Women in South Africa take up guns and martial arts for protection against gender violence

BRONKHORSTSPRUIT, South Africa (AP) — Under the command of a female instructor, a group of girls and women, some wearing pink ear defenders, fire five shots at a target from 9mm pistols as they take firearms training at a range in the farming town of Bronkhorstspruit, just outside South Africa’s capital, Pretoria.

The group, some 13 years old and some 65 years old, are looking for ways to protect themselves in this country. gender-based violence It’s such a critical problem that it was declared a national disaster by the government in November.

“Check your grip, check your line of sight,” shouts Claire van der Westhuizen, head female instructor at the Lone Operator shooting range, as the women with well-groomed nails take another spin.

The training course is designed specifically for women and offers practice in real-world scenarios, such as shooting in self-defense while prone and supine.

Femicide rates in South Africa are among the highest in the world, according to UN Women, the United Nations gender equality agency. A 2022 study in South Africa found that more than 35% of South African women aged 18 and over had experienced physical or sexual violence at some point. In most cases, the perpetrator was an intimate partner.

Joining the ‘support family’

Sunette du Toit, a 51-year-old working grandmother, told The Associated Press that she was forced to take firearms training after surviving five men tying her up and ransacking her home.

“I was in no position to defend myself at that point,” Du Toit said. “I had to do this (firearms training) to regain my confidence so I could operate in public, even in my own home, without feeling vulnerable.”

She called the women’s firearms training group a “support family.”

Firearms are strictly regulated in South Africa. Anyone who wants to own a gun for self-defense must be over 21 and pass qualification exams and background checks.

Various self-defense training courses for women are popping up across the country.

Tatiana Leyka, a 33-year-old living in Johannesburg, South Africa’s largest city, began learning the martial art of jiujitsu to defend herself, well aware of South Africa’s reputation.

“I think that’s priority No. 1,” she said Saturday morning at the end of the class, which included dodging chokeholds, avoiding getting stuck in walls and other moves to help women evade men’s attacks. “With gender-based violence on the rise, it’s a good thing for you to be able to defend yourself, even if it’s just to escape.”

Violence against women is a national disaster

of south africa femicide rates It is five to six times higher than the global average, according to UN Women.

Mpiwa Mangwiro-Tsanga, policy development and advocacy manager at women’s rights organization Sonke Gender Justice, said statistics show that approximately 15 women are killed every day in South Africa due to gender-based violence. One in three women is subjected to sexual abuse or sexual harassment.

“That’s how bad it is,” he said. “We are in competition with conflict countries.”

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s move to declare violence against women and girls a national disaster comes after years of pressure from women’s advocacy groups. They cite socio-economic inequality, strong patriarchal attitudes and an under-resourced police force as factors.

“It is a shame that our country has the dubious distinction of having one of the world’s highest levels of violence against women and girls,” Ramaphosa said in a statement announcing the “national action”.

The declaration means authorities can direct funds to the issue; But activists point to decades of high rates of gender-based violence as evidence of a disconnect between policy and practice and a national strategic plan announced six years ago that failed to address the problems.

Mangwiro-Tsanga said the lack of women’s shelters and other safe places showed that South Africa’s policies were progressive on paper but poorly implemented.

“The reality in South Africa is that a man who rapes a woman will be arrested, he will go to jail. The state will spend more on that rapist than it does on the rape survivor,” he said.

South Africa has a very low conviction rate for rape; Only 8% of those reported in 2021 resulted in a conviction. According to Amnesty International, many cases were removed from the criminal justice system, and many were never prosecuted.

Women take their safety into their own hands

Despite assurances from authorities that action will be renewed, South African women are taking action of their own, even if it means keeping their education secret from their partners and husbands.

Michael Palin, manager of the jiu-jitsu gym, said not all of his female partners knew they were participating in the workout. Some say they will go to the mall in front of the gym.

Beauty therapist Marguerite Hershensohn, 49, attends gun lessons with her 21-year-old daughter Nika. Hershensohn said she is relieved that her daughter has learned to protect herself with a gun and doesn’t always trust police.

“Yes, we must respect these authorities,” he said. “But they’re not around all the time.”

Hershensohn said the women who attended the training “didn’t look like GI Jane.” “We just look like normal women.”

But Mangwiro-Tsanga warned that women’s tendency to resort to weapons or martial arts when society fails to protect them could also cause problems. Instead of dealing with the perpetrators, she said, “it puts a burden on women and girls who are already a burden.”

Jiu-jitsu class instructor Stephanie Graham said that although many women in her program have gained confidence, there is no guarantee they will always be able to defend themselves.

“We would hope that this would give us more confidence and more awareness so that we could detect a threat a little bit earlier than the average person,” Graham said.

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