FOREWORD: Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls: A Necessity

November 25 is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. The theme of this third Issue of the Sexuality in Africa Magazine is "Violence Against Women and Girls in Africa." Through this issue of the Sexuality in Africa Magazine, the ARSRC wishes to join the international community and the growing numbers of African civil society organizations in the fight against violence and specifically, gender-based violence.

Millions of African women and girls are victims or survivors of violence. Sexual violence is arguably one of the most prevalent forms of violence against women and girls. Statistics on the frequency and severity of the issues are certainly scanty and artificially hide the scale of the problem. Increasing urbanization has also tended to increase the occurrence of sexual violence through the multiplicity of sexuality discourses and moralities. It appears that reaction to insecurity and frustration is the control of women's sexuality.

While sexual violence is part of gender-based violence, we should not deny the existence of intra-gender sexual violence. Same-sex sexual relationships do exist. Same-sex sexual relationships may also experience sexual violence. Unless this fact is recognized and steps are taken to promote responsible, respectful and healthy sexuality, we will undoubtedly fail many young girls and boys.

It is time for action. While the role of the states and authorities is paramount, it is also important for private and public institutions and organizations to join the fight by at least designing and implementing policies or guidelines to respond to sexual abuse and violence when they occur in the workplace, schools and other contexts.

Sincerely,
Richmond Tiemoko, Ph.D.
Director
FEATURE: Sexual Violence Against Women in South Africa

Research on violence against women in South Africa has proliferated within the last five years and all these studies highlight acts of violence as a human rights violation; with the underlying factor the inequality between men and women. The profound impact of the violence on women's personal, sexual, social and reproductive life reduces their autonomy and destroys their sense of personal safety and their quality of life.  Read full article. By Naeemah Abrahams
ISSUE IN FOCUS: The Critical Issues: Gender-Based Violence in Africa 

The United Nations defines gender-based violence against women as "any act of violence on a woman by a man that results in physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty whether occurring in public or private life." Gender- based violence is a crime against women and humanity and measures against it are stipulated in numerous United Nations' Conventions on human rights and by the Africa and the Beijing Platforms of Action 1994/1995, the Maputo Declaration on Violence Against Women of July 2004 as well as The Africa Charter on Human and Peoples Rights. Read full article.
By Mary Okumu
RESEARCH NOTES: Deconstructing Determinants and Patterns of Wife-Battering in Lagos State, Nigeria

Worldwide, one of the most common forms of abuses directed at women is physical violence by their husbands or other intimate male partners. Although, women can also be violent, men perpetrate the vast majority of partner abuse against their female partners. It is referred to by many names: Wife-battering, Wife-beating and Intimate-partner abuse, among others. Wife battering is considered a gender-based abuse and is a subset of domestic violence. Read full article. By F. A. Badru

Other Forms of Violence Against Women: Cases Observed in Madagascar

Almost 1 out of every 5 households in Madagascar is headed by a woman. The majority of these women heads of household are separated or divorced, and the rest are widows or single mothers. The presumably large numbers of adolescent mothers who still live with their parents are not counted among women heads of households in the national statistics. Read full article. By Mireille Rabenoro

"One in Three"

One in three. That stark figure sums up the crisis confronting women throughout the world. Among young girls in classrooms worldwide, learning to read and write, one will suffer violence directed at her simply because she is female. Of three women sitting in a market, selling their crops, one will be attacked, most likely by her intimate partner, and hurt so severely she may no longer be able to provide for her family. Read full article.

BOOK REVIEW:
Scared at School: Violence Against Girls in South African Schools

By Human Rights Watch
This publication by Human Rights Watch documents the broad spectrum of issues and challenges that young girls in South Africa's schools have to face. A central contention of the book is that sex discrimination in South African schools, as manifested by inadequate state response to sexual violence and harassment, impedes a girl's access to her internationally recognized human right to education on equal terms with her male classmates. Read full article

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