President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on men and boys to take a stronger stand against gender-based violence (GBV). He made the appeal while addressing the 1956 Women’s Day Commemoration at the Union Buildings on Sunday.
The event marked the historic women’s march of 1956, when more than 20,000 women gathered to protest against apartheid pass laws. This year’s commemoration placed the country’s ongoing GBV crisis at the centre of discussions.
Ramaphosa used much of his address to outline measures aimed at tackling GBV, including the role of the National Council on GBV. He also urged men to take responsibility for challenging violence against women.
Ramaphosa Calls On Men To Reject Gender-Based Violence
Ramaphosa called on men and boys to speak out against violence and make it clear that they will not tolerate abuse against women. He said men should take a more active role in confronting behaviour that contributes to gender-based violence.
“Men and boys must step forward and say, ‘Not in my name’. More and more men must stand forward and say, ‘I shall not lift a hand against any woman’.”
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The president’s remarks came as GBV remains a major focus of national conversations around Women’s Day. Government has been considering measures through the National Council on GBV as part of efforts to address the crisis.
Ramaphosa Highlights Women’s Education Gains
The Women’s Day commemoration also focused on the progress women and girls have made in education. Ramaphosa pointed to data showing that girls are performing strongly academically.
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“We finding that women absorb education much more than men. But too few of them enter into engineering, into science, into technology. We want to see more and more women into the STEM disciplines.”
Ramaphosa said there was a need to encourage more women to pursue science, technology, engineering and mathematics careers. The call formed part of a broader focus on advancing opportunities for women and girls.
