No date set for Cyril Ramaphosa’s GBV family meeting

President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced that government will address the nation in the coming days on its response to gender-based violence (GBV) and provide an update on the investigation into the killings of women in and around Ekurhuleni.

However, no specific date has yet been confirmed for the address.

Ramaphosa made the announcement during the National Heritage Day celebrations at Bongolethu Sports Stadium in Oudtshoorn, Western Cape, on Thursday, 24 September.

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The announcement comes after the discovery of the bodies of nine women in Ekurhuleni and surrounding areas over the past two months, prompting widespread concern and renewed calls for stronger action against GBV and femicide.

‘Women have the right to walk streets of SA’

In his Heritage Day address, Cyril Ramaphosa said the abuse, rape and killing of women could not be considered part of South Africa’s heritage.

“The abuse, rape and killing of women is not our heritage. There is no culture worthy of the name that diminishes the dignity of women,” he said.

The President said women should be able to walk the streets of South Africa without fear.

He also described the suffering experienced by women as a national shame and said the country’s heritage celebrations must acknowledge the unequal ways in which freedom and safety are experienced.

Government steps up Ekurhuleni investigation

Cyril Ramaphosa previously directed law-enforcement agencies to give the Ekurhuleni killings the highest level of attention.

The government’s Inter-Ministerial Committee on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide has since approved a Comprehensive Emergency Strategy aimed at speeding up investigations and bringing those responsible to justice.

A multidisciplinary specialised investigation team has been elevated and is being coordinated by the Deputy National Commissioner for Detective Services.

Government said that, of the nine bodies discovered, one woman had not yet been linked to a missing-person case at the time of the September 20 update. Police have urged families to report missing women immediately rather than waiting 24 hours.

‘Our common enemy today’

Cyril Ramaphosa said South Africa’s challenges must be confronted collectively.

He identified unemployment, GBV, corruption, alcohol and drug abuse among the problems facing the country.

“Our common cause today is bringing about the conditions in which every South African can truly live the freedom that was promised them in 1994,” he said.