Legal news and commentary from the offices of Simon Dippenaar
Reclaiming your life after an abusive relationship Throughout 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children, we’ve been looking at breaking free of an abusive relationship. It’s shocking how many women live with abuse, sometimes for decades. The problem is not unique to South Africa. It is global, oblivious to social class […]
Planning for the future after leaving an abusive relationship Key points: Establishing a support network: The role of friends, family, and domestic violence support organisations Safety precautions when confiding plans Using prepaid phones and alternative internet access to maintain secrecy Legal considerations: Prioritising legal aspects, such as obtaining protection orders and understanding custody rights Securing […]
Let 16 Days of Activism this year be the last you spend in an abusive relationship Abusive relationships take many forms. We have written about the dynamics of abusive relationships and the signs of abuse. Abuse may be physical, emotional/psychological (gaslighting, controlling you), sexual, financial (restricting your access to funds or your ability to work), […]
Know the signs of abuse and don’t be afraid to seek help Despite the many initiatives and campaigns over the years aimed at ending gender-based violence in South Africa, we still bear the unwanted title of “rape capital of the world”. A Google search for statistics on gender-based violence yields disturbing results: “Between 25% and […]
Men need to be allowed to be vulnerable to end gender-based violence The 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children has ended. But the intentions of the campaign must continue. We cannot tolerate the abuse or death of more women and girls. We’ve written recently about the root causes of gender […]
How do we change the root causes of inequality? Regular readers of our blog know we like to keep up with legal news around the world. It’s great to see where South Africa is leading the way, and where we can learn from other countries. Recently, we spotted an initiative from Scotland. The 2022-23 Programme […]
Why are we still fighting high rates of femicide? As we stagger towards the end of the year, exhausted but at least relieved that the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic is behind us and life has returned to some semblance of normality (Eskom’s woes notwithstanding), it’s time once again to turn our attention to the […]
As we currently observe 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children, this article from the UK’s Guardian newspaper gives voice to the experience of a child raised in a home where domestic violence was a frequent and unwelcome guest. Although the author was not the direct victim of the abuse – […]
Actor says playing role of abused wife gave her new insight and hardened her stance on the issue This is a shocking statistic: “…for every three months that lockdowns continue, an additional 15 million women around the world are expected to be affected by violence”. Nicole Kidman speaks out against gender-based violence after playing an […]
As we embark on another 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children Campaign (16 Days Campaign), which takes place from 25 November (International Day of No Violence against Women) to 10 December (International Human Rights Day), we have nothing to celebrate. Rates of violence against women and children have been on […]
Violence against women in the workplace – time for it to stop! 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children runs from 25 November till 10 December each year. In fact, the 25th of November is specifically observed as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, an initiative started […]
25 November marks the start of the 16th annual 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women & Children. This is an international campaign that seeks to raise awareness of the plight of many women and children who suffer violence as a regular occurrence. Here in South Africa, the rape capital of the […]
