Declare gender violence in S.Africa a national disaster, campaigners say

Yahoo11-04-2025

Several hundred people marched on Friday against femicide and gender violence in South Africa, calling for the "scourge" to be declared a national disaster.
Gender-based violence is endemic in the economic powerhouse where one in three women experiences physical or sexual abuse in their lifetime, according to UN figures.
The rally -- one of many organised across the country on Friday -- marched to the Union Buildings, the majestic seat of government that adjoins the presidential palace in the capital Pretoria.
They handed a petition to the government which was received by a deputy minister.
Counting the black-clad Miss South Africa Mia le Roux within their ranks, they booed, chanted and waved placards reading slogans such as "My body is not a crime scene!".
"It is time for change. We cannot continue to do the same thing over and over and nothing happens," said Siphiwe George, founder of a group called Women Waging War, who drove nine hours to join the protest.
Declaring the violence a national disaster "will open up a whole new level of how we can fight this scourge", she told AFP, saying it would release funds for shelters for victims.
South Africa, a nation of 62 million people, has some of the highest rates of violence against women and children in the world, according to the UN agency, UN Women.
On average, at least 129 rapes are reported daily, according to the latest police data which does not specify the gender of the victims.
- Violence 'a pandemic' -
"We are the rape capital of the world. Our statistics are horrific," Women for Change spokesperson Bulelwa Adonis told AFP.
"Our country has showcased so many times that this is a pandemic," she said. "It's time that it's declared a national disaster because enough is enough."
In one of the latest cases to anger the country, a seven-year-old girl was allegedly raped at her school last year but no arrests have yet been made.
The case gained nationwide attention only last month, after her mother revealed the details in a podcast and local media.
Witney Stander, whose sister was killed in 2023, said the time had come for perpetrators to be held to account.
"We just want some accountability and some action to be taken," she told AFP.
Ntombifuthi Stander also demanded that police do more to tame the violence. Recalling the day her daughter was killed, she said police "refused to come out and help us".
"We are crying... that day was a nightmare," Stander said.
Action has long been promised.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Wednesday there was an urgent need to address legal blind spots that worked against the rights and interests of survivors of gender violence.
"Laws cannot just be written, they must be enforced," he told a conference of women judges.
"Perpetrators must be held accountable, and the sentences they are given should reflect the seriousness of their crimes."
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Alarm grows after the US inserts itself into Israel's war against Iran. Follow live updates.

Boston Globe

20 minutes ago

Boston Globe

Alarm grows after the US inserts itself into Israel's war against Iran. Follow live updates.

UN nuclear agency says significant damage expected at Iranian underground site — 5:09 a.m. .cls-1{clip-path:url(#clippath);}.cls-2,.cls-3{fill:none;}.cls-2,.cls-3,.cls-4{stroke-width:0px;}.cls-5{clip-path:url(#clippath-1);}.cls-3{clip-rule:evenodd;} Link copied By the Associated Press The head of the United Nations' nuclear watchdog said Monday that 'very significant damage' is expected at Iran's underground facility at Fordo after a U.S. airstrike there this weekend with sophisticated bunker-buster bombs. Advertisement Rafael Mariano Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, made the statement in Vienna. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 'Given the explosive payload utilized and the extreme vibration sensitive nature of centrifuges, very significant damage is expected to have occurred,' Grossi said. UK's Lammy says US not going after Iran's 'civilian leadership' — 4:02 a.m. .cls-1{clip-path:url(#clippath);}.cls-2,.cls-3{fill:none;}.cls-2,.cls-3,.cls-4{stroke-width:0px;}.cls-5{clip-path:url(#clippath-1);}.cls-3{clip-rule:evenodd;} Link copied By the Associated Press Britain's foreign minister says he is confident the US is not seeking to overthrow Iran's government despite a social media post from President Trump suggesting it might be a good idea. Foreign Secretary David Lammy said Monday that 'it's clear from Israel and the United States that they're not going after the civilian leadership' in Tehran. He said 'that's not what's under consideration at this time.' Lammy said he spoke to Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday, and the UK is pushing to 'get the Iranians back to serious diplomacy.' Advertisement Lammy told the BBC he has 'not seen an assessment yet' of whether the strikes 'seriously degraded Iran's ability to come up with a nuclear program.' He added that 'ultimately this has to be dealt with by diplomacy.' Iran has a 'free hand' to act against US interests, top general says — 3:52 a.m. .cls-1{clip-path:url(#clippath);}.cls-2,.cls-3{fill:none;}.cls-2,.cls-3,.cls-4{stroke-width:0px;}.cls-5{clip-path:url(#clippath-1);}.cls-3{clip-rule:evenodd;} Link copied By the Associated Press Iranian Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi, the chief of joint staff of armed forces, warned the US on Monday that its strikes gave a 'free hand' to Iranian armed forces to 'act against US interests and its army.' Mousavi stressed Iran would not hesitate to do so after the US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites on Sunday. He described the American attack as violating Iran's sovereignty, entering the Israeli war on the country and being tantamount to invading the country. The state-run IRNA news agency reported Mousavi's remarks. North Korea condemns US strikes on Iran — 2:55 a.m. .cls-1{clip-path:url(#clippath);}.cls-2,.cls-3{fill:none;}.cls-2,.cls-3,.cls-4{stroke-width:0px;}.cls-5{clip-path:url(#clippath-1);}.cls-3{clip-rule:evenodd;} Link copied By the Associated Press North Korea says it 'strongly condemns' the US attack on Iranian nuclear facilities, calling it an egregious violation of Iran's territorial integrity and security interests. North Korea's Foreign Ministry said in a statement Monday that the United States and Israel were escalating tensions in the Middle East through the use of military force, and called on the 'just-minded international community' to raise a unified voice against their 'confrontational behavior.' During his first term, President Trump met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un three times in 2018 and 2019, but their diplomacy collapsed over disagreements in exchanging the release of US-led sanctions against North Korea and the North's steps to wind down its nuclear and missile program. Kim has since accelerated his arms development while ignoring talk offers by Washington and Seoul. Advertisement He has shifted the priority of his foreign policy to Russia, sending thousands of troops and huge shipments of military equipment to fuel Russian President Vladimir Putin's war on Ukraine. Pakistan condemns Trump for bombing Iran after recommending him for a Nobel Peace Prize — 1:15 a.m. .cls-1{clip-path:url(#clippath);}.cls-2,.cls-3{fill:none;}.cls-2,.cls-3,.cls-4{stroke-width:0px;}.cls-5{clip-path:url(#clippath-1);}.cls-3{clip-rule:evenodd;} Link copied By the Associated Press Pakistan condemned President Trump for bombing Iran, less than 24 hours after saying he deserved a Nobel Peace Prize for defusing a recent crisis with India. Relations between the two South Asian countries plummeted after a massacre of tourists in Indian-controlled Kashmir in April. The nuclear-armed rivals stepped closer to war in the weeks that followed, attacking each other until intense diplomatic efforts, led by the US, resulted in a truce for which Trump took credit. It was this 'decisive diplomatic intervention and pivotal leadership' that Pakistan praised in an effusive message Saturday night on the X platform when it announced its formal recommendation for him to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. Less than 24 hours later, however, it condemned the US for attacking Iran, saying the strikes 'constituted a serious violation of international law' and the statute of the International Atomic Energy Agency.