#TheTotalShutDown against women abuse


Women across the country are mobilising to fight the current scourge of deaths among women and children.

The protest will shut down all industries to address woman and child abuse. Credit: Amnesty International

A National Shutdown is scheduled for 1 August throughout South Africa in protest against gender-based violence. “Every four hours a woman is killed in South Africa and all the other times in between women are emotionally, physically and economically disenfranchised. Children are going missing every day and we watch as men walk away from their crimes like they never happened,” says Lesley Ncube, national spokesperson for #TheTotalShutDown.

According to a report released by Statistics SA (Stats SA), one in five women experiences physical violence at the hands of partner. On social media, women are daily reported as kidnapped, killed by their husbands/boyfriends or are in violent relationships seeking help. “It’s important for us to fight against Gender Based Violence. A large part of the population is being wiped out and we can’t sit and watch. Fighting Gender Based Violence should be put in the National Agenda and taken seriously,” Ncube says.

A memorandum has been drafted and is out for public comment until 22 June. We have currently shared the memorandum on our social media page for public suggestions and comments. We acknowledge that there is no one type of woman and every woman’s voice needs to be heard. Once it is finalized we will be sending it to the government and other institutions to act on it,” she says. They have received feedback so far and once it is finalised it will be handed over to President Cyril Ramaphosa and Parliament on 1 August.


“We want to see a change. A change in the way our government deals with Gender Based Violence, a change in the way society treats women, Children, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, intersex, and asexual or allied (LGBTQIA)+ Gender non-conforming people.” Women from higher education institutions such as Wits, Rhodes, UP, UWC, NMU and more will be part of the march. “Students are mobilising as well. So, there is no one person heading everything. It’s a collective effort from women across the country,” she explains. She also adds that the list keeps growing.


#TheTotalShutDown says something needs to be done. Men can show solidarity by not going to work on 1 August. Credit: The Citizen

According to Ncube, after the protest the ‘real work’ begins of ensuring change and implementation for various policies and legislation to change the various structures in ensuring that this is a South Africa is truly a place for women, Children, LGBTQIA+ and Gender Non- conforming people.
Provincial teams have been set up and those who would like to get involved can visit their Facebook and Twitter pages for more information.


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