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25 November 2020 Photo Anja Aucamp
Prof Colin Chasi outside Centenary Complex (Anja Aucamp)
Prof Colin Chasi is the Director of the Unit for Institutional Change and Social Justice at the UFS.
The 2020 programme around the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence will be novel in that it will be run online. “For each person to register and log into the various programmes is a small step. But each such step makes a big difference by saying that the lives of survivors matter and by underscoring that gender-based violence will not be tolerated at the UFS,” says Prof Colin Chasi, Director of the Unit for Institutional Change and Social Justice (UICSJ) at the UFS.

Women and girl children have experienced increased violence in the time of the COVID-19 lockdown, states the UN Secretary General's report, Shared Responsibility, Global Solidarity: Responding to the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19. In South Africa, there have been reports of a scourge of rape in the post-school education and training sector. At the UFS, these developments have challenged the Gender Equity and Anti-Discrimination Office (GEADO) to come up with innovative online interventions.

In 2019, the University of the Free State (UFS) established the Unit for Institutional Change and Social Justice (formerly known as the Institute for Reconciliation and Social Justice, founded in 2009). The GEADO was launched on 8 April 2019 and was incorporated into the unit to run a cross-functional Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) and to organise programmes that combat gender-based violence and other forms of gender injustice.

“We have been able to offer our services with minimal disruption throughout the year,” says Geraldine Lengau, a Bloemfontein Campus-based GEADO officer.

“Most exciting for us is that we have taken the lockdown as an opportunity to expand the scope of ways in which we engage with students and communities,” notes Chelepe Mocwana, a GEADO officer on the South Campus. “GEADO has offered a number of online webinars and seminars, and the university has made telephonic services available that support, for example, the mental health of survivors of sexual violence.”

“On the Qwaqwa Campus, where we still have some problems with consistent access to data networks, we were pleased to see that our webinars have been well-subscribed to by students and staff members,” reports Siya Magayana, who is the GEADO officer on this campus.

“Each such step makes a big difference by saying that the
lives of survivors matter and by underscoring that
gender-based violence will not be tolerated at the UFS.”
—Prof Colin Chasi, Director of the UICSJ.

Since 1991, activists around the world have annually coordinated activities around the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence. The 16 days of activism begin on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and run until 10 December, which is International Human Rights Day. The start and end dates signify that the fight to eliminate violence against women advances human rights for all.

Activities to mark the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence will be advertised on various UFS communication platforms.

News Archive

Kovsies in second and third place at USSA Cross-Country Championships
2010-09-30

 In the Kovsie women’s cross-country team were, from the left: Thandi Malindi, Maryna Swanepoel and Lettie Dhlamini.
 
In the Kovsie men cross-country team, who participated in the recent USSA Cross-Country Championships in Port Elizabeth, are from the left: Ratlale Mokone, Khothatso Mokone, Boy Soke and Johan Cronjé.

The University of the Free State (UFS) entered both a men’s and a women’s team in the recent USSA Cross-Country Championships that took place at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in Port Elizabeth.

 

According to Ms Sarina Cronjé from KovieSport at the UFS, both teams did extremely well. Kovsies men came second in the men’s 4 km race as well as the 4x5 km road relay and our women finished third in the 8 km race.

 

Congratulations to Boy Soke (2nd), Johan Cronjé (3rd), Ratlale Kokone (7th) and Khothatso Mokone (14th) who came second in the team competition of the 4 km race with 26 penalty points against the 22 penalty points of the Pukke, who won the team competition. Our men’s B-team with Windy Jonas (17), Antonie Peens (20), Gerrit Viljoen (31) and Laurens van der Merwe (33) ended in sixth place in the 4 km team competition.

 

Our women finished third in the 8 km team competition with 31 penalty points. Thandi Malindi (9th), Maryna Swanepoel (10th) and Lettie Dhlamini (12th) were the team members.

 

“To each and every athlete a word of appreciation for the manner in which you ran, as well as the guts you have shown on a difficult course in very windy conditions,” said Ms Cronjé.

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