KwaZulu-Natal Premier Sihle Zikalala appealed for an end to violence against women and children (GBV) at a Human Rights Day event in Ixopo in the Harry Gwala District on Monday.
The event marked the 62nd commemoration of the Sharpville massacre in which 69 people lost their lives.
The Premier decried the high levels of GBV in the country and called on community members to play their part in bringing an end to the scourge.
“Let us use Human Rights Day to remember that Women’s Rights are also human rights. We are deeply disturbed by the high levels of violence perpetrated against women and its gruesome nature. We must arrest this scourge that is defiling the gains of our hard-won democracy and is an assault on the dignity of women,” said Zikalala
He said that such crimes had risen during the Covid-19 lockdowns.
“We hear daily of women being murdered by their partners and their bodies cut into pieces or disfigured or burned. It has been disappointing to see GBV on the rise at the height of the lockdowns which government had to implement in order to save lives and livelihoods. The rights of women and their dignity were grossly violated at a time when we needed the greatest effort towards Ubuntu and human solidarity,” he said.
Zikalala also condemned the rise in the killing of traditional leaders and appealed to communities to work with law enforcement agencies to report such crimes.
“We cannot afford to live in a society where life has become (so) vulnerable and cheap that (even) our traditional leaders are no longer safe,” Zikalala said.
Recalling the July civil unrest during which lives were lost and businesses looted, the Premier called for the creation of a new society that advanced peace and justice for all.
“We call on all stakeholders to make a contribution to the call for a creation of a new, model citizen of the province of KwaZulu-Natal. We see such a model citizen as a person who rejects and condemns the use of violence to address disagreements,” said the premier.
Zikalala said government remained committed to ensuring the province’s economic recovery, outlining a set of initiatives through which this would be achieved including the Operation Vula Fund and the KZN Youth Empowerment Fund.