WOMEN, PEACE AND SECURITY NEWS archive: SOUTH AFRICA
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2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002

2006

Horrifying story for incarcerated women in Gauteng prisons
November 2, 2006 - (CAJ) Women prisoners in Gauteng are seven times more likely to have been raped as children than the general female population and they experience a higher-than-average degree of violence in their intimate relationships.

South Africa to Hold World Congress for Rural Women
October 12, 2006 - (BuaNews) Cabinet has welcomed the opportunity for South Africa to host the 4th World Congress on Rural Women. Addressing the media on Wednesday in Cape Town, government spokesperson James Maseko said the congress would go a long way towards advancing the cause of rural women, particularly in the developing world.

Ndungane urges teaching of respect
September 28, 2006 - (iafrica.com) Young men must be taught to respect young women while they have to learn that they had the right to be treated with respect, Anglican Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane said on Thursday.

'We are all the key to building peace in a situation of violent crime'
September 1, 2006 – (Cape Argus) Several community, religious, business and government leaders, under the chairmanship of Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town Njongonkulu Ndungane, have launched an initiative to offer new strategies to protect our dignity and to preserve the values and respect of our society. This is a response to the high levels of violent crime being perpetrated, especially against women and children. The programme, Building the Peace: A Kairos on Violent Crime, was launched this week.

Women Urged to Work Together
August 10, 2006 - (BuaNews) Minerals and Energy Minister Buyelwa Sonjica says women must work together to enjoy the benefits of the country's struggle for freedom. Ms Sonjica was speaking at the Malibongwe Igama lamakhosikazi Women's Conference in Mossel Bay on Thursday.

Women's Day - balancing gains and fears
August 7, 2006 - (IRIN) South Africa celebrates Women's Day on Wednesday, marking 50 years since a historic march by 20,000 women against apartheid laws, but the remarkable progress made in gender equality has failed to extinguish a resilient culture of violence and abuse against women.

A safe place for children in the Age of AIDS
July 27, 2006 – (Christian Science Monitor) Winnie Mabaso seems to float through the kitchen, quietly eyeing the huge vat of porridge teetering on the small gas stove. She smiles at her helpers, who have spent the past three hours chopping carrots, and then checks her list of children's names, to see who in this impoverished township has been eating. She glances at her watch. Outside, she knows, her orphans are getting hungry. Hundreds are waiting.

Tutu regrets Zuma's trial legacy
May 24, 2006 - (BBC) Archbishop Desmond Tutu has said the rape trial of ex-Deputy President Jacob Zuma was "one of the worst moments" in the life of South Africa's democracy. Mr Zuma was acquitted of rape two weeks ago, in a trial that revealed problems about HIV awareness and the treatment of rape complainants in South Africa.

Govt, Civil Society Sign Declaration to End Gender Violence
May 7, 2006 -(BuaNews) Government and its civil society partners have set priority actions to be taken, at the minimum, before the 16 Days anti-violence campaign starts on 25 November.

Women for mayor: the Way forward?
January 24, 2006 - (Mail & Guardian) Of Gauteng’s 15 municipalities, only those led by women -- Lesedi, Midvaal, Westonaria and the West Rand -- received unqualified audit reports for 2003/04 “It is encouraging that the four municipalities that have performed with regard to their finances are led by woman mayors,” says Gauteng local government minister Qedani Dorothy Mahlangu. “It will also spurn the notion that women are not capable of being mayors, speakers or municipal managers, and is a sign of encouragement for more women to play a leading role in local government.”

2005

Free Women, Children From Abuse to Attain Global Peace
November 29, 2005 – (BuaNews) The world is far off from the goal of achieving global peace and security if women and children are still being subjected to abuse, says Foreign Affairs Deputy Minister Sue van der Merwe.

Checklist for change
November 25, 2005 - (Mail & Guardian Online) On December 12 last year, two days after the end of the Sixteen Days of Activism campaign, an editorial in a weekly South African newspaper posed the question: “So the seventh 16 Days of Activism campaign has come and gone, and what has changed? Has violence against women and children in South Africa diminished? ... Do we promptly revert to the degradation now that the pressure is off and the campaign has been mothballed for another year?”

