By Dr M. Weideman (Independent Consultant) and Ms. L. Cawood (Director, Childline Gauteng)

Gender-based violence (GBV) is a potential or actual threat that all women face. South Africa (SA) is frequently cited as one of the most dangerous countries (not at war) for women, and GBV is described as a pandemic. However, many of the often-repeated claims  on the extent of the violence (such as those found on Wikipedia, which claims that 40% of South African women are raped) have been disproved, or are contradicted by more accurate locally-generated statistics. The use and distribution of incorrect data causes reactionary and ineffective interventions. It can also create a climate of fear and powerlessness that exacerbates trauma.

Available data (despite variances) does not support the often-repeated false claims (e.g., that SA is the “rape capital” of the world)

Reliable data from Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) and the South African Police Services (SAPS) - even when under-reporting is considered - suggests that GBV (broadly defined to include verbal abuse) is a serious issue in SA, but that prevalence is probably on par with prevalence in many other countries for which statistics are available.

Available data (despite variances) does not support the often-repeated false claims (e.g., that SA is the “rape capital” of the world):

• According to the SA Demographic Health Survey of 2016, 26% of ever-partnered women aged 18 or older have experienced intimate partner physical, sexual, or emotional violence in their lifetime.
  
  
• A soon to be published 2023 community-based survey with a sample size of 3,500 completed by the Foundation for Human Rights found that 10% of women had experienced sexual violence in the preceding 12 months.
  
  
• In 2016, Stats SA estimated that 21% of ever-partnered women had experienced physical violence by a partner, and 8% reported that they had experienced physical violence in the past 12 months. Furthermore, 6% of ever-partnered women had experienced sexual violence by a partner while 2% had experienced sexual violence in the past 12 months.
  
  
• According to the World Economic Forum Global Gender Gap report, lifetime prevalence of GBV, i.e., inclusive definition, in SA is 20.6%.
  
  
• SAPS statistics for sexual offences for the period 2008 to 2023 show that the number of sexual offences declined from 69 197 in 2008, to 53 888 in 2022 (despite a likely increase in reporting given the enormous level of attention the issue has received from the president, media and civil society in the preceding few years).
  
  
• There is data that suggests that sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) is declining. The State of Crime and Safety in South African Cities Report, 2020, of the Urban City Reference Group states that “since 2011/12, cities have seen a steady decline in SGBV, with the most dramatic decline in Nelson Mandela Bay (-40%), eThekwini (-39%), Tshwane (-37%), Mangaung (-32%) and Cape Town (-30%), followed by Ekurhuleni (-25%), Johannesburg (-24%) and Buffalo City (-5%).”

It is also important to understand that GBV does not take place in a vacuum but is one manifestation of a broader societal problem. There are high levels of violence and crime in SA overall. Women tend to experience different types of violence than men do (or rather more of some types of violence, and less of others than men do). The arguably incorrect view that women are a special category of helpless victims leads to reactive interventions, with limited efficacy, divorced from the reality of a broader societal problem that can only be addressed holistically.

There is growing evidence demonstrating that violence against women (VAW) and violence against children (VAC) are linked, and that more integrated responses are required.

To be effective, responses must at least consider some of the complexities pertaining to SGBV. For example:

• Children (persons under the age of 18) account for 21% of perpetrators in some studies.
  
  
• Child abuse is very prevalent and is a major cause of cyclical violence and socio-economic deprivation. The Optimus Study demonstrated that boys are more likely to be victims of sexual assault than girls are (although the types of sexual assault boys and girls tend to experience differ). 33.9% of girls report sexual abuse mostly in the form of contact crimes, whilst 36.8% of boys report experiencing sexual abuse, mostly non-contact. Being forced to touch or being touched by an adult was slightly higher for girls (12%) than boys (11.5%). Being forced to do sexual acts against their will by peers was higher for boys (10.9%) than girls (7.8%) whilst more girls were forced to have sex (14.5%) than boys (9.1%). Girls were more likely to report being physically (often with a weapon) and verbally threatened than boys, whilst an almost equal number of girls and boys were promised something in return for the act by adult perpetrators. Girls are more likely to be sexually violated by a person known to them. Boys are more frequently violated by strangers. Girls were mostly harmed by boys and men, whilst boys indicated that forced intercourse was perpetrated by females, while sexual abuse (when perpetrated by an adult) was slightly more likely to be perpetrated by men than women. Boys were more likely to be harmed by child (i.e., under 18) perpetrators than girls were, especially for sexual harassment and sexual exposure.
  
