Page 24 - Bophelo - Edition Two | March 2025

reflects a disturbing normalisation of violence within
More than just
the headlines:
The Continued Crisis of Intimate
Partner Femicide in South Africa
As one of the countries with the highest rates of femicide
in the world, South Africa’s struggle against gender-based
violence (GBV) is far from over. The latest findings from
the South African Medical Research Council’s Gender intimate partner, a grim statistic that has not changed
& Health Research Unit, which has meticulously tracked since 2009. An even more troubling is the finding is
femicide rates for over 20 years, sheds light on a troubling
change in the downward trend: the surge in intimate
partner femicide (IPF) during the first year of COVID-19. country. This increase demands urgent attention, as it
22 THE SOUTH AFRICAN MEDICAL RESEARCH COUNCIL
The most recent research, conducted during the first
year of the COVID-19 pandemic, reveals that three
women continue to be murdered each day by an
that in 2020/21, intimate partner femicides accounted
for a staggering 60.1% of all femicides reported in the
intimate relationships.
The Latest Research Findings
Utilising a comprehensive methodology that analyses
data from medico-legal laboratories and police
investigations, the study paints a vivid picture of the
femicide landscape in South Africa. There’s a significant
decline from 1999 to 2009 but no change in overall
femicides since 2009. It’s a paradox that reveals the need
for systemic change in societal attitudes and behaviour
that normalise, tolerate, and accept the use of violence
in society and relationships, support for organisations
delivering care and support to victims and survivors, and
effective case management for domestic violence and
other key drivers of severe violence against women.
One of the most alarming aspects of the report is the
sharp increase in cases with unidentified perpetrators.
In 2020/21, nearly 50% of femicide cases involved
perpetrators whose identities were not established
years. The report also reveals that less than 1 in 5
during police investigations, up from 30% in previous
intimate partner femicide cases led to a conviction. This
is evidence of weakening justice and police systems
and our failure to ensure justice for women killed in our
country. childhood violence, unemployment, and societal norms
Although the study found an increase in femicides
perpetrated by intimate partners during the first year
of COVID-19, the study provided clear evidence of the
role of alcohol. One of the unintended outcomes of around gender and violence.
the femicide study during the first year of COVID-19 Despite two decades of awareness-raising and research,
was identifying alcohol as a significant risk factor for South Africa appears to be stagnating in its efforts to
femicide. The research indicates a notable decrease combat femicide. As the study reveals, the time for action
in both overall and intimate partner femicides during is now. The implementation of the National Strategic
Plan on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide (NSP-
COVID-19 periods of strict alcohol bans, only to see
rates rebound sharply once restrictions were lifted. This GBVF) and the National Integrated Femicide Prevention
correlation underscores the urgent need for holistic Strategy must be prioritised and adequately funded to
approaches to combat GBV. These holistic approaches create meaningful change.
must not only address the acts of violence but also the
societal and environmental factors contributing to them As the nation reflects on these findings, South Africans
such as high levels of alcohol drinking. must unite to end femicide. Each life lost is a stark
reminder of the urgent need for systemic change. The
Professor Naeemah Abrahams, Chief Specialist Scientist voices of the victims must not be silenced, and their
at the SAMRC Gender & Health Research Unit, asserts stories should not fade into obscurity. Only through
that “femicide is preventable.” Her assertion is grounded collective action and a commitment to prevention can
in the extensive research that accentuates the need South Africa hope to break the cycle of violence that
for multi-faceted interventions addressing poverty, claims the lives of so many women.
THE COMMUNITY ISSUE 23