Domestic violence in South Africa has been viewed as a taboo subject until recently. In 2012, just over one-third of violent crimes committed against women ended in criminal prosecution. Legislation has been passed to help improve the quality of life for victims of abuse and to prevent further abuse from taking place. Although the movement against domestic violence is a relatively new movement, it has been making great strides in the country since the 1990s. [1]
The South African Domestic Violence Act 1998 defines domestic violence as: [2]
Physical abuse; sexual abuse; emotional, verbal and psychological abuse; economic abuse; intimidation; harassment; stalking; damage to property; entry into the complainant's residence without consent, where the parties do not share the same residence; or any other controlling or abusive behaviour towards a complainant, where such conduct harms, or may cause imminent harm to, the safety, health or wellbeing of the complainant. [3]
The South African Medical Council released a study in 1998 saying that out of the 1,394 men interviewed, 50% physically abused their female partners at their homes. [4] Considering how recently domestic violence has come to light, it is still considered an early movement. The United Nations found that violence against women was a universal problem. [5] Another study done in 2010 found that a majority of men and over half of women that were surveyed believed that women should obey their husbands. [6] [7] It is not uncommon for the abuse to begin while the girls are still teenagers. [8] It is not uncommon for women to tolerate the abuse they are receiving because it is such a common practice in South Africa. [9]
In a study done by the World Health Organization, it was found that 60,000 women and children are victims of domestic violence in South Africa. [6] It is hard to gather accurate statistical data in South Africa because domestic violence is rarely reported. On average, in a cross-sectional study conducted in 2002, the women who were abused came from a lower secondary education and were unemployed. [4] The same study indicated that 9.5 percent of women reported being abused within the past year (working back from 2002); in some areas of the country it rose to 28.4 percent of women who reported being abused. In 2013, 50 percent of the women surveyed reported that they had suffered emotional and verbal abuse. Of the women who were in violent relationships, 45.9 percent of them reported injury. In the same study it was found that typically the women who do witness and feel the violence come from a rural childhood compared to those raised in an urban area. [4] Although there are many places that do offer help to those suffering from domestic violence, those resources are more available in urban areas. In rural areas it is harder to access proper resources. Nearly half of the female murders that happened in 1999 in South Africa resulted from domestic violence. [5]
In a study conducted in 2002 by R. Jewkes et al. 24.6% of all women, and 24.3% of black African women, experienced physical violence during their lifetime. [4] Black African women were less likely to ever experience physical violence or to experience physical violence in the past year than were women of other races. The women in this sample were from the province of Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga, and Northern Province with a mean age of 31.
Recent research has found that binge drinking was associated with intimate partner violence perpetration, and that problematic alcohol use can be a predictor of intimate partner violence and domestic violence perpetration. Additionally, men with a history of exposure to violence were more likely to have difficulty with self-control as it relates to violence towards a partner in certain situations compared to men without a history of exposure to violence. [10]
In 2012 South Africa was called the "rape capital of the world" when less than 1% of rapes that occur are reported to the police. [1] The South African Medical Research Council did an electronic anonymous survey, interviewing just over 1,700 men, that found that one in four males had raped; 73% of those men surveyed had raped before the age of 20. [11] Within rural South Africa there is a higher rate of HIV between partners. In Limpopo, a team of researches traveled to rural villages to implement a three-part trial to test if intervention within relationships that had domestic violence and/ or HIV prevalence in the home.[ citation needed ] The homes where the researchers just assisted with the problems of domestic violence were able to reduce the prevalence by 55%, but did not effect those who had unprotected sexual intercourse with a non-spousal partner. Although the rate of domestic violence within these small villages did get reduced; the rate of those having unprotected intercourse after being exposed, and diagnosed with HIV, did not go down. According to reports by the U.N., South Africa has one of the highest rates of HIV/AIDS in the world. [12]
Until South Africa established non-racial democracy in the 1990s, no law to define domestic violence or protect those who are victims of domestic violence ever existed. [13] Within South Africa, the 1996 Constitution says in section 12c that: "Everyone has the right to freedom and security of person, that includes the right to be free from violence from either public and private sources." The constitution also takes time to highlight that South Africa is based on "non-sexism" values.
