Women4Women campaign blows the whistle on abuse of SA women

Organisation distributes whistles to women in need, encourages reporting abusive men to police

05 November 2020 - 16:07
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Mrs SA semi-finalists Jo Jackson (left) and Zikhona Ngxata visited Aqua Vista Primary School, East London, to speak about gender-based violence and hand out whistles to students as part of the “Blow the Whistle against Woman Abuse” campaign.
Mrs SA semi-finalists Jo Jackson (left) and Zikhona Ngxata visited Aqua Vista Primary School, East London, to speak about gender-based violence and hand out whistles to students as part of the “Blow the Whistle against Woman Abuse” campaign.
Image: Supplied

SA is one of the countries with the highest rates of violence against women in the world – often a result of severe poverty and a lack of public services and infrastructure.

Past household surveys by the South African Medical Research Council found that as many as 40% of men had hit their partners, while one in four had raped a woman. 

In the 2017-18 financial year, 177,620 crimes against women were reported to police, according to the annual SA Police Service report. That included 36,731 sexual offences and 2,930 murders – up 11% from the previous year.

Against the backdrop of these alarming statistics, with few solutions in sight, Women4Women, the non-profit organisation found by former Miss SA Cindy Nell-Roberts, has launched its “Blow the Whistle against Woman Abuse” campaign. 

Women4Women is distributing whistles to women in less privileged communities that can be worn around the neck. Women are then encouraged to blow the whistle when in danger, and to listen out for whistles of other women who might be in such a situation. 

The campaign also urges women and men alike to “blow the whistle” on men who abuse women. 

For more information on this campaign, email info@women4women.co.za. You can also click here to volunteer to help with the campaign.

This article was published in partnership with Mrs South Africa.


Mrs SA semi-finalists Jo Jackson (left) and Zikhona Ngxata visited Aqua Vista Primary School, East London, to speak about gender-based violence and hand out whistles to students as part of the “Blow the Whistle against Woman Abuse” campaign.
Mrs SA semi-finalists Jo Jackson (left) and Zikhona Ngxata visited Aqua Vista Primary School, East London, to speak about gender-based violence and hand out whistles to students as part of the “Blow the Whistle against Woman Abuse” campaign.
Image: Supplied
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