One of the unintended but predicted consequences of lockdown across the world has been spiralling domestic abuse. On the surface, it seems that little can be done to address the issue, since it is all happening behind closed doors. Abuse and silence often go hand in hand, but during the Covid-19 crisis, this silence became a vast gulf of fear and isolation. Technology can’t prevent the violence, but it is playing a major role in addressing the silence.
One of the most effective initiatives to combat gender-based violence (GBV) in SA has been a partnership between Vodacom and the department of social development, which jointly launched a GBV command centre in 2014. The mobile operator provided R4m in funding for a call centre managed by government-employed social workers.
The call centre has become a case study in adding multiple technologies to a platform to ensure inclusion across forms of access and means of communication. It uses both SMS and USSD — short codes that can be used at no cost on any mobile phone — for instant access. And, in 2016, Skype was roped in to give access to the deaf community, using both text and social workers trained in sign language to counsel anyone who calls the account, HelpMeGBV.
Access to all these platforms is zero-rated, so there is no cost for the calls or data.
The scale of stress brought about by lockdown is dramatically illustrated in the increase in calls to the command centre this year. In 2019, the centre received 87,092 calls for the year, of which 1,846 were GBV-related. In just the first two months of lockdown, it received 33,715 calls, of which 1,427 were GBV-related. This was more than a 10-fold increase in the number of GBV-related calls for the period March 1-26, just before lockdown began.
Takalani Netshitenzhe, chief officer for corporate affairs at Vodacom, acknowledges that even these numbers represent severe underreporting of the scourge, both because many victims are afraid of reaching out, or because they simply don’t know where to turn. And, in many cases, they may not even realise just how they are being abused.
This, again, is where technology is about to be roped in. Vodacom is planning to launch a new app for the purpose called Bright Sky, before or during the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence campaign that starts in November.
“The app is going to serve mainly as a risk assessment tool for the users to answer a series of questions to determine if they are in an abusive relationship, because we know that most people who are in abusive relationships do not know, especially if the abuse is subtle and emotional,” says Netshitenzhe.
“The app also has a directory of information, like the nearest police station to the user and shelters for victims of gender-based violence. It will also have awareness messages on what to do if you are in an abusive relationships, with appropriate information.”
Bright Sky has been developed by Vodafone in the UK, and is already operating there and in Ireland. But it is more than just an information app, of which numerous have popped up during the Covid-19 crisis.“ The most fundamental feature of this app will be a hidden evidence journal, where the user can store incidents,” says Netshitenzhe. “If the matter happens to go to the police, this may then assist with the criminal justice system, with prosecution and conviction.”
Technology also contributes to a response strategy. The SMS platform is linked to a geolocation installed by geographical information system provider Afrigis.“ The geolocation helps us to map out the origins of the calls. If a call drops, the social workers is able to follow up, but the most important feature of geolocation is that it tends to identify hotspots so that we are able to tell from where large volumes of GBV are coming. For instance, we can tell, during the lockdown, that the highest number of GBV calls are coming from Gauteng, followed by KwaZulu-Natal, followed by the Western Cape.
“The importance of geolocation is that, once you know where the hotspots are, it is much easier for the government to mobilise resources in the form of the police for purposes of prevention and apprehension of the criminals. But it also helps the department of social development to see if they've got enough community-based social workers who can assist with the challenges. When social workers receive calls using all these platforms, they make referrals to police stations, to shelters, or to community based social workers.”
Netshitenzhe points out that the command centre does not only receive GBV-related cases, as it’s an open platform, but that people call with any kind of distress.“ Now during Covid-19, social workers are receiving calls related to job security, food security and general stress related to Covid-19 itself. But, because of the integration of the technology, they are able to isolate the GBV-related cases.”
Tellingly, she says, the highest number of calls come through voice calls, “because people want to be listened to”.
Ultimately, however, technology offers cold comfort. The true challenge is for men themselves to change the way they treat women. Vodacom’s initiative includes a campaign to address societal stereotypes, and it is working closely with three of the country’s most popular sports teams — Orlando Pirates, Kaizer Chiefs and the Blue Bulls — to get the message across to men and boys.
“If you don't address those societal stereotypes, and the social construction of gender identity, there's no way that you can deal with gender-based violence or the manner in which the boy child is socialised from a very tender age to be aggressive, and how the girl child is socialised from a very tender age to be submissive. Our messaging is to say that the parents, the caregivers in Early Childhood Development centres, and also schools must promote equality, so that the boys and the girls should see each other as equals,” Netshitenzhe says.
• Goldstuck is founder of World Wide Worx and editor-in-chief of Gadget.co.za.