Many successful policies have been put in place to help, mostly women, find help escape or refuge from the violence. Human rights throughout the world have viewed sexual violence as a negative situation. After the United Nations held multiple human rights conventions (including the World Conference on Human Rights (1993), International Conference on Population and Development (1994), and the Fourth World Conference on Women (1995) the global agenda for violence against women changed. [14] The advocacy group Soul City broadcast a show on TV and radio in 1995 that highlighted the issues associated with domestic violence. Soul City, along with the National Network on Violence against Women, set up a 24-hour crisis telephone line to help vulnerable women who are struggling with domestic violence. [13]
In 1998, South Africa introduced the Domestic Violence Act to try and protect those who are being abused or might be forced into a situation that could become harmful in the future. At the time, the biggest assistance to women came from the Protection Order that derives from the Domestic Violent Act. The Protection Order permits the courts to prevent the accused from continuing abuse. The collaboration process between representatives of the Department of Justice, Safety and Security, Health Education, Welfare, Correctional Services and the National Directorate for Public Prosecution was a delaying factor that slowed down the process of changing the policies. Within the first year of the Domestic Violence Act being created, 1,696 applications were submitted for protective orders. [15] In a report done by the United Nations Division of the Advancement of Women, they discovered about the protective orders that women were able to fill out, that the forms were only available in two out of the eleven languages that are spoken in South Africa. [15] Other reforms that were created were to sentence mandatory minimal time for specific types of rape under the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1997. [16]
Oscar Pistorius was accused and charged with murdering his girlfriend on February 14, 2013. [17] The "Blade Runner", as he is known, shot 30-year-old model Reeva Steenkamp through the bathroom door of their home with a 9mm pistol he said he kept under his bed. [18] Oscar Pistorius, who was 27 years old at the time of the shooting, stated that he believed it was an intruder in the bathroom, and not his girlfriend, after hearing the sound of the window being opened. [19] The couple had been in a relationship since 2012 after attending an award show together. Pistorius’ previous girlfriend, model Samantha Taylor, was put on the stand during the trial to testify about Pistorius' gun use prior to the February 14 shooting. [20] In Taylor's statement, she described Pistorius always having his gun with him, even when visiting friends, and frequently waking up during the night in fear about potential intruders. The prosecutors also believe that Pistorius had shot Steenkamp because of arguments they had had earlier that day. [18]
Actress Charlize Theron grew up in a home where she witnessed such abuse. She is known for starring in various films such as: Italian Job , Snow White and the Huntsman , and Hancock . Theron grew up outside Johannesburg with her parents. Theron's father was an alcoholic and threatened her and her mother one night. During that incident, Theron's mother shot and killed the father, but was not charged because it was ruled as self-defence. [21]
Talk show host Trevor Noah grew up in a household where his mother faced abuse. In 2009, his step-father pleaded guilty to attempting to murder his mother. Noah highlighted corruption within the police system, claiming that his mother had reached out for years to police for help, but that dockets went missing and cases never went to court. [22]
Sexual assault is an act in which one intentionally sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their will. It is a form of sexual violence that includes child sexual abuse, groping, rape, drug facilitated sexual assault, and the torture of the person in a sexual manner.
Sexual violence is any sexual act or attempt to obtain a sexual act by violence or coercion, act to traffic a person, regardless of the relationship to the victim. It occurs in times of peace and armed conflict situations, is widespread, and is considered to be one of the most traumatic, pervasive, and most common human rights violations.
Statistics on rape and other sexual assaults are commonly available in industrialized countries, and have become better documented throughout the world. Inconsistent definitions of rape, different rates of reporting, recording, prosecution and conviction for rape can create controversial statistical disparities, and lead to accusations that many rape statistics are unreliable or misleading.
Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius is a South African former professional sprinter and convicted murderer. Both of his feet were amputated when he was 11 months old owing to a congenital defect; he was born missing the outside of both feet and both fibulae. Pistorius ran in both nondisabled sprint events and in sprint events for below-knee amputees. He was the 10th athlete to compete at both the Paralympic Games and Olympic Games.
It is thought that multiple ethnic groups in South Africa have long-standing beliefs concerning gender roles, and most are based on the premise that women in South Africa are less important, or less deserving of power, than men. Some view African traditional social organizations as male centered and male dominated. One prevailing caricature of Afrikaner religious beliefs includes a strong emphasis on the theoretically biblically based notion that women's contributions to society should normally be approved by, or be on behalf of, men. Claims are even made of modern sexism and Christianity being introduced into South Africa by the ancestors of the Afrikaner diaspora.
Violence against women in Peru is defined as harassment or violence propagated against those who are born women. Intimate partner violence (IPV) is the most common form of gender-based violence that occurs though it can occur concurrently with sexual and emotional violence.
One of the most common forms of sexual violence around the world is that which is perpetrated by an intimate partner, leading to the conclusion that one of the most important risk factors for people in terms of their vulnerability to sexual assault is being married or cohabiting with a partner. Other factors influencing the risk of sexual violence include:
Surveys of victims of crime have been undertaken in many cities and countries, using a common methodology to aid comparability, and have generally included questions on sexual violence. The United Nations has conducted extensive surveys to determine the level of sexual violence in different societies. According to these studies, the percentage of women reporting having been a victim of sexual assault ranges from less than 2% in places such as La Paz, Bolivia (1.4%), Gaborone, Botswana (0.8%), Beijing, China (1.6%), and Manila, Philippines (0.3%), to 5% or more in Istanbul, Turkey (6.0%), Buenos Aires, Argentina (5.8%), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (8.0%), and Bogota, Colombia (5.0%).
As sexual violence affects all parts of society, the responses that arise to combat it are comprehensive, taking place on the individual, administrative, legal, and social levels.
Domestic violence is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. Domestic violence is often used as a synonym for intimate partner violence, which is committed by one of the people in an intimate relationship against the other person, and can take place in relationships or between former spouses or partners. In its broadest sense, domestic violence also involves violence against children, parents, or the elderly. It can assume multiple forms, including physical, verbal, emotional, economic, religious, reproductive, or sexual abuse. It can range from subtle, coercive forms to marital rape and other violent physical abuse, such as choking, beating, female genital mutilation, and acid throwing that may result in disfigurement or death, and includes the use of technology to harass, control, monitor, stalk or hack. Domestic murder includes stoning, bride burning, honor killing, and dowry death, which sometimes involves non-cohabitating family members. In 2015, the United Kingdom's Home Office widened the definition of domestic violence to include coercive control.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the east of the country in particular, has been described as the "Rape Capital of the World," and the prevalence and intensity of all forms of sexual violence has been described as the worst in the world. Human Rights Watch defines sexual violence as "an act of a sexual nature by force, or by threat of force or coercion," and rape as "a form of sexual violence during which the body of a person is invaded, resulting in penetration, however slight, of any part of the body of the victim, with a sexual organ, or of the anal or genital opening of the victim with any object or other part of the body."
The rate of sexual violence in South Africa is among the highest recorded in the world. Police statistics of reported rapes as a per capita figure has been dropping in recent years, although the reasons for the drop has not been analysed and it is not known how many rapes go unreported. More women are attacked than men, and children have also been targeted, partly owing to a myth that having sex with a virgin will cure a man of HIV/AIDS. Rape victims are at high risk of contracting HIV/AIDS owing to the high prevalence of the disease in South Africa. "Corrective rape" is also perpetrated against LGBT men and women.
