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13 November 2018
Photo Moeketsi Mogotsi
Kovsies took an active stance against sexual and gender-based violence through various campaigns in October.
President Cyril Ramaphosa recently announced that South Africa will launch a national strategic plan to tackle gender-based violence (GBV) after years of lobbying by activists. Speaking at the Presidential GBV Summit, the head of state commended activists who called for a nationwide shut down in August in response to high levels of GBV and femicide in the country. He says the government is now reviewing national GBV plans and will develop a national action plan.
Activism at the UFS
One of the efforts launched by the University of the Free State’s (UFS) Gender and Sexual Equity (GSE) Office in the fight against this plague is the # RESPECTME campaign. From 11 to 26 October 2018, the university held its own 16 Days of Activism.
Geraldine Lengau of the GSE Office believes that minority groups deserve the same amount of respect as all other citizens of this country, which is the core concept of the campaign. “The Campaign is a loudhailer to say, ‘just because I am different from you’, be it gender or sexuality, it doesn’t mean that I deserve any less respect,” she highlighted.
Lengau added: “Activism will forever remain important on our campuses as it creates an environment where the community is made aware of matters that would otherwise not have mattered had they not been publicised. Also activism becomes all the more important in advancing the university’s strategic plan.”
Policies advocating against GBV
As stipulated in the UFS Sexual Harassment, Misconduct and Sexual Violence Policy the university strongly believes in the principle of human dignity that is entrenched in the Constitution of South Africa (1996) which resolves to ensure a safe working and study environment for students.
Student Affairs also led a campaign which aimed to highlight the ongoing scourge of sexual and gender-based violence, in line with the policy. “The university is working relentlessly at endorsing the aspects and characteristic traits of respect amongst all of its stakeholders in an effort to reduce the notion of gender-based violence,” said the Dean of Student Affairs, Pura Mgolombane.
Appeal Court Judge delivers inaugural lecture at the UFS
2009-09-16
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Judge of Appeal, Belinda (BJ) van Heerden an expert on child and family law, recently delivered her inaugural lecture as Professor Extraordinary in the Department of Criminal and Medical Law in the Faculty of Law at the University of the Free State (UFS). With the topic Chicken soup Jurisprudence: Implementing children’s rights in South Africa she focused, amongst others, on the history of the implementation of children’s rights in South Africa. The picture of today is a whole lot different than that of twenty years ago. “We have invested in our children, we have begun to treat them as worthy citizens,” she said. According to her, children’s rights is one of the best success stories of our South African democracy so far. At the occasion were, from the left, front: Prof. Hennie Oosthuizen, Head of the Department of Criminal and Medical Law at the UFS; back: Judge Van Heerden, Prof. Driekie Hay, Vice Rector: Academic Planning at the UFS; and Dr Neels Swanepoel of the Department of Law of Procedure and Law of Evidence at the UFS.
Photo: Stephen Collett
Attached also please find the complete lecture. |