Social development deputy minister says women are 'equally responsible' for gender-based violence

Deputy minister of social development Hendrietta Bogopane-Zulu's recent comments on gender-based violence (GBV) have sparked fierce debate on social media.

Amid the 16 days of activism for no violence against women and children campaign, Bogopane-Zulu on Wednesday shared some strong opinions at a conference addressing the issues, saying that women played a part and that men were not solely to blame for gender-based violence.

In her speech, Bogopane-Zulu said women were not only victims but contributors too.

“Let's not sit about waiting for enough evidence while women and children are dying. Evidence and research must find us in the process of action.

“Women are not only victims, but also contributors. We raise angry boys. We are all equally guilty.”

According to Bogopane-Zulu, one of the contributing factors included women withholding their children from their fathers, which leads to anger and rage, which then turns into acts of gender-based violence and femicide.

She also said it was time women took accountability and this accountability must be noted and considered when creating programmes to address such issues.

Bogopane-Zulu said she felt that the same victim-contributor theory should also be applied to the spreading of HIV, and many other issues where women are only seen as victims and not contributors.

Watch the full speech below:

Her comments did not sit well with all, as many felt that she took a serious issue and turned it into a blame game.

Others agreed with her comments. Here is a snapshot of some of the reactions.