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As South African social media dons a regal purple in solidarity against gender-based violence, women are gearing up for a nationwide economic shutdown on November 21, demanding that the government recognize the crisis as a State of Disaster—because no economy can thrive while women’s lives are treated as collateral damage.
Over the past week, much of South African social media has turned purple to raise awareness for gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) ahead of the G20 Women’s Shutdown organised by the non-profit organisation Women for Change.
The organisation has called for women in SA to withdraw from the economy on Friday, 21 November by staying away from work and not spending money, and to wear black and participate in lie-ins across the country.
More than one million people have signed a petition by the organisation calling for gender-based violence to be declared a State of Disaster. Included in the petition are demands for the National Registry of Sex Offenders to be made public, harsher sentencing for those convicted of femicide, gang rape and child sexual violence, and comprehensive gender-based violence education programmes to be implemented in schools.
The organisers have asked women to stay away from work and avoid spending money on Friday to raise awareness around GBV. Men, and women who cannot stay away from work have been asked to show support by wearing black. In addition, at 12pm there will be a 15-minute silent lie-in at 15 designated points nationwide in honour of the women murdered each day.
The organisers have linked the protest to the G20 Summit, which will be held in Johannesburg on 22-23 November.
“We refuse to allow South Africa to present itself as a ‘stable, growing economy’ while women’s bodies are the battlefield beneath it. The G20 Women’s Shutdown is a direct message to the world that you cannot speak of progress while women are dying,” said Women for Change.
The organisation’s demands are being backed by Wise4Afrika, an advocacy organisation dedicated to combating gender-based violence, which has provided technical support to Women for Change.
Wise4Afrika’s co-founder, advocate Brenda Madumise-Pajibo, said South Africa’s criminal justice system did not act as a powerful enough deterrent against committing gender-based violence and had been abused to delay proceedings.
“For quite some time, people have been using the law through their lawyers to delay proceedings — endless delays and postponements. And it’s a tactic. So it’s incumbent upon law and people who are charged with the responsibility of creating the law, the Parliament, to close those kinds of loops.”
She said declaring GBV a National State of Disaster would allow for resources and a streamlined, coordinated approach dedicated to addressing GBV.
“Truth be told, how we are responding to violence, especially violence against women in the country, is very fragmented and disparate. Once you declare a disaster, within those six months, it’s a concentration of efforts, interventions and responses that are targeted with resources,” she said.
This story originally appeared on The Daily Maverick