PRETORIA - President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on all men to say ‘not in my name’ on the issue of gender-based violence.
Ramaphosa spoke at National Women’s Day celebrations at the Union Buildings in Pretoria.
The event marks the 70th anniversary of the historic 1956 Women’s March.
‘Gender-based violence and femicide is not a woman’s problem. It is a problem of society. It is a problem of violent men. Overcoming this scourge, therefore, demands that men and boys must step forward and say ‘not in my name’,” he said.
In remembering the women who marched in 1956, Ramaphosa said women were not just supporters of the struggle, they were authors of South Africa’s history.
He said women played a central role in the fight against apartheid and in achieving democracy.
“It is because the Women's March of 1956 was not a footnote in our struggle for freedom. That march helped to change the course, the character, and the leadership of the struggle for freedom and justice in our country. It demonstrated that women were not merely supporters of our struggle. They were its leaders, its organizers, and they were its authors."