Legal news and commentary from the offices of Simon Dippenaar
What is assault and what should you do if you are assaulted? The very word “assault” understandably sparks fear and alarm in many people. Although assault can be verbal, we most often associate assault with a physical act. In South African law, assault is a criminal offence defined as the unlawful or intentional application of […]
The Protection Against Harassment Act of 2011 is there to help Attention is sharply focused on violence against women right now, as the world observes 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children. This campaign has its roots in protests about the use of physical violence against women. But violence and abuse […]
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 […]
Reprinted from the Guardian, by Anna Moore – 2022-05-09 Can men who assault or intimidate their partners be taught to respect women? We talk to campaigners and perpetrators – and sit in on one of their classes In this Zoom call, four men are looking at a list of family duties and marking which they […]
What it means for your privacy Cybercrime is on the increase in every aspect of life. Hardly a day goes by without a news item about the latest ransomware attack. But there is one type of cybercrime that is decidedly egregious. Cyber abuse, particularly when it involves bullying, disclosure of intimate images, or threats of […]
Largest analysis of its kind finds one in seven globally said they had experienced violence in the last year We know we have a problem with gender-based and domestic violence in South Africa, and we know it is a global phenomenon, as reports that have emerged during the Covid-19 pandemic have shown. But this study, […]
The issue of abusive men – reprinted from the Guardian. By Sonia Sodha – 2020-11-01 Once again, a male perpetrator of violence is painted as terribly misunderstood Reeva Steenkamp: shot to death through a bathroom door Photograph: Gallo Images/Getty Images Her name was Reeva Steenkamp. She was a 29-year-old model who was the face […]
Judges emphasise that procedural fairness must be upheld Reprinted from groundup.org.za, by Tania Broughton – 2020-09-04 Three appeal judges in the Western Cape provincial division have laid down guidelines on how eviction orders, in domestic violence matters, should be dealt with. Photo: Brian Turner via Flickr (CC BY 2.0) A magistrate ruled that a husband accused of […]
Reprinted from joburg.org.za – 2020-08-19 The City expects law enforcement agencies to take stern action against perpetrators of Gender-Based Violence (GBV), all the while guaranteeing protection for victims. It is incumbent on law enforcement officials to create safer conditions that ensure female victims reporting cases of violence against male perpetrators are not re-victimised. These are […]
This article was written by the executive director of White Ribbon Australia, part of a global social movement working to eliminate gendered violence. Replace “Australia” with “South Africa” and everything he says is equally true of our society. Inequality is so deeply embedded structurally that men and women alike see nothing wrong with mother-in-law jokes […]
While South Africa and the UK have experienced COVID-19 and lockdown differently, some of the consequences have been as global as the pandemic itself. We may not have the same number of children in care homes, but our children and adolescents face the same risks from online predators. With children spending more time online, and […]
Last week we shared some sentiments from Les Da Chef about the causes of gender-based violence in South Africa. While acknowledging the role alcohol plays in domestic abuse, he expressed his view that violence against women in our culture has much deeper roots than alcohol abuse alone, a view we share. But that doesn’t mean […]