  
• Numerous studies have demonstrated a correlation between experiences of childhood sexual abuse and a tendency towards sexual violence in later life. CIET Africa (2002) found that 66% of male and 71% of female abusers had been victims of sexual abuse. Research also shows that children exposed to domestic violence are at greater risk of becoming abusive or abused. CIET Africa’s research suggests that male survivors of sexual abuse are 6% more likely to become perpetrators of violence.  Whilst sexual violations of boys do not cause them to sexually offend, it is a risk factor as it may result in a learned expression of inappropriate sexualized behavior.  Males are more likely to identify with the aggressor, while girls typically engage in self-harming behavior such as repeated risky sexual behaviors, substance abuse, and a propensity to engage in abusive relationships in later life.
  
  
• There is growing evidence demonstrating that violence against women (VAW) and violence against children (VAC) are linked, and that more integrated responses are required. There are shared risk factors, common social norms, co-occurrence and the intergenerational cycle of abuse. VAW and VAC intersect at various stages of the life cycle.
  
  
• Stats SA’s 2011 Victims of Crimes Survey showed that crimes against women take a particular form (i.e. approximately four times more likely to be sexual and to be perpetrated by individuals known to them). The minority of assaults against women, are committed by unknown assailants (10.5%). Crimes against women are mostly committed by persons within their communities known to them, and by family members and intimate partners (29.9% of assaults of women are perpetrated by known community members). However, the statistics also show that men are twice as likely to be victims of crime, and four times more likely to be murdered than women are.
  
  
• Gender specific violence should be seen in the context of all forms of violence and high levels of crime in society. According to the Global Peace Index (2018), SA ranks 125 out of 163 countries and is one of the most violent countries in the world which is partly due to the legacy of apartheid (poverty, marginalization and militarization), which resulted in communities adopting violence as a norm; drug and alcohol abuse; disintegration of families with absent parents, especially fathers; poverty; and unemployment.

The point of this article is not to dispute the fact that SGBV is prevalent. All efforts to address SGBV are encouraged. The purposes of the article are :

• to demonstrate the complexity of the issue,
• to argue for the development of contextualized, holistic, evidence-based interventions,
• to promote the use of accurate data generated in local contexts in the global South, and
• to argue against the dissemination of inaccurate, disempowering and traumatizing data. 

About the authors: 

Dr Marinda Weideman is an independent applied social researcher, author, and monitoring and evaluation expert. In this capacity she has completed more than 150 research studies and evaluations in South and Southern Africa. She has published extensively on a wide-range of socio-economic subjects, contributed to evidence-based policy development, and works as technical advisor (on governance, gender equality, and results-based management) for international donors. 

Lynne Cawood (MA Clinical Psychology & BA Social Work Honours) worked in the field of Human Rights in SA as: a volunteer in anti-apartheid organisations; Johannesburg Child Welfare; Family Life Centre; Director of People Opposing Women Abuse; and currently Director of Childline Gauteng. Founder member of the: Anti-Apartheid Welfare Forum; National Network against Violence gainst Women and Children; and Childline South Africa. She has a passion for the: delivery of psychosocial service excellence and the healing of our people, especially women and children; promoting our constitutional democracy, transformation; development and increased spiritual understanding. She hopes to see South Africa take our place in the world of nations as a caring, compassionate and ethical people with a great democratic future!