gender identity.
Sexual harassment is often handled as misconduct within workplace or schools. This means not all cases are reported or made public, making it hard to grasp the full extent of the problem.
Preventing sexual violence:
- Understand consent: Silence does not equal consent.
- Avoid victim-blaming: Do not blame victims for the violence perpetrated against them. When victims are blamed, they are less likely to seek help in recovering from a traumatic experience, and are less likely to report the experience to authorities. Victims do not bring it on themselves. Break the silence. Those who use abusive behaviours need to be held accountable.
- Take responsibility: For your own sexuality and respect your partner’s autonomy.
- Be cautious with substances: Do not use alcohol or drugs to coerce someone into sex.
- Challenge sexism: Avoid objectifying or stereotyping individuals. Promote gender equity among the youth in a social environment and social circumstances.
Resources available to the victim
Thuthuzela Care Centers (TCC) are helping survivors and trying to improve conviction rates. Most are near or even attached to hospitals as sometimes medical assistance is necessary.
Care centers operate using a five-step process:
1. A survivor reports a rape case to a center or police station.
2. The staff at the centers help the survivor obtain medical attention.
3. The care centres organise counselling for the survivor.
4. Staff at the centers help the survivor open a police case, which can occur at any time.
5. Staff arranges ongoing counselling and court preparation for the survivor.
Famsa is a stakeholder that forms part of the TCC in Kuruman and works closely with other centres. Famsa assist with trauma debriefing as well as counselling to assist the victim to move towards being a survivor.
Contact Famsa on 053-723-1564
– Written by Beverley Miller