SOUTH AFRICA: Guns and gender violence - a lethal combination
November 16, 2005 - (IRIN) Victoria [not her real name] thought she had the law on her side when she left her abusive partner and successfully applied for a protection order against him. According to provisions set out in South Africa's 1998 Domestic Violence Act and reinforced by recently enacted firearms legislation, the order gave the police powers to confiscate the gun that had repeatedly been used to terrorise her.

Woman MPL Becomes Deputy Speaker
October 28, 2005 – (BuaNews) A member of the KwaZulu Natal Provincial Legislature Lydia Johnson has been appointed Deputy Speaker of the legislature, becoming the first woman in the province to assume such a position.

South Africa: Putting Gender Equality at the Forefront of Local Government
October 11, 2005 - (IPS) A ground-breaking gender equality training course for local government officials has wrapped up in South Africa's financial capital, Johannesburg.

Vivid Memories of a Dark Heritage
August 29, 2005 - (Mail & Guardian Online) Thousands of women used to be brutalised on a daily basis in the Women's Jail in Johannesburg. One of those who were imprisoned behind the high stone walls at Constitution Hill is Lillian Keagile, who still has bad dreams.

SADC Summit: Many challenges ahead for gender equality
August 19, 2005 - (Pambazuka News) The Southern African Gender Protocol Alliance today welcomed the decision by leaders at the just-ended SADC (South African Development Community) summit to endorse the African Union position on gender parity in all areas of decision-making.

Watch Out Gauteng - Here's a Woman With a Vision!
August 18, 2005 - (BuaNews) "My challenge is to convert the systems and processes already in place into tangible delivery - that is sustainable human settlements in Gauteng!

Mlambo-Ngcuka to Address Women in the Northern Cape
August 1, 2005 – (BuaNews) Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka is expected to give a keynote address at the provincial launch of the South African Women In Dialogue (SAWID) in Kimberley, Northern Cape tomorrow.

South African Development Community (SADC) Strives for Gender Equity
July 4, 2005 – (The Herald) The Southern African Development Community (SADC) region is making huge strides in female empowerment in decision-making judging by the number of high profile appointments made over the last two years.

Mlambo-Ngcuka Takes a Giant Stride for Women of South Africa
June 23, 2005 – (Business Day Johannesburg) Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka has risen to higher political office than any other woman in SA's history.

Poll Boost for Women
June 22, 2005 – (Business Day Johannesburg) The South African Local Government Association (Salga) has committed itself to ensuring that women make up 50% of the candidates for the coming local government elections, in line with government's gender empowerment programme.

MEC Calls on Women to Take Centre Stage
June 17, 2005- (BuaNews) MEC of Gauteng Local Government Qedani Dorothy Mahlangu has made a call for the society to place the emancipation of women high on the agenda.

S.Africa Rape Victim Wins Damages From Government
June 13, 2005 - (Reuters) A South African woman who was raped by three policemen six years ago on Monday won the right to financial compensation from the government in what activists said was an important victory for women's rights.

Gillwald Calls for More Action From Women
June 10, 2005 - (BuaNews) Deputy Correctional Services Minister Cheryl Gillwald has called on women in government and civil society to teach their peers about the negative impact of violence.

COMESA First Ladies Discuss Empowerment
June 8, 2005 – (The Post) FIRST ladies from the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) member states have urged women in the region to actively participate in COMESA programmes on women in business in order to attain economic empowerment.

African Human Rights Court: Will It Make a Difference for Women?
June 2, 2005 - (Media Institute of Southern Africa Windhoek - Opinion) As anticipation over the establishment of the African Human Rights Court grows, so does concern over the time it is taking to actually become operational and the impact it will have on the lives of millions of African women who may not even be aware of how the Court could affect them.

S. AFRICA WOMAN KILLED BY PARTNER EVERY 6 HOURS – STUDY
May 24, 2005 (Reuters) - A woman is killed every six hours in South Africa by her partner and less than 40 percent of the homicides lead to a conviction, according to a new study.

Anti-AIDS efforts too weak, critics charge
April 26, 2005 - (BBC) South Africa's government has failed to live up to its promises on fighting HIV/AIDS, opposition politicians and AIDS activist groups charge. The government decided in November 2003 to make anti-retroviral drugs available to all of South Africa's 5 million HIV-infected people, but progress on that policy has been too slow, critics say.

