The campaign, which takes place from 26 November to 10 December, is a rallying cry for the business community to get involved in addressing gender-based violence and child abuse in South Africa.

 

"Statistics show us that South Africa is one of the countries that has high rates of child abuse. While the incidence of child abuse and neglect is increasing exponentially, there are limited resources to offer support and promote healing. There is an increasing need for the business community to contribute to the development of tools and resources that will increase the reach of support organisations," says Pamilla Mudhray, Head of Corporate Social Investment at Sasol.

 

Sasol's key focus is on preventing abuse as well as providing a network of care for survivors of abuse. The company has been involved in three major projects which address the growing problem - the national Stop Gender Violence Helpline (SGV); a school based education programme in the Free State, Gauteng and Mpumalanga schools called Broken Dreams; as well as the creation of a Healers Package in partnership with Resources Aimed at the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (RAPCAN) at the University of Cape Town.

 

A major concern for Mudhray is access to help for victims of abuse. "Survivors of violence live in fear and shame. People who live in cities and towns have resources for counseling and support, but people in rural areas don't have these facilities. The Stop Gender Violence Helpline has become an important resource, because it is confidential, free and available country wide."

 

Operated by LifeLine, the helpline currently averages 15 000 received calls per month, peaking to an average of 25 000 calls during the 16 Days of Activism: No Violence Against Women and Children campaign. It changed from the Stop Women Abuse Helpline to the Stop Gender Violence Helpline when it was discovered that up to 40% of the helpline callers were male, including both perpetrators and survivors of abuse. The helpline number is 0800 150 150.

 

Sasol's funding has enabled the Stop Gender Violence helpline to train and employ more counsellors, some of whom are male. The company is now investing in developing materials and driving awareness about the line. A feature story appeared in Kaelo - Stories of Hope on Monday 26 November at 18h00 on SABC 2, and will be repeated on Wednesday 28 November at 11h30.

 

"Businesses may shy away from contributing to sensitive issues such as gender violence," says Busi Dhlamini, Stop Gender Violence Helpline Project Co-ordinator. "Sasol's support shows that big business can get involved with these issues, which affect their staff and the communities they come from. Our next step is to find support to be operational 24 hours per day, rather than the current 07:00 to 21:00, Monday to Friday."

 

Sasol is also involved with the Market Theatre Laboratory project, Broken Dreams, a theatre production dealing with child abuse that tours schools, including schools in Sasolburg and Secunda. After performances, learners interact with the actors in workshops, asking questions and talking about their experiences.

 

"The aim of the Broken Dreams project is to teach children that child abuse is not normal, say no to abuse, report it to someone in authority, seek help and counseling and ensure that learners are alerted to the dangers of Aids as a result of sexual abuse," says Vanessa Cooke, Project Manager at Market Theatre. "As a result of the performances, many children have come forward to seek help as they realized that they were being abused."

 

The Sasol partnership with RAPCAN has enabled the development of the first Healers Package for the caregivers of abused children. The Healing Package, is a series of activity books for children and a healer's training programme and manual. Caregivers such as teachers, parents, childcare workers and policemen will be skilled to care for the special needs of abused children.

 

"Gender-based violence and child abuse is something we need to address consistently all year round, not just during the campaign," says Mudhray. "It is still a major issue in our communities and as businesses, we have the power and responsibility to get involved in addressing it. We would like to partner with other businesses to continue to take action through sustainable projects in this area."

 

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