The Minister of Women in the Presidency Bathabile Dlamini wants laws that protect women and children urgently reviewed. She addressed a two day Gender based Summit in Durban on Thursday.
The summit aims at finding and implementing ways of combating violence directed at women and children.
Hundreds of people from groups that represent women and children, religious organisations, police and the prosecuting authority are attending the summit.
Gender-based violence is rife in South Africa. Femicide increased by 117% in the year 2015/ 2017.
The killing of Karabo Mokoena and Reeva Steenkamp by their partners just some of the examples.
“The message from the presidency is that women must work together but also that this is a societal issue all households must discuss it and ensure that action is taken and South Africa is safe for all women and girls and legislation has to be reviewed and changed as quickly as possible people that deal with issues of violence against women must be astute people and they should not lose cases,” says Dlamini.
Last year President Cyril Ramaphosa hosted the National Gender Based Violence Summit that aimed at providing solutions to the scourge of women and children abuse.
The Durban summit aims at implementing its recommendations.
Meanwhile, KwaZulu-Natal Social Development MEC Weziwe Thusi says the summit will discuss feedback from the national summit on gender-based violence and come up with a plan of action.
“This summit is a summit that follows the national summit on gender based violence that was hosted by his excellency state President Cyril Ramaphosa and that summit came up with a declaration with 24 resolutions today (Thursday) we have come to talk about the report back to the community and come up with a plan of action from resolutions that were taken in the national gender base violence and femicide summit that was held in Gauteng.”