Voices of Mothers On Preventing HIV Transmission
April 15, 2005 - (IRIN) It's been three years since the courts ordered the South African government to provide nevirapine to HIV-positive pregnant women in public health facilities, but very little is known about the experiences of the HIV-positive women on the programme.

Mandela highlights role of women in AIDS plight
March 21, 2005 – (IoL) The HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa "carries the face of women, as they are the ones who carry most of the burden," Nelson Mandela said during a concert in South Africa aimed at raising awareness of how the disease affects women. The legendary freedom fighter encouraged everyone to speak out about the disease and fight the widespread stigma attached to it.

UN Has No Say in DRC Sex Case
March 16, 2005 - (SA)  The United Nations had no power to punish a South African battalion commander allegedly involved in sexual misconduct in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a UN spokesperson said
on Wednesday.

South African radio program ambushes cheating lovers
March 8, 2005 - (CS Monitor) It's a steamy Thursday night here in South Africa's black cultural hub, and a pair of bubbly 40-somethings named Florence and Portia are camped out at Jozi FM, a community radio station. They're here because they're tired of being two-timed by a man named Thabo.

SOUTH AFRICA: Women with guns to their heads
March 8, 2005 (IRIN) - In South Africa a woman is shot dead by a current or former partner every 18 hours, according to a new report from the Stop Violence Against Women campaign and the Control Arms campaign. The report, 'The Impact of Guns on Women's Lives', compiled by Amnesty International, the development agency Oxfam, and the global International Action Network on Small Arms, said women were paying an increasingly heavy price for the unregulated multibillion-dollar trade in small arms.

2004

PICKING UP THE PIECES
January 27, 2004 – (Mail & Guardian Opinion- Johannesburg) Thabo Tshabalala of Evaton in the Vaal Triangle expects to spend a lot of time in criminal courts in future, but he is not a criminal and he is not a lawyer. Tshabalala is a newly qualified forensic nurse, the only male in a pilot group of 19 nurses who recently completed training in evidence collection in sexual assault cases.

2003

GANGS TARGET CHILDREN FOR TRAFFICKING
December 18, 2003 – (Cape Argus - Cape Town) Four teenage schoolgirls spending the afternoon in the city were strolling through the Golden Acre shopping mall when a group of men approached them and threatened to shoot them with a gun concealed under their clothes.

FIGHT VIOLENCE BEYOND CAMPAIGN: PAHAD
December 15, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) Foreign Affairs Deputy Minister Aziz Pahad says action to stop violence against women and children must go beyond the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children campaign.

NEW HOPE FOR ABUSE VICTIMS
December 12, 2003 – (Mail & Guardian - Johannesburg) The new Gauteng "one-stop" shelter for victims of domestic and sexual abuse is a remarkable initiative in the battle against such abuse. But cultural preconceptions may mean it is less effective than it could be.

FREE STATE WRAPS UP 16 DAYS OF ACTIVISM CAMPAIGN
December 11, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) The Free State Government and civil society organisations yesterday observed the end of the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children campaign.

GALA DINNER FOR MEN TO TALK ABOUT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
December 8, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) The Mpumalanga Department of Safety and Security will host a gala evening in Secunda tomorrow to raise awareness about domestic violence.

COPS GO DOOR-TO-DOOR TO CURB ABUSE OF WOMEN, CHILDREN
December 3, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) Policemen are going door-to-door in Mpumalanga's historical gold mining town of Barberton to campaign against the abuse of women and children.

INDIAN WOMEN STRUGGLING WITH HIV/AIDS AND DISCLOSURE
December 2, 2003 – (IRIN) Stigma and gender inequality are helping to drive HIV/AIDS in South Africa's traditionally conservative Indian communities.

ELSIES HAS HAD ENOUGH OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
December 1, 2003 – (Cape Argus - Cape Town) Elsies River residents have taken up the challenge of tackling domestic violence in their community.

GAUTENG MOVES TO ENHANCE STATUS OF WOMEN
December 1, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) The Gauteng Government has gone a long way in accommodating women in the day-to-day activities of the provincial government, says Premier Mbhazima Shilowa.

GAUTENG WOMEN TO PLAN FOR NEXT TEN YEARS OF DEMOCRACY
November 30, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) Representatives of various women organisations in Gauteng will gather in Midrand, north of Johannesburg, this week, to share experiences on how best to improve their status over the next decade.

VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND CHILDREN IS EVERYONE'S BUSINESS
November 26, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) The perpetration of violence against women and children is not only a women's issue, but affects everyone, says Cape Town Unicity Mayor Nomaindia Mfeketo.

MPUMALANGA WOMEN AND MEN SPEAK IN ONE VOICE
November 26, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) The Mpumalanga Provincial Government launched the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children yesterday.

NDUNGANE PRAYS FOR FORGIVENESS FOR MEN
November 26, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) "Forgive us for not doing enough to protect the vulnerable and weak, as at times we stood by and allowed abuse to continue unchallenged."

PRESIDENCY SAYS NO TO WOMEN AND CHILD ABUSE
November 25, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) President Thabo Mbeki has thrown his weight behind the 16 Days of Activism for no Violence Against Women and Children campaign.

WOMEN FACE THE BRUNT OF THE COUNTRY'S WORSE CRIMES
November 25, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) South African women have been at the receiving end of some of the worse crimes over the years says Eastern Cape MEC for Social Development Neo Moerane-Mamase.

TIME FOR A SERIOUS PEP TALK ON GENDER VIOLENCE AND HIV AIDS
November 25, 2003 – (Media Institute of Southern Africa - Windhoek) The bevy of ministers who lined up for the launch of this years Sixteen Days of Activism Against Gender Violence campaign is a welcome sign that the daily violation of women's rights has finally registered on the political agenda.

RAPE IS A SERIOUS CRIME
November 25, 2003 – (Media Institute of Southern Africa - Windhoek) It is high time we remove our heads from the sand. The rape of women is a big deal! We need to stop the habit of shrugging our collective shoulders to mean, "Oh shame it happens, but life goes on".

WE SHOULD ALL BE SHAMED BY THE SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF GIRLS
November 25, 2003 – (Media Institute of Southern Africa - Windhoek) Sixteen-year-old Neo spent three days being sexually and physically abused by white men in Qua-Qua, South Africa. She was forced to drink urine and only after she became ill was she released to get medical attention. Neo took the opportunity to hitch-hike back home to Lesotho.

PUBLIC JUSTICE AGAINST VIOLENCE IS A WOMAN'S RIGHT
November 25, 2003 – (Media Institute of Southern Africa - Windhoek) As we approach yet again the 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence, we must ask ourselves how can these days come and pass each year with no significant milestones to stop all forms of violence committed mainly against women?

GENDER VIOLENCE NEEDS HEFER PROBE
November 25, 2003 - (Business Day Opinion - Johannesburg) AS SA joins the rest of the world in commemorating the International Day of No Violence Against Women today, it is a sobering thought that we have spent more on the Hefer commission than on fighting gender violence this year.

MEN URGED TO STAND UP AGAINST VIOLENCE ON WOMEN, CHILDREN
November 24, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) Social Development Minster Zola Skweyiya has called on all men, particularly in the Western Cape, to take a stand against violence against women and children by supporting the Good Men's March taking place in Cape Town tomorrow.

POLICE SUPPORT 16 DAYS OF ACTIVISM
November 24, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) In support of the 16 Days of Activism of No Violence Against Women and Children Campaign, police are determined to ensure that the perpetrators of violence on women and children face the wrath of the law.

WOMEN ABUSE IS AGAINST CONSTITUTION
November 23, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) Correctional Services Minister Ben Skosana says all violence against women and children is against their Constitutional rights and tramples on people's dignity.

FIGHT AGAINST GENDER VIOLENCE MUST BE SUSTAINED
November 18, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) Transport Minister Dullah Omar has appealed to all South Africans to continue the fight against gender violence beyond the 16 Days of Activism of No Violence Against Women and Children.

16 TOWNSHIP WOMEN QUALIFY TO WORK ON THE FRONTLINE AGAINST RAPE AND ABUSE
November 17, 2003 – (East Cape News - Grahamstown) Sixteen women, who proudly received their training certificates in front of an empty stadium here, went home to take up the battle against the horrific and sustained rape and assault of children and women in the Eastern Cape.

16 DAYS OF ACTIVISM LAUNCHED
November 17, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) The 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children campaign has been launched in Johannesburg.

