Meaningful push against GBV needs leaders with absolute respect for women

On 25 November 1960, the US-backed Rafael Trujillo regime assassinated three women and their driver in the Dominican Republic. The women were the Mirabal sisters — Patria, Maria and Antonia and their driver was Rufino de la Cruz.  

The Mirabal sisters and their husbands were part of the resistance, members of the Movement of the Fourteenth of June, which was created to support and honour those martyred while attempting to overthrow the Trujillo regime. 

On that day, the sisters had permission to visit their incarcerated husbands, but it was a trap and they were killed. Driving home that night, they were ambushed by Trujillo’s strongmen, and the sisters and their driver were bludgeoned and strangled to death.

When Trujillo ordered their deaths, he could not have imagined it would hasten the end of his 31-year reign of terror. His state sponsored terrorism was responsible for spying on citizens, imprisonment, torture and the disappearance of all those deemed a threat to his political power and the economy he controlled, channelling profits to his family.   

Trujillo was also a sexual predator. He sent scouts in search of women, who were brought back to him for his pleasure.  His harassment of the Mirabal family was a personal vendetta against their third daughter, Minerva, because she rejected his advances. She and her sisters were twice imprisoned by Trujillo. Minerva, the first woman to graduate from law school, graduated summa cum laude, but she could not practise law. Trujillo revoked her degree and banned her from the profession.  

After their assassination the Trujillo regime faced unprecedented opposition. There was massive unrest, leading to the end of Trujillo, who was assassinated six months after the sisters’ murder. Since then, women activists in the Dominican Republic, in Latin America, and all over the world, have been inspired by their courage and dedication. Movements all over the world dedicated November 25 as the day for Elimination of Violence Against Women. 

The anniversary of their death marks the beginning of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence (GBV), which ends on December 10, International Human Rights Day.  

In South Africa, those who are familiar with the Matanzima brothers, who ruled the former Transkei, will recall their unbridled predaciousness throughout the bantustan. George Matanzima’s grotesque collection of “fresh meat” from boarding schools and colleges was never hidden. Neither the guardians at boarding schools nor the parents could say anything.  

This year, we mark the anniversary of the death of Mirabal sisters in a world that has normalised GBV. US voters re-elected Donald Trump, a man with a long record of sexual abuse, with a massive victory.  

In South Africa, there’s wide recognition that our violent history and the prevailing structural violence contribute to high levels of GBV. Undoing these are core values of the South African constitution. Yet, despite the world-renowned constitution, policies dealing with GBV and progressive gender equality jurisprudence, millions of South African women continue to experience chronic violence.  

South Africa has one of the highest numbers of GBV incidents in peacetime. Every day, women face torment, violation, fear, insecurity and vulnerability.   

The National Strategic Planning on GBV and Femicide was adopted in 2020. It is the most comprehensive, albeit imperfect, response to what politicians call the “scourge of GBV”.  However, it is clear that South Africa is not winning this war — because of the role of the country’s political leadership in either creating an environment which entrenches GBV or undermining efforts to eliminate GBV.  

This is clear when we consider the legacy of the Jacob Zuma era in South Africa. This is especially the case when it comes to the rape charges and other allegations against Zuma. The Zuma rape trial was more than the guilt or innocence of one man. It was also about the nationwide repositioning of the discourses on rape, sexual violence, consent and the platforming of rape myths. Before the Zuma rape trial, people feared allegations of rape and sexual harassment because there was a real possibility it would end their careers. (For example, the Mbulelo Goniwe case where he sexually harassed a woman and lost his parliamentary seat). 

However, things changed when Fezekile Ntsukela Khuzwayo — also known as “Khwezi” — accused Zuma of rape. From the first reports even before people knew the details of the alleged crime, Zuma supporters and leaders in the tripartite alliance, including senior ANC MPs and members of cabinet, not only suggested she was lying but that Zuma’s “enemies” put her up to it.

The proceedings of that case, the public debate and the politically charged atmosphere were damaging not only to Khwezi but to the country’s fight against GBV

The judge granted a lot of space for Zuma to go into every detail imaginable; his post-coital shower, predilection for baby oil, his distortion of Zulu culture [how he reached a point of no return, according to his version of Zulu culture], and the meaning of her wearing a kanga. Not once did Zuma mention her giving verbal consent.  

The judge also allowed evidence to be led on her sexual history and sexuality, thereby effectively putting her on trial. Khwezi said she twice told Zuma “No”.  However, despite it being clear from Zuma’s own words that consent was only based on what Zuma inferred but not the woman’s verbal consent, Judge Willem van der Merwe ruled that the sexual intercourse was consensual.  

The proceedings of that case, the public debate and the politically charged atmosphere were damaging not only to Khwezi but to the country’s fight against GBV. There was no need for men to fear rape allegations anymore. It was also a warning to women that some men were just too powerful to complain against.  

The Zuma era marked an important turning point in the country  The ANC has dropped all pretence that it cares, and opposition parties are equally disinterested and apathetic. The lesson of history is clear: only when we fight for leaders whose conduct and respect for women is unimpeachable are we likely to see a meaningful push against GBV.  

• Gasa is a feminist and researcher on land, gender, politics and cultural issues.

For opinion and analysis consideration, email Opinions@timeslive.co.za