Reeva Rebecca Steenkamp was a South African model and paralegal. She modelled for FHM magazine and was the first face of Avon cosmetics in South Africa. Steenkamp once worked as the live roaming presenter for FashionTV in South Africa and starred in television advertisements for Toyota Land Cruiser, Clover Industries, Redds and Aldor Pin Pop. She was a celebrity contestant on the BBC Lifestyle show Baking Made Easy in 2012 and on Tropika Island of Treasure season 5 which aired on SABC 3 in February 2013.
Tropika Island of Treasure is a South African reality competition television series that currently screens on SABC 3. The show features an equal number of South African celebrities and public contestants competing in a luxurious, paradise-island location for a cash prize. Each episode the players compete in an Island Game. Each week's Island Game winner listens to the other players pleas to stay on the island, and they alone have the power to decide who stays and who goes by uttering the words "Pack your bags and get off my Island". The final Island Game winner receives a prize of R1 million. The format is owned and produced by Stimulii Licensing and broadcast on SABC3.
Papua New Guinea (PNG) is often labelled as potentially the worst place in the world for gender-based violence.
Domestic violence is prominent in Nigeria as in other parts of Africa. There is a deep cultural belief in Nigeria that it is socially acceptable to hit a woman as a disciplinary measure. Cases of Domestic violence are on the high and show no signs of reduction in Nigeria, regardless of the age, tribe, religion or even social status. The CLEEN Foundation reports 1 in every 3 respondents admitting to being a victim of domestic violence. The survey also found a nationwide increase in domestic violence in the past 3 years from 21% in 2011 to 30% in 2013. A CLEEN Foundation's 2012 National Crime and Safety Survey demonstrated that 31% of the national sample confessed to being victims of domestic violence.
In 2007, the U.S. Department of State reported 31,833 rapes in China, but no similar report by the Chinese government has been made available. Same-sex sexual assault between male adults was made illegal in late 2015. Domestic and foreign victims of sex trafficking in China are raped.
Rachel Jewkes is Executive Scientist: Research Strategy in Office of the President and former Unit Director of the Gender and Health Unit of the South Africa Medical Research Council, based in Pretoria, South Africa. She also serves as Director of the What Works to Prevent Violence Global Programme, as well as of the Secretary of the Sexual Violence Research Initiative. She has been a member of the National Council Against Gender-Based Violence in South Africa and the PEPFAR Scientific Advisory Board and the WHO's Strategic and Technical Advisory Committee for HIV-AIDS (STAC-HIV). Jewkes studied Medicine, receiving a Masters in Community Medicine (MSc) and a Doctorate in Medicine (MD) from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, University of London. She is an Honorary Professor in the faculty of Health Sciences, School of Public Health at the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, and is an A-rated researcher with the South African National Research Foundation. Jewkes moved from England to South Africa in 1994.
The trial of Oscar Pistorius for the murder of Reeva Steenkamp and several gun-related charges in the High Court of South Africa in Pretoria opened on 3 March 2014. Pistorius was a leading South African runner who won attention as an athlete with a disability competing at a high level, including at multiple Paralympic Games and the 2012 Summer Olympics. Steenkamp, a model, had been Pistorius's girlfriend for three months. In the early morning of Thursday, 14 February 2013, Steenkamp was shot and killed by Pistorius at his Pretoria home. Pistorius acknowledged that he shot Steenkamp, but he said that he mistook her for an intruder. Pistorius was taken into police custody and was formally charged with murder in a Pretoria court on 15 February 2013. The entire trial was broadcast live via audio, and parts of the trial were also broadcast live via television.
Domestic violence in Kenya constitutes any harmful behavior against a family member or partner, including rape, assault, physical abuse, and forced prostitution. Domestic violence in Kenya reflects worldwide statistics in that women are the overwhelming majority of victims. Over 40% of married women in Kenya have reported being victims of either domestic violence or sexual abuse. Worldwide, over 30% of "ever-partnered women" aged 15 and older have experienced physical or sexual partner violence. The distinct factors and causes of this high percentage have often not been studied due to lack of data.