NGOS BENEFIT FROM OVER R1.8M TO FIGHT ABUSE
November 6, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) More than 24 NGOs offering help to abused women and children in South Africa have benefited from the R1.8 million raised during the 16 days of No Violence Against Women and Children campaign last year.

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, ABUSE OF ELDERLY AND CHILDREN CONCERN CONFERENCE DELEGATES
October 16, 2003 – (East Cape News - Grahamstown) Escalating domestic violence and the abuse of children and the elderly were highlighted as areas of special concern by delegates to the provincial conference on gender based violence.

HALF OF REPORTED ATTACKS OCCUR IN EAST METROPOLE
October 15, 2003 – (Cape Argus - Cape Town) The Peninsula has been dubbed the "Cape of Rape" by detectives dealing daily with indecent assault, attempted rape and rape.

SOUTH AFRICA COURT RULES WOMEN CAN INHERIT IF NO WILL
October 1, 2003 – (Reuters) A South African court has ruled two girls can inherit their father's property because the traditional custom that the nearest and oldest male relative takes precedence if there is no will is unconstitutional.

SPOTLIGHT ON WOMEN IN PARLIAMENT AND SOCIETY
September 17, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) 'The objectives of a democratic, non-racial, non-sexist and prosperous society cannot be realised unless women have been empowered to participate in all aspects of life as equals with others members of society'. This is the view of Co-Chairperson of Parliament's Joint Monitoring Committee on Quality of Life and Status of Women, Priscilla Themba.

ON THE SOUTH AFRICA DRAFT CRIMINAL LAW (SEXUAL OFFENCES) AMENDMENT BILL
September 15, 2003 – (HRW) Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International welcome the opportunity to comment on the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Amendment Bill (Sexual Offences Bill) that is currently before Parliament. We recognise that the draft law has resulted from extensive preparatory work undertaken by the South African Law Commission, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the Ministry of Justice. The draft law, along with the development of specialised sexual offences courts and other initiatives, are part of a program of reforms that reflect the commitment of the Government, Parliament, civil society organisations and the country as a whole to improve access to justice and the efficiency of the criminal justice system in its response to rape and other sexual offences.

WOMEN PUSH FOR MEDIA COVERAGE IN SOUTHERN AFRICA
September 15, 2003 – (WeNews) Beauty contestant, sex worker, homemaker. Those are the only subjects for which women serve as the dominant authorities in southern African newspapers. Two groups are trying to change that and to ensure more respect for women in news coverage.

ANC WOMEN TO VISIT OVER AMINA LAWAL
September 12, 2003 – (Daily Trust - Abuja) The women's league of the African National Congress (ANC) has announced that it would send a delegation to Nigeria this month to meet President Olusegun Obasanjo over Amina Lawal.

WHAT'S WRONG WITH SOUTH AFRICAN MEN?
September 9, 2003 – (Health-e) Gender inequality contributes to South Africa's high levels of violence, hampers economic development, places strain on our health care system and is fuelling the AIDS crisis.

WOMEN'S CONFERENCE KICKS-OFF IN LIMPOPO TOMORROW
August 25, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) A conference marking the culmination of activities planned for Women's Month this month to honour all women in the country, kicks-off in Warmbaths, Limpopo, tomorrow.

NO HUMAN RIGHTS WITHOUT WOMEN EMANCIPATION
August 11, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) Foreign affairs minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma says the enjoyment of human rights will remain meaningless, if it excludes women's rights.

WOMEN STILL FACING HARDSHIPS: SKWEYIYA
August 11, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) Social Development Minister Zola Skweyiya says efforts to free women from the hardships they encounter on a daily basis need to be accelerated.

WINNIE APPOINTED TO SOUTH ASIAN WOMEN'S COURT
August 11, 2003 – (South African Press Association - Johannesburg) ANC Women's League president Winnie Madikizela-Mandela has accepted an appointment to the Jury of the South Asian Court of Women, her private secretary Alan Reynolds said in a statement on Monday. The court started its work in Dhaka in Bangladesh on Sunday and sessions will last until Wednesday. Madikizela-Mandela left South Africa on Friday to attend the event. The court addresses the problems of violence against women, trafficking in women, and the HIV/Aids issue. It is organised by the Asian Women's Human Rights Council in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme regional HIV and development programme for south and north east Asia. From: http://allafrica.com/stories/200308120004.html

NEPAD TO ADDRESS WOMEN
August 8, 2003 – (Mmegi/The Reporter - Gaborone) The New Economic Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) secretariat in South Africa has honoured an invitation to address Botswana women and key stakeholders in women's issues on August 11.

