Gender-Based Violence

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Further ideas for school action on homophobic bullying and hate crime In Workshop 8, we emphasise that a whole-school approach is needed to deal effectively with gender-based violence (GBV). This applies equally to homophobic bullying and indeed to general bullying. All bullying behaviours rely on violent cultures and hate speech being accepted as ‘normal’ at

While there has been a drop in the number of sexual offences reported, the scourge of gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) continues to haunt women and children in the country.

The value of a school policy on GBV A policy is a strong public statement that the school considers all forms of GBV to be serious offences and that complaints will be taken seriously. This is important because it can make offending learners and educators aware that they will be held accountable for different levels

What are the psychological effects of violence against children? Schools in societies where violence and  neglect  are  common  face  a  critical challenge to put their learners’ well-being first; learners’ personal well-being is vital   for their development. Developmental psychologists agree that certain key  developmental  values  have  to be nurtured in children very early in life: trust,

What can educators do about Child Abuse? Early childhood educators in particular, because they spend so much time with children, are in a position to notice changes in behaviour, or bruising and bleeding.   For example, a young child who is sexually abused by peers, older children or adults   on the way to school might show

The link between gender-based violence and HIV Violence or the fear of violence can obstruct HIV prevention, care and treatment, because it can limit a person’s ability to learn their status and take and maintain protective measures, which can range from negotiating safer sex to getting and  staying on treatment to staying in school (Gardsbane,

In what context does child sexual abuse occur? Child sexual abuse occurs  worldwide  across  all  social,  economic  and  cultural groups. Incest or intra-familial sexual abuse is the most common form of child sexual abuse and can range from fondling to intercourse. In South Africa, incest constitutes  80 per cent of all child sexual abuse cases

What about reporting of child sexual abuse? As might be expected, child sexual abuse is very badly under-reported, even by adolescents. It is estimated that the 28,128  sexual offences against children under      18 years that were reported  to the  police  in  2010  were  only  about  one-ninth  of the actual cases (South African Police Services 2010/201

What can educators do to prevent homophobic hate crimes ? Educators can: learn more about sexual orientation and related issues; move away from ‘othering’ LGBTI people and rather attempt to empathise with their experiences of life; remember that while LGBTI learners are different from other learners in sexual orientation, in crucial ways they are the

How does homophobic bullying and hate crimes  impact youth? Homophobic bullying is a symptom of a pervasive societal culture of homophobia and heterosexism that threatens the physical and mental health, safety and well- being of sexual- and gender-minority Sexual- and gender-minority youth are not inherently at risk; it is the homophobic beliefs and behaviours of

What is hate crime? Hate crime is the violence of intolerance and bigotry (intolerance towards people   who hold different opinions to oneself), intended to hurt and intimidate someone because of their race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation or disability. A ‘hate crime’ is an act which constitutes a criminal offence that is motivated in

hat is harassment? It is widely believed that sexual harassment is the only type of harassment  that occurs. In reality, while sexual harassment is perhaps the most common form of harassing behaviour, it is not the only one. According to the Protection from Harassment Act, 17 of 2011, harassment is unreasonably following, watching, pursuing or

Harassment or cultural differences? There can be a tendency to dismiss some incidents of harassment as a consequence   of cultural differences. However, it is important to realise that culture is not fixed     and unchanging. Not all members of a cultural group have the same viewpoint and cultures change constantly. Negative patterns of behaviour that develop

What about bullying as another form of harassment? Bullying involves one or more people singling out and deliberately and repeatedly hurting or harming physically or mentally another person or group of people. It can affect anyone, may occur at any age, and may be specifically targeted at certain individuals. It is done repeatedly over a

Who gets harassed? Although anyone can be harassed, researchers have found that boys are more likely to be sexual harassers and girls are more likely to be the targets. This is because sexual harassment expresses the sexism within our society. According to the 2012 National School Violence Study in South Africa: One in seven female

What is sexual harassment? Sexual harassment is any unwelcome sexual attention from a person who knows,        or ought reasonably to know, that such attention is unwelcome; and unwelcome explicit (direct) or  implicit  (indirect)  behaviour,  suggestions,  messages  or  remarks of a sexual nature that have the effect of offending, intimidating or humiliating the complainant or a

Why should schools take action against gender-based violence? Much of the GBV described above takes place during the hours children spend in school and the consequences are felt in schools too. Here are some of the issues that schools need to confront: GBV goes directly against the constitutional rights of every child to basic education

What does the law say about gender-based violence? name of The acT year proVisions South African Schools Act, section 8 1996 The Act provides that: 1.          The governing body of a public school must adopt a code of conduct for the learners after consultation with the learners, parents and educators of the school. 2.          The

The nature of gender-based violence GBV is violence directed at a person on the basis of their gender. GBV in our society and our schools seems to  be  learned behaviour. It  reflects  the kind of learned attitudes discussed earlier about what it is to be a man or woman in society. For example, boys (and

SayPro competencies Southern Africa Youth Project plays a major role in the ecosystem of policy makers, funders, educators, intermediaries, organisations in Health, Welfare, Social Development, Education, Skills Development, Information Technology, environment, arts and Culture, Heritage, Gender Based Violence and HIV/AIDS. Southern Africa Youth Project wishes to align itself to the United Nations (UN), UNESCO, USAID, African

Our role in leveraging Resources SayPro Southern Africa Youth Project has an interest in organisational engagement at an international, national, provincial, district and local level. This means that SayPro Southern Africa Youth Project together with its Health, Welfare, Social Development, Education, Skills Development, Information Technology, environment, arts and Culture, Heritage, Gender Based Violence and HIV/AIDS organisation.