During a recent gender-based violence (GBV) roundtable webinar hosted by the Student Affairs Division to celebrate Women’s Day contributors called for an integrated approach to combating this scourge on CPUT campuses.

The contributors, composed of leaders in the Higher Education sector, civil society and government, said ongoing monitoring and evaluation of actions dealing with GBV were needed to inform interventions. They advocated for GBV ambassadors especially within the Student Affairs Division.

Among the contributors there was a panel consisting of Dr Tlaleng Mofokeng (Commission for Gender Equality: Commissioner), Nonkosi Tyolwana (Director of Transformation at CPUT), Dellicia de Vos (CPUT’s Disability Unit), Nkokheli Mankayi (Activate Network and CPUT Alumnus), Kanyisa Booi (Matriarch and Sons) and Central Student Representative Council President, Phinda Swartbooi.

The contributors made a case for a thorough investigation into prevalence and under-reporting of GBV cases and further argued that sexual reproductive health and psychological issues must also be considered when dealing with GBV and not just its physical effects.

They also called for the Student Representative Council’s commitment to co-ordinate other student structures to come up with a student-centred approach to address GBV.

They highlighted the need for policy interventions to be more inclusive of marginalised groups such as people with disabilities and the LGBTQI community. They clarified that gendered violence does not only refer to male- female abuse exclusively, but also includes male - on - male as well as female – on - female violence.

“The key takeaway from this session is to secure safe learning spaces within Higher Education; to look at different initiatives and ways to work constructively and collectively to make a change,” says Louisa Brits, Head of Student Counselling and one of the webinar’s organisers.

“By highlighting experiences of GBV from different communities (including marginalised groups) within the campuses will inform different programme interventions; practical and implementable solutions will be the important part of awareness and instrumental to sensitise others about GBV.”

Written by Kwanele Butana
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Statistics on gender-based violence (GBV) in South Africa are staggeringly high and universities are not immune to the scourge.

As part of its response, the Department of Higher Education and Training and HEAIDS is developing a standardised framework for GBV, which will eventually be implemented at all universities across South Africa.

CPUT is among the institutions who decided to take a stand against GB and an Institutional Position Statement on gender-based violence has been drafted.

The university’s new GBV policy should be launched in August.

The Faculty of Health and Wellness Sciences has been proactive in starting to align staff members with the policy through a series of seminars that seek to unpack the interventions that have been or could be used to reduce gender-based violence in a particular health profession.

The seminars consider interventions that promote gender equality and that challenge accepted cultural norms that endorse violence against women and girls. It may include descriptions of how interventions have been implemented and evaluated in a variety of social contexts, including schools and community structures, and how these might be replicated and/or modified for use in a health profession. NGO partnerships provide the civil society responses of crisis intervention, advocacy and community of practice. The methodological rigour is supported by McMaster University’s National Collaborating Centre for Methods and Tools (Canada).

 “If we acknowledge that one in three women will be victims of abuse in their lifetime then the implication is that one in three female students or staff members may possibly be victims and reciprocally, that one in three males may be perpetrators,” says Dr Navindhra Naidoo, acting head of the Emergency Medical Sciences Department and one of several collaborators on the draft policy.

“We are putting the issue on our professional agendas. We are looking at what is our science, what is our agenda, what are the tools of our trade and how can we use the ‘tools’ of our proverbial ‘trade’ to be inclusive of gender-based violence.”

Prof Penelope Engel-Hills, Acting Dean of the Faculty, said the faculty was taking a critical look at how and whether the issue of GBV was being dealt with in the classroom and in the curriculum.

“We know that at least ten percent of reported rapes occur in Higher Education Institutions. We really feel that if we get our lecturers and researchers talking about this, together with our support staff, we can influence what happens at CPUT.”

 Naidoo said the issue of GBV affected all three of the university’s pillars of teaching and learning, research and community engagement.

“In terms of teaching and learning, if students are intimidated or in constant fear they cannot meaningfully study. Being free of violence is a social determinant of one's education. We need to ensure that we provide a safe environment to promote and protect one’s health and education rights.”

He said much of CPUT’s research did not deal with the socio-political context of violence.

“We need to get our respective professions more connected to our students’ lived realities.”

Naidoo said our campuses were not protected from and our processes not protective of the escalating frequency and brutality of GBV.

“…that’s why we need to do community engagement activities. We need to take the issue back to the community and say we as researchers have looked at this issue and we have the following policy recommendations so we can start influencing change. That’s how CPUT becomes an agent of change rather than a place where victims (and perpetrators) are ‘born’.”

Engel-Hills concurred: “Our research and our identity as being educators should work together and it must bring a positive influence in our communities”.

To read more about the policy, please click here: https://www.cput.ac.za/newsroom/news/article/3535/cput-takes-stand-against-gender-based-violence

Written by Ilse Fredericks
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The Centre for Diversity, Inclusivity and Social Change (CDISC) in collaboration with the Institutional Gender-Based Violence Committee (IGBVC) Pillar 6: Research and Information Management Systems recently held their 1st 2024 Crucial Conversation under the theme: Voices and Spaces, Creating Inclusive Spaces” # RecognitionOfVoices.

The event which was held at the South African Renewable Energy Technology Centre was attended by organisations such as Triangle Project, Gender Dynamix, Commission for Gender Equality, NSP GBVF Localisation, Transgender Advocate, Kinsey Institute, Indiana University, CPUT Queer Unicorns, CPUT Student Representative Council, CPUT staff and students.

The purpose of the 1st 2024 Crucial Conversation was to provide platforms and opportunities for individuals from all backgrounds to share their stories, perspectives, and experiences and to:

• Encourage open and respectful communication between diverse groups to promote understanding, empathy, and acceptance.
• Ensure that physical and digital spaces are accessible to people of all abilities, including those with disabilities, to create an inclusive environment.
• Identify and address systemic barriers that prevent certain voices from being heard or inhibiting full participation in society.
• Facilitate collaborative efforts between different stakeholders to design and develop inclusive spaces that meet the needs of all.
• Promote diversity, inclusion and foster a sense of belonging for all CPUT staff, students, and those we interact with.

Stream Coordinator: Gender Equality, Diversity & Inclusivity, Tumiso Mfisa, said the conversation allowed open engagement showing that “CPUT should hold itself accountable for creating and maintaining inclusive spaces, with clear strategies for measuring progress and enforcing policies”.

“What stood out for CDISC is that the conversation fostered a holistic view from a local and international perspective around Diversity, Inclusion, and a sense of belonging for all in Higher Education Institutions.”

Mfisa stated that the attendees must continue the conversation in their respective spaces, as this was the start of a series of crucial conversations. “CDISC extends gratitude to the CPUT community, international visitors, organisations, NGOs, members of society and other academic institutions that attended in person or joined via the CPUT YouTube channel.”

Written by Aphiwe Boyce
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