GENDER SUMMIT UNDERWAY IN NORTH WEST
August 7, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) A provincial Gender Summit is currently underway in the North West to formulate workable strategies to deal with challenges facing women and generally look at issues of women empowerment.

FIRST LADY TO OPEN CONFERENCE ON WOMEN
June 30, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) South Africa is to host a five-day conference, ahead of Women's Month, in August. The Women in Dialogue Conference, to be held at the University of Pretoria from this Wednesday, follows another successful conference entitled Peace Dialogue, that was held in March between women from South Africa and the Democratic Republic Congo.

PUSH FOR WOMEN'S PARTICIPATION IN DEFENCE OPERATIONS
June 15, 2003 – (BuaNews - Pretoria) The deputy minister of Defence, Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge, says efforts to increase women's participation in peace processes must be intensified.

UNIFEM HEAD CALLS FOR INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION ON VIOLENCE
May 19, 2003 – (UN Wire) Noeleen Heyzer, head of the U.N. Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), called Friday for the creation of an international commission to probe violence and brutality committed against women. At the launch in South Africa of a UNIFEM-commissioned report released last year, Heyzer highlighted a recommendation on establishing such a commission, saying it could be modeled on South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

UNIFEM WANTS TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION COMMISSION FOR VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN WAR
May 16, 2003 – (South African Press Association) An international truth and reconciliation commission (TRC) on violence against women in armed conflict "as a step towards ending impunity" is one of the key recommendations in a United Nations report launched at Parliament on Friday.

SOUTH AFRICA BEGINS GETTING TOUGH ON RAPE
February 24, 2003 – (WEnews) South African prosecutors are adopting a hard-line stance against rape, instituting special courts to address the crime and studying the reasons behind the astounding breadth of the problem.

FOCUS ON THE "BURDEN" OF MANHOOD IN SOUTH AFRICA
February 19, 2003 – (IRIN) It is hard to be a boy in South Africa these days. A recent survey of 30 schools in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province found that, across all races, male students and teachers experience uncertainty about their role and status and a sense of displacement due to the loss of their privileged space in society. The study examined how masculinity is constructed and maintained in schools to better understand how deeply-held notions of masculinity lead to high-risk behaviour for HIV infection among men and women.

SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT PRIORITISES CRIMES AGAINST WOMEN, CHILDREN
February 14, 2003 – (BuaNews-Pretoria) President Thabo Mbeki says crimes against women and children will continue to receive priority attention, including the establishment of sexual offences courts.

2002

SOUTH AFRICA FACING LOSS OF ITS TEACHERS TO AIDS
June 14, 2002 - (WeNews) South Africa's teachers, most of whom are women, are among the casualties of the country's AIDS crisis. After years of denying the problem, the government now says it's time to intervene.

SOUTH AFRICA: PARLIAMENTARY HEARINGS - GENDER BASED VIOLENCE
May 6, 2002 - The National Portfolio Committee on Health in Parliament, and the South African Gender-based Violence and Health Initiative, will jointly hold hearings in Parliament on Gender-Based Violence and the Health Sector on June 4 to 5, 2002.

STORY TELLING FOR CHANGE IN SOUTH AFRICA
April 12, 2002 - Violence in dating relationships has increasingly become an accepted social norm for men, women, boys and girls in South Africa. How can aspects of popular culture support work in schools and convince adolescent youths that it?s cool not to be cruel?

VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN: WHAT DO WE WANT TO TEACH OUR TEACHERS?
April 12, 2002 - South Africa has a history of very high levels of violence which dates back to the apartheid era, if not further. A women is raped every 35 seconds, estimates the South African Police Service. Gender-based violence (GBV), and its link to HIV infection, is very gradually being discussed in the public domain, but educators have no choice but to provide learners with the basic skills to cope with the dual threat of gender violence and HIV/AIDS now. But how, and when, can this be done within an education system